Back to basics
My swimming instructor was off sick this week so I took the opportunity to put on my teachers hat and try a few things on my own. I've come to realize my main problems are related to breathing and kicking. I figured I would concentrate on one thing at a time using the approach of 'small steps'. When I use to tutor mathematics it was obvious that you needed to know how to add numbers before you could multiply them. So for me, it was obvious I needed to perfect one small aspect of swimming first. After 30 minutes of self analaysis (which isn't easy when your head is in the water) I worked out my problem with breathing could be one or more of the following:
- Not taking a deep enough breath
- Not exhaling all air
- Being too concerned with inhaling water
I decided to practice breathing at the edge of the pool. When I was kicking at the same time I found my breathing became as irregular as it does when actually swimming. Taking a step back I tried breathing while doing nothing else. Amazing improvement. After several minutes I decided to start kicking again - this resulted in a mass of choking after I swallowed a huge amount of water. I've discovered part of my problem.
I'll be making another trip to the pool during the week in an attempt to concentrate on my new finding. With some luck I'll have managed a small improvement before my next session.
At this point in time I am feeling as if I have a better length in my stroke and am more relaxed (there is less of a mental effort to get to the other end of the pool).
So far things are going well.
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