Comments on: Top Three Reasons Triathletes Should Not Swim Year Round

By: Patrick McCrann

Patrick McCrann — Fri, 27 May 2011 00:45:58 +0000

Thanks for the follow up and the real world example. While your situation is

a bit extreme (57 miles is a good excuse!), your success and perspective

shows that we can all benefit from a training dose of common sense! Good

luck this season.

Patrick

By: Dit

Dit — Fri, 27 May 2011 00:18:30 +0000

Patrick: Over the past couple of years I came to the conclusion it just wasn't practical to do more than one swim a week. I live 57 miles from the nearest pool and it is practically an all day affair to get in a swim. I am 67 and have been doing tris up to half distance and for years have fought this swim problem. At the same time, my swim did not improve that much after a while. And what did I gain? A minute, a minute and a half. Wow!

I don't know why I have done this sooner? Dementia maybe? But, I should have been able to see that I was just not getting the bang for buck. Last year, I deemphasized the swim early on then picked up the swim, to include wetsuit open water as I neared A event date. Did fine. Got out of the water refreshed which is my goal for the swim.

By: Patrick McCrann

Patrick McCrann — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 19:13:26 +0000

Thanks for the reply. Let's remember that 18 weeks is 4.5 months, and on
race day I am advocating you swim as fast as you can while maintaining good
form. In my case, I can swim repeat 100 yds on 1:25 (touching the wall), but
on race day I swim in a wetsuit, about 1:35s...that's waaaaay easier.

That said, being fresh out of the water is paramount. I achieve that by
controlling how I pace my swim, not by spending 5, 6, or 8 months building
swim fitness...I personally don't see a return on that investment given my
lifestyle and focus.

Of course, if you are trying to go sub-9:30 in an IM, that's a different
story altogether...

By: Nick Boyden

Nick Boyden — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:18:47 +0000

Just getting back into the sport after a long lay off, but going on past experience, if I am not reasonably fit swimming-wise, the rest of my race suffers, no matter what distance. Each to their own, but (for longer races in particular) it makes sense for me to get out of the water feeling as fresh as possible. I would be nowhere near fit if I stopped swimming for 6 months & then had an 18 weeks build up – I need a VERY gradual build up due to my ability to attract injury if i build too quickly..

Having said that – with a couple of my friends (sub 9hr ironmen), the first thing to go when they are busy is swimming training – but that still means a 54-56 minute ironman swim to them.

By: Patrick McCrann

Patrick McCrann — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 01:06:18 +0000

I am not a huge fan of cross-training either; but x-c skiing or skate skiing
are the real deal. Not s/b/r specific, but you will be wicked fit! Hope you
aren't in my age group at placid!

By: starless

starless — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 03:19:29 +0000

At the moment, I don't swim, cuz it's boring and time consuming. Plus I need to deal with people in the pool. Cycling and running are activities so much more suited to my type of personality. I've picked up lifting again, though. Weights probably don't make me a faster triathlete, but it feels good—hence, a priority.

I do, however, believe that there is one kind of cross training that pretty much could replace the whole swim–bike–run training trinity for base traning: cross country skiing. Specific training is obviously the best kind, but xc skiing is better cross training for swimming than either running or cycling, it's also more relevant for running than cycling will ever be, and as you can get long, hard aerobic sessions without risking injuries, it's also better for cycling performace than run training. I don't do it as often as I used to, although I got a good two and a half hours earlier today. Good times.

By: Patrick McCrann

Patrick McCrann — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:16:00 +0000

@ Eric — that's a great question. If it's your first time then I think you'll need to be a bit more focused on swimming mainly b/c you just have no idea what you are asking your body (and mind) to do. In your case being such a strong cyclist and a good runner, I really wouldn't sweat the swim (unless you have supa high goals for race day). I know plenty of folks who swim 1:15 – 1:20, bike 5:15 and run 3:45 to be 10:15 which is legit. Maybe post the question over at http://www.triathlonanwers.com for more feedback?

By: Patrick McCrann

Patrick McCrann — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:09:46 +0000

@ Dan — you'll be just fine, and ready to crush the bike for sure. You are lucky to have that kind of pool access…and your dedication is impressive!

By: eric_kenney

eric_kenney — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:54:04 +0000

good stuff. I like it.
what about the first time IM'er or better yet. the first time IM'er/ triathlete with a very strong run or bike??
may be a bot off topic but worth thinking about…

By: Dan G

Dan G — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:23:01 +0000

I swam every third day (before work at 5 am pool is 26 miles away) Monday thru Friday when my gym was open probably averaged 2.5 swims per week for five years rain/shine/snow etc. 2004 IMFL swam a 1:04:13, 2009 swam a 1:04:10.
I wish I would have known this five years ago. I'm drinking the Kool aid and haven't swam since November