Oh, gutted. So SO disappointed. It is less than 24 hour to the time our 2:30pm wave was meant to start. We received our yellow hats and confirmation hats earlier this week and all plans were in place to meet with friends and celebrate, post-swim.
But earlier today, we got the news that the Friday waves had been post-poned due to weather conditions. It made me feel uneasy all day. Yet, I carried on preparing, made sandwiches for tomorrow, packed the post-swim alcohol (organised the important parts ;-) ) At about 5pm, Great Swim announced their decision to cancel the Saturday waves too.
There is still time for the weather to change, but I can understand why this decision was taken at this time - there would otherwise be lots of people with wasted trips tomorrow, ourselves included.
Unfortunately we had booked into a Youth Hostel, which meant we had paid in full... and their refund policy means no refund if you cancel within 24 hours, which we were inside of. So seriously out of pocket there.. although Great Swim will refund our entry fee.
So, I understand why and appreciate them putting our safety first. Many swimmers for these events are inexperienced in open water (like me) or novice swimmers. Choppy currents and torrential rain, just not ideal. But it doesn't stop the disappointment. Been planning this for 12 months.... been getting excited since entry in November. Devastated would come close!
I managed to swim the mile, in the pool in 45 minutes, several times in fact. So I met this goal.....And so now, time to keep up the training, and look forward to the Great Manchester Swim, in Salford Quays next weekend. Not *as* exciting.....it was a difficult swim for me last year and the scenery could never compete with Windermere, and no post-swim wine/cheese session! But still, a chance to put the training into practise and see a few friendly faces in the water!
Friday, 22 June 2012
Wednesday, 9 May 2012
Triathlons and Training
Well it is now May and my swimming training is coming along rather swimmingly! I have completed several 1 mile distances, which is several more than I managed last year, prior to the events. My freestyle/crawl continues to improve and I am finding it gradually more natural to breathe to the right, as well as to the left. I read somewhere that it is worthwhile persisting with bi-lateral breathing, and yes, it most certainly is. (It used to come naturally to me when I swam crawl in short, sharp bursts, but things are slightly different now I have slowed my stroke down and do it over longer distances.)
I have been keeping a closer check on the clock and I have completed the 1 mile distance in 47 minutes, twice in the last fortnight. So close to my goal of 45 minutes - frustratingly so! I have been swimming at the Aquatics centre in Leeds and this allows me to swim 50 metre lengths, rather than 25 metres, which is much more satisfying. I have been swimming 5 lengths of breaststroke, 5 lengths of crawl, so doing 3 sets of this, with an additional 2 lengths at the end to take me to 32 lengths, or the 1 mile distance.
I have noticed my breaststroke settles into quite a powerful, consistent stroke almost immediately, but I struggle with my breathing on the first set of crawl lengths. By the time I do the second set of crawl (by which time I have swam approximately 750 metres) I feel stronger and focused and can swim crawl without too much of a struggle. I assume this is down to me warming up and into the stroke, but I could do with this happening a little earlier! But overall I feel things are gradually improving and I felt like I could have continued today and done a few more lengths. I am contemplating setting myself a distance goal of 2km, just because I feel like I could, but also because I have never swam that far before. But I want to focus on increasing my speed over the mile, and I am not sure swimming further will necessarily help with this.
In other news, Dylan competed in his first triathlon of the season last weekend. He took part in the Tadcaster triathlon, which is a sprint distance tri (500 metre indoor swim, 14 km bike, 7km run). He did really well and finished it 6 minutes faster than last year. I was there, taking a few photos:
Dylan came 51st out of 310.... HOW AMAZING??? Very proud! It actually inspired me to start thinking about entering a triathlon, but I can't get passed the fact that there is running involved. I don't want to run, thank you very much. BUT.. BUT... big BUT!! I will hopefully be involved this year in one of my favourite triathlons; the Leeds triathlon allows you to enter a relay team, where three people compete in the three different disciplines. There is a 1 mile open water swim, and after that the baton is passed to a cyclist and later a runner. I have started to put a team together with a couple of friends, and hopefully this will become a reality in Leeds, in September :-)
I have been keeping a closer check on the clock and I have completed the 1 mile distance in 47 minutes, twice in the last fortnight. So close to my goal of 45 minutes - frustratingly so! I have been swimming at the Aquatics centre in Leeds and this allows me to swim 50 metre lengths, rather than 25 metres, which is much more satisfying. I have been swimming 5 lengths of breaststroke, 5 lengths of crawl, so doing 3 sets of this, with an additional 2 lengths at the end to take me to 32 lengths, or the 1 mile distance.
I have noticed my breaststroke settles into quite a powerful, consistent stroke almost immediately, but I struggle with my breathing on the first set of crawl lengths. By the time I do the second set of crawl (by which time I have swam approximately 750 metres) I feel stronger and focused and can swim crawl without too much of a struggle. I assume this is down to me warming up and into the stroke, but I could do with this happening a little earlier! But overall I feel things are gradually improving and I felt like I could have continued today and done a few more lengths. I am contemplating setting myself a distance goal of 2km, just because I feel like I could, but also because I have never swam that far before. But I want to focus on increasing my speed over the mile, and I am not sure swimming further will necessarily help with this.
In other news, Dylan competed in his first triathlon of the season last weekend. He took part in the Tadcaster triathlon, which is a sprint distance tri (500 metre indoor swim, 14 km bike, 7km run). He did really well and finished it 6 minutes faster than last year. I was there, taking a few photos:
Dylan came 51st out of 310.... HOW AMAZING??? Very proud! It actually inspired me to start thinking about entering a triathlon, but I can't get passed the fact that there is running involved. I don't want to run, thank you very much. BUT.. BUT... big BUT!! I will hopefully be involved this year in one of my favourite triathlons; the Leeds triathlon allows you to enter a relay team, where three people compete in the three different disciplines. There is a 1 mile open water swim, and after that the baton is passed to a cyclist and later a runner. I have started to put a team together with a couple of friends, and hopefully this will become a reality in Leeds, in September :-)
Wednesday, 4 April 2012
Spring Swimming Update
We are now into April and I have continued a steady swimming training schedule over the last couple of months; swimming 1-2 times per week. For a while, I continued to swim for a pre-determined amount of time, rather than counting lengths, to try to avoid the boredom I used to feel as the laps added up and also to try to avoid feeling overwhelmed by the number of lengths still left to swim.
I have been aiming to swim for at least 30 minutes per session for a few weeks now. I also changed my strategy slightly, for avoiding the length-counting boredom (because I can't avoid the fact that I have to be able to swim 64 lengths!) and aimed to swim 10 lengths of breaststroke and then change to freestyle for as long as I can manage, before switching back to another 10 lengths of breaststroke. It was this that pushed me to slow down my freestyle and think about the principles of the Shaw Method.
About 4 weeks ago I realised I could swim 10 consecutive lengths of freestyle (with a few breathers in between lengths!) if I really slowed it down and concentrated on hip rotation and keeping the leading arm in the water to stabilise my body while I breathe. Over more recent weeks I have aimed to swim 10 lengths breaststroke, 10 lengths freestyle, 10 lengths breaststroke, 10 lengths freestyle etc..... and this has worked REALLY well. No boredom (small goals), no fatigue (s-l-o-w-e-d down the stroke) and I am swimming more freestyle than I ever dared hope I could.
I had an amazing swim last night at the Aquatics centre in Leeds. I swam my 10 lengths per stroke, until I had swam 60 lengths, then I added 4 lengths in breaststroke at the end to cool down. 64 lengths of a 25m pool = 1 mile! I swam 1 mile :-D First time I have done the distance since the GNS last June. And even better than that, 30 lengths of this were using freestyle....AND I enjoyed it!
I swam the distance in approximately 50 minutes (must keep a closer eye on the clock!) and had a few rests (never more than about 15 seconds). I maintained bi-lateral breathing during freestyle and noticed I am slightly weaker when breathing on the right (possibly because I am right-handed and using my left hand to stabilise while I breathe is harder)... so I will be working on this until I feel completely comfortable on both sides.
So my goals now are to keep this up, twice per week until the GNS, and hopefully I will get faster and my rest breaks will lessen. I may start dropping the breaststroke reps to 8 lengths and increasing freestyle to 12 lengths, though this might take a while to achieve.
I have decided to review the goals I set myself in my blog in September:
I have been aiming to swim for at least 30 minutes per session for a few weeks now. I also changed my strategy slightly, for avoiding the length-counting boredom (because I can't avoid the fact that I have to be able to swim 64 lengths!) and aimed to swim 10 lengths of breaststroke and then change to freestyle for as long as I can manage, before switching back to another 10 lengths of breaststroke. It was this that pushed me to slow down my freestyle and think about the principles of the Shaw Method.
About 4 weeks ago I realised I could swim 10 consecutive lengths of freestyle (with a few breathers in between lengths!) if I really slowed it down and concentrated on hip rotation and keeping the leading arm in the water to stabilise my body while I breathe. Over more recent weeks I have aimed to swim 10 lengths breaststroke, 10 lengths freestyle, 10 lengths breaststroke, 10 lengths freestyle etc..... and this has worked REALLY well. No boredom (small goals), no fatigue (s-l-o-w-e-d down the stroke) and I am swimming more freestyle than I ever dared hope I could.
I had an amazing swim last night at the Aquatics centre in Leeds. I swam my 10 lengths per stroke, until I had swam 60 lengths, then I added 4 lengths in breaststroke at the end to cool down. 64 lengths of a 25m pool = 1 mile! I swam 1 mile :-D First time I have done the distance since the GNS last June. And even better than that, 30 lengths of this were using freestyle....AND I enjoyed it!
I swam the distance in approximately 50 minutes (must keep a closer eye on the clock!) and had a few rests (never more than about 15 seconds). I maintained bi-lateral breathing during freestyle and noticed I am slightly weaker when breathing on the right (possibly because I am right-handed and using my left hand to stabilise while I breathe is harder)... so I will be working on this until I feel completely comfortable on both sides.
So my goals now are to keep this up, twice per week until the GNS, and hopefully I will get faster and my rest breaks will lessen. I may start dropping the breaststroke reps to 8 lengths and increasing freestyle to 12 lengths, though this might take a while to achieve.
I have decided to review the goals I set myself in my blog in September:
- To complete the Great Salford Swim
- To complete the Great North Swim
- To complete the Monster Swim at Loch Ness
- To complete the Great Scottish Swim
- To finish all of the above in a time of 45 minutes or less.
- To swim all of the above events using front crawl/freestyle for at least half of the distances.
- Enter the 2.5k Swimathon in April
I have entered the Great Salford Swim (re-named this year, Great Manchester Swim - I bet the people of Salford are not too pleased about this!) and will take part in this on the 1st July.
I will be swimming in the Great North Swim in Windermere on 23rd June (11 weeks - eeeep!)
I have entered and will be swimming in the Monster Swim at Loch Ness on 18th August.
Unfortunately I won't be entering the Great Scottish Swim. It is taking part one week after the Monster Swim and travelling back up to Scotland for a second weekend just isn't practically possible. NEXT year perhaps :-)
And to swim them all in under 45 minutes? Absolutely! I am still up for this challenge, in fact I secretly want to complete one of them in less than 40 minutes....!
As for swimming half the distance in freestyle....bring it on! I am pretty much *there* in the pool. I am capable of doing the distance using freestyle, I just need to adapt this to the open water. I am under no illusions - I know this will be hard because I won't be able to see where I am going as easily, and freestyle in open water is disorienting, but it feels achievable - dare I even think that I might swim the majority of the distance using freestyle?
And Swimathon. Hmmm. Would like to do Swimathon, but it is in 2 weeks at my local pool and we already have plans for the day (which could be altered). I don't feel a huge pull to do Swimathon his year. Last year it was a good mini-goal in my training, ensuring I could manage the distance in a pool. I have already achieved this, this year. So, unsure of this. I did set the goal to do the 2.5k, not the 1.5k..... but still. Swimathon remains a maybe.
Monday, 16 January 2012
2012 swims in.
Well it's January again and new year, new plans (though they haven't changed drastically).
I have entered three swimming events so far which I am VERY excited about at this stage:
Great North Swim - 1 mile - Windermere
Great Manchester Swim - 1 mile - Salford Quays
The Monster Swim - 1 mile - Loch Ness
I am hugely excited about swimming in the Monster Swim as I first read about this in the Spring/Summer of 2011, but it simply wasn't possible for me to enter last year. Have been waiting for them to open entry and announce 2012's events and it finally happened last week. I am also really pleased that I have four friends (and possibly a few more TBC) who have also entered and who I will be swimming with. The only downside is that my husband won't be able to swim alongside me; we will be staying at Loch Ness for a few days with our four children and he will be looking after them while I swim. At least I will have a good support squad on the shores, just hoping they shout loud enough to keep Nessie away!
I am really pleased to have a few more friends who have caught the outdoor swimming bug this year, it's going to be a great year for swimming!
In September I blogged about Total Immersion and their interpretation of swimming, through a slightly different approach to strokes and technique. Since then, I came across the Shaw Method, which is another company, run by Steven Shaw who offer a similar, though slightly different approach. The Shaw Method is based on the Alexander Technique which I have never practised, but I can empathise with from my Pilates background. It is much more accessible for me as the courses, books and DVDs cost less, and they are based in the UK (Total Immersion is from the USA), which makes it all the better!
I have bought Steven Shaw's book, 'The Art of Swimming' and then the DVD 'Learn to Crawl Again'. Both of these have helped me improve my stroke no end and I am hoping to attend a workshop about front crawl, in April.
I returned to the pool after a 5-6 week break, last night and I concentrated on my stroke and time in the water, rather than the number of lengths completed. I read recently that you need to swim for 20 minutes to feel any cardio-vasucular benefit, so I aimed for 20 minutes in the pool as a starting point for 2012's training. I swam breaststroke, concentrating on my glide and long pull, ensuring that my head was leading and eyes were down at the bottom of the pool. It felt nice to have a relaxing swim and I naturally felt myself warm up (about 10 lengths), and feel strong/peak/pull hard about 10 lengths later. I finished with four lengths of crawl, which I am struggling to adapt to the Shaw Method. The hardest thing is to let your arms to the work and relax the feet and slow the kick right down. There are lots of little things I need to do to adapt my stroke and I am concentrating on the feet at the moment, plus losing the windmill-style arms. In Shaw Method, you rotate the hips with each stroke and keep the leading arm out in front of you until the moving arm is coming back over your head and re-entering the water. So for my last four lengths, I crawled, but slowed it right down.
Things are improving though. Another swimmer stopped me in the pool and commented on what a graceful swimmer I am and how she hadn't seen anyone swim with such a gracefu stroke before, like I was just gliding through the water. So, nice positive feedback from the pool. I often think it would be nice to get someone to video me swimming (something which happens when you attend a Shaw course) so I could see where I could improve on my stroke.
And Swimathon 2012 is back in April, which is an indoor event where you can choose to swim various distances for charity. I haven't yet entered, but I intend to enter the 2.5km swim, which I believe is 100 lengths of a 25m pool.
I am still cycling too. I don't usually go out at all over winter, but the weather has been mild and I have been getting out on my road bike a few times recently and doing around 15 miles. I had intended on going out yesterday but as the temperature reached 0c at its peak, I decided to pass as I don't have a very reliable range on sub-zero cycling gear and didn't fancy getting numb toes.
I have entered three swimming events so far which I am VERY excited about at this stage:
Great North Swim - 1 mile - Windermere
Great Manchester Swim - 1 mile - Salford Quays
The Monster Swim - 1 mile - Loch Ness
I am hugely excited about swimming in the Monster Swim as I first read about this in the Spring/Summer of 2011, but it simply wasn't possible for me to enter last year. Have been waiting for them to open entry and announce 2012's events and it finally happened last week. I am also really pleased that I have four friends (and possibly a few more TBC) who have also entered and who I will be swimming with. The only downside is that my husband won't be able to swim alongside me; we will be staying at Loch Ness for a few days with our four children and he will be looking after them while I swim. At least I will have a good support squad on the shores, just hoping they shout loud enough to keep Nessie away!
I am really pleased to have a few more friends who have caught the outdoor swimming bug this year, it's going to be a great year for swimming!
In September I blogged about Total Immersion and their interpretation of swimming, through a slightly different approach to strokes and technique. Since then, I came across the Shaw Method, which is another company, run by Steven Shaw who offer a similar, though slightly different approach. The Shaw Method is based on the Alexander Technique which I have never practised, but I can empathise with from my Pilates background. It is much more accessible for me as the courses, books and DVDs cost less, and they are based in the UK (Total Immersion is from the USA), which makes it all the better!
I have bought Steven Shaw's book, 'The Art of Swimming' and then the DVD 'Learn to Crawl Again'. Both of these have helped me improve my stroke no end and I am hoping to attend a workshop about front crawl, in April.
I returned to the pool after a 5-6 week break, last night and I concentrated on my stroke and time in the water, rather than the number of lengths completed. I read recently that you need to swim for 20 minutes to feel any cardio-vasucular benefit, so I aimed for 20 minutes in the pool as a starting point for 2012's training. I swam breaststroke, concentrating on my glide and long pull, ensuring that my head was leading and eyes were down at the bottom of the pool. It felt nice to have a relaxing swim and I naturally felt myself warm up (about 10 lengths), and feel strong/peak/pull hard about 10 lengths later. I finished with four lengths of crawl, which I am struggling to adapt to the Shaw Method. The hardest thing is to let your arms to the work and relax the feet and slow the kick right down. There are lots of little things I need to do to adapt my stroke and I am concentrating on the feet at the moment, plus losing the windmill-style arms. In Shaw Method, you rotate the hips with each stroke and keep the leading arm out in front of you until the moving arm is coming back over your head and re-entering the water. So for my last four lengths, I crawled, but slowed it right down.
Things are improving though. Another swimmer stopped me in the pool and commented on what a graceful swimmer I am and how she hadn't seen anyone swim with such a gracefu stroke before, like I was just gliding through the water. So, nice positive feedback from the pool. I often think it would be nice to get someone to video me swimming (something which happens when you attend a Shaw course) so I could see where I could improve on my stroke.
And Swimathon 2012 is back in April, which is an indoor event where you can choose to swim various distances for charity. I haven't yet entered, but I intend to enter the 2.5km swim, which I believe is 100 lengths of a 25m pool.
I am still cycling too. I don't usually go out at all over winter, but the weather has been mild and I have been getting out on my road bike a few times recently and doing around 15 miles. I had intended on going out yesterday but as the temperature reached 0c at its peak, I decided to pass as I don't have a very reliable range on sub-zero cycling gear and didn't fancy getting numb toes.
Monday, 26 September 2011
It's Been A While... and Happy Blog Anniversary!
Where shall I start?!
I decided to have a break from swimming following the Great North Swim in June. I have probably only been in the pool a couple times since (with the exception of family swims!) and I needed the break to save my own sanity from the monotonous up and down of the local pool!
There has been a lot going on since then. Most noticeably my husband competed in the Leeds Triathlon again and shaved a fantastic 15 minutes off his time last year, thanks to his new tri-bike and a sub-30 minute swim leg. I have continued to cycle though it has to be said my enthusiasm has been waning recently as the evenings start to get darker and the temperature is cooler. I have a new interest in swimming again and I want to get back to training over the next few weeks. I have a few plans to help my training go smoothly and I also have plans to enter quite a few more races in 2012.
Three of my friends have also been bitten by the open water swimming bug and I am looking forward to swimming with them in 2012. It seems the high that is felt following an open water event is unrivalled and people are in danger of becoming addicted......!
I set myself a challenge for September to do the '30 Day Shred' DVD which is an intense workout you do at home. It only takes 20 minutes but it's hard work and as we have moved through the month it has been hard to stay motivated and make myself do it as it gets quite monotonous with no changes in the narrative etc. I am doing it with a group of hardcore friends via a Facebook group and we are now on the 26th day with only 4 more to go. It has opened my eyes to resistance training and it is something I now want to build into my fitness, as I think this will help me become a stronger swimmer.
I have also been reading about 'Total Immersion' which is an approach to improving your swimming which seems to shun more conventional methods and from what I can understand, claims to improve your stroke with minimal effort. This is taught in weekend workshops, DVD and a book. Prices are high and workshops are not local to me, but I am curious enough to watch the DVD, though I am still mulling it over. I want to be able to swim at least half of the swims I enter next year using front crawl (as in half the 1 mile distance), so I am looking at ways to improve my stroke and fitness to be able to do this. I will add a link to the 'Total Immersion' website and will let you know how I get on if I decide to buy one of their DVDs/books.
So, Sunday marks the 12 month anniversary of my blog, and it also marks my 35th birthday; so after eating lots of cake and consuming a fair bit of wine at the weekend, I shall be back in the water to put my training back into motion and setting myself goals for 2012.
So far this is what I hope to achieve in 2012:
To help me reach these goals I intend to read more into 'Total Immersion', consider the purchase of a water-proof MP3 player and write training plans with set drills. I may use a pull buoy to help stregthen my arms and I intend to continue some of the muscle building exercises I have learnt through the '30 Day Shred'.
I also intend to continue cycling and may enter a 50k road sportive in May, although my bike is about to be put away for the darker months until March/April.
I decided to have a break from swimming following the Great North Swim in June. I have probably only been in the pool a couple times since (with the exception of family swims!) and I needed the break to save my own sanity from the monotonous up and down of the local pool!
There has been a lot going on since then. Most noticeably my husband competed in the Leeds Triathlon again and shaved a fantastic 15 minutes off his time last year, thanks to his new tri-bike and a sub-30 minute swim leg. I have continued to cycle though it has to be said my enthusiasm has been waning recently as the evenings start to get darker and the temperature is cooler. I have a new interest in swimming again and I want to get back to training over the next few weeks. I have a few plans to help my training go smoothly and I also have plans to enter quite a few more races in 2012.
Three of my friends have also been bitten by the open water swimming bug and I am looking forward to swimming with them in 2012. It seems the high that is felt following an open water event is unrivalled and people are in danger of becoming addicted......!
I set myself a challenge for September to do the '30 Day Shred' DVD which is an intense workout you do at home. It only takes 20 minutes but it's hard work and as we have moved through the month it has been hard to stay motivated and make myself do it as it gets quite monotonous with no changes in the narrative etc. I am doing it with a group of hardcore friends via a Facebook group and we are now on the 26th day with only 4 more to go. It has opened my eyes to resistance training and it is something I now want to build into my fitness, as I think this will help me become a stronger swimmer.
I have also been reading about 'Total Immersion' which is an approach to improving your swimming which seems to shun more conventional methods and from what I can understand, claims to improve your stroke with minimal effort. This is taught in weekend workshops, DVD and a book. Prices are high and workshops are not local to me, but I am curious enough to watch the DVD, though I am still mulling it over. I want to be able to swim at least half of the swims I enter next year using front crawl (as in half the 1 mile distance), so I am looking at ways to improve my stroke and fitness to be able to do this. I will add a link to the 'Total Immersion' website and will let you know how I get on if I decide to buy one of their DVDs/books.
So, Sunday marks the 12 month anniversary of my blog, and it also marks my 35th birthday; so after eating lots of cake and consuming a fair bit of wine at the weekend, I shall be back in the water to put my training back into motion and setting myself goals for 2012.
So far this is what I hope to achieve in 2012:
- To complete the Great Salford Swim
- To complete the Great North Swim
- To complete the Monster Swim at Loch Ness
- To complete the Great Scottish Swim
- To finish all of the above in a time of 45 minutes or less.
- To swim all of the above events using front crawl/freestyle for at least half of the distances.
- Enter the 2.5k Swimathon in April.
To help me reach these goals I intend to read more into 'Total Immersion', consider the purchase of a water-proof MP3 player and write training plans with set drills. I may use a pull buoy to help stregthen my arms and I intend to continue some of the muscle building exercises I have learnt through the '30 Day Shred'.
I also intend to continue cycling and may enter a 50k road sportive in May, although my bike is about to be put away for the darker months until March/April.
Monday, 20 June 2011
I did it! The Great North Swim 18th June 2011
When I woke up on the morning of the Great North Swim, I realised I had to make a decision about whether or not to swim based on my health. I was feeling pretty rough from a hacking cough which had been hanging round for a few days; and although I didn't feel *that* bad, I realised that having a coughing fit in the middle of a lake isn't ideal, plus my lung capacity felt smaller than usual as a result and with the worry about hyperventilating due to the cold water, this too was adding to my fear. I was also pretty exhausted from spending several days coughing and had many aching muscles. Generally, I wasn't feeling in great shape for a Big Swim.
As we packed to get ready and headed off for the Lake District, I put it out of my mind and I think the excitement and adrenalin took over and I stopped worrying and got hold of some perspective (in that I could simply ask to be hauled out by the lovely kayakers/rescue boats if I couldn't do it. )
We (my husband, our four children and my parents) arrived in Bowness at about 9am and there was already a fabulous atmosphere there as it was full of swimmers and their families. The children were very excited to catch a 'road-train' to Bowness Pier so the day was already a success for them! We then boarded a launch ferry which took us to Brockhole, then we caught a bus to the event site. Cue more excitement from the children (car, train, boat, bus... all in the space of a couple of hours!) and we were very lucky with timings and didn't have to hang around at all.
We arrived at the event site which by 11am was extremely busy and muddy. The weather was typical of a June day in the North West, warm, humid, cloudy though luckily for us no rain. The clouds sat low on the Old Man of Coniston and the scenery and atmosphere was pretty spectacular.
We had a quick look around the event village and there seemed to be a fair amount of things to do, though I was later informed by my parents, who were looking after our children while we swam, that there were long queues for most things and it was a struggle to entertain them due to the crowds. In retrospect, it might have been an idea to have walked a little bit further round the lake where there was space for the children to run around and see the swimmers from the edge as it was pretty impossible to see the course from the event village (unless you were in the grandstand) as I suspect they felt a little disconnected from the events of the day and did get a little bored.
We got changed and entered the starting area. We were thrilled to find that Duncan Goodhew was swimming in our wave (British Gas Staff: Purple Hats: 1pm!) and we had a little warm up on land, wiggling and jiggling away with the other British Gas staff who chose to swim, and of course Mr Goodhew himself!
We were then invited to acclimatise before we swam in a small area of the lake. I knew this was important for me after having the bad experience with 'cold water shock' and hyperventilating as a result at the Salford Swim. As I entered the water, I could feel my breath quicken and I lowered myself into the water and splashed my face. I could feel my lungs constricting straight away and wondered if I would be able to swim. But we had a decent amount of time to acclimatise and this really was key for me. I gradually splashed my face more and then got to a point where I could swim a stroke while half submerging my face and exhaling. The breathlessness left me and we climbed out, ready for the start.
As we started, Dylan and I hung back to the end as I didn't want to feel pressured into swimming too fast straight away. The cold water gave me that now-familiar feeling of anxiety as it hit my lips but I exhaled steadily and counted slowly as I breathed in and then out. Dylan kept a close eye on me but I didn't need to his reassurances this time, I had it under control and used the breathing techniques I had learnt while using hypnosis for relaxation in childbirth! Dylan stayed by my side which was hugely reassuring but I am very pleased to say that I do now feel I could swim in an open water event without having to hold him back (next time!). By the time we reached the 400m metre marker I realised I had overcome my anxieties and had successfully stifled the involuntary reactions of the cold water on my face which had made a large part of the Salford Swim less enjoyable.
The views were amazing. From eyes-on-water level, the Old Man of Coniston glowered in front of us, beyond the lake, with jagged cloud spilling over it. There were various boats, yachts and ferries in view and gaggles of geese not too far away. I had the sense that I was in open water. I didn't feel this at Salford, perhaps as I was surrounded by building and urban structures, and the course there very much followed the line of the Quays; you were never truly 'out there' in the water. I was grinning because I was out in the middle of the lake, the crowds on the shore were far away behind me and I was swimming in the Great North Swim!
Mr Goodhew powered up behind us and chatted with our group of swimmers about the views and the swim and then powered off in front of us - wow - amazing to see him swim for real, he looks as powerful and graceful as he did when I used to watch him swim on the television!
I decided I was feeling confident enough to swim a bit of crawl, so I switched strokes. I haven't trained much in front crawl and my fitness levels at the moment aren't brilliant so I knew I wouldn't be able to maintain it for long, but I know I have a good technical stroke and can be quite fast in short bursts. I have read that crawl can be fairly fast due to the wetsuit helping because of buoyancy (the opposite is often said about swimming breaststroke in a wetsuit) and I certainly felt that. It was like changing up four gears in one go and I felt myself leaving Dylan and powering off up the lake! It was quite addictive, but as suspected I tired very quickly and found myself veering off course quite easily. I have pledged to train myself to a good level of fitness for next year so I can swim 70% of the course in front crawl and aim to have a time of less than 40 minutes....
A perhaps unfortunate side effect of swimming crawl is that one looks down into the depths of the water which was surprisingly clear and I rather alarmingly saw a black mass swim underneath me! I didn't catch a good enough view to see what it was but I suspect it was an eel as it looked like it slithered, like a snake, rather than swim like a fish? I have no idea if eels even live in Windermere or even if they are black, but the sight of it made me hurry on my way rather quickly!
The half way marker was met with mixed feelings. I got to turn around and swim back towards the crowds which was actually rather nice and but I also thought 'am I *only* half way?!' That thought soon dispersed though and the last half of the swim was enjoyable and I swam breaststroke as well as I could given the buoyancy issues.
There was some sort of percussion band on the shores on way back to the event site which added a nice feeling of atmosphere and although I was really starting to tire after 3/4 distance I savoured the feeling of swimming in the lake. There were some quite large, but gentle waves which made us bob about as we swam (possibly a passing ferry?) and it was very easy to lose sight of the next marker and swim slightly off the fastest/straightest line. The kayakers put us right though if we strayed too far.
The feeling of elation was pretty immense as we crossed the finish. I had to be helped out of the lake because the ramp they put in is pretty impossible to walk up when you are wearing swim socks! (Though the swim socks act as a very good guard against pebbles etc while you linger about the start!)
After hooking up with my family again, I searched out my friend Sarah, who was swimming in the 2:30pm green wave. I managed to just catch her before she started and meet her lovely fourth addition to the family who is just 3 months old. She decided to enter the GNS only four weeks prior to the start and she clearly showed immense courage and determination to enter such an event with four children to run around after, including a demanding newborn and she had no training. She did herself proud and raised in the region of £500 in that short time for Mind.
We went back to Ambleside and then onwards to our hostel for the night in Hawkshead. As an aside, I have to say I was pretty impressed with the Youth Hostel we stayed in at Hawkshead. It was the first time we had stayed in a hostel as a family and it was a very positive experience and very good value for money. We really hope to repeat the experience and I suspect they will become our accommodation of choice when we attend various triathlons and swims next year!
Very happy, very elated. I decided in October last year that I would train myself to be able to swim far enough to finish the Great North Swim and I did it, eight months later. I overcame and controlled the anxieties which unexpectedly took hold at the Salford Swim and I now have plans to enter the Great North Swim in 2012. More than likely we will also do Salford again and we also have plans to enter the Monster Swim at Loch Ness in 2012! I aim to swim front crawl for at least 70% of the distance and to complete in a time less than 40 minutes.
My time for the Great North Swim was 57 minutes. I'd be fibbing if I said I wasn't disappointed that it took me longer than the Salford Swim (54 minutes) but I *know* it was a better, more efficient, stronger and faster swim. Swimming in Windermere meant swimming amongst waves and currents and scope to go off course was far greater.. so I take comfort from the thought that I probably swam slightly further than one mile!
I swam in the Great North Swim and it was absolutely fabulous. Can't wait to do it again!
**We later learnt that one of the participants died at the event. I don't really know any further details, but offer condolences as I am sure any of you who are reading, do also, to his family.**
Thursday, 16 June 2011
Nerves (again)!
Well, I decided I WOULD enter the Great North Swim and it is now two days until we swim again. We are swimming the 1 mile distance on Saturday 18th June at 1pm.
To say I am nervous is an understatement. Until now I have been remembering the euphoria I felt post-Salford but I am now remembering the difficult bits. My confidence is not helped by the fact that I haven't been swimming much recently and due to a holiday and now a cough I can't quite shake off, I haven't been cycling either. It's only been one month since Salford, so if I could do it then, I am sure I can do it again now, but it had been my intention to swim twice every week in the time in between the two events so I could hopefully do a better time.
On a more positive note, I have changed my wetsuit for a smaller one, so I hope this will mean I have less problems with buoyancy. I have also been educating myself in 'cold water shock' AKA the Dive Reflex. I am prepared for it to happen again and have been practising deep breathing techniques to ensure I cope with the involuntary hyperventilating which occurred last time. (Techniques learnt from Hypnobirthing, written by Marie Mongan, which worked successfully when I had my fourth child, three years ago!) I intend to get my face wet in the cold water as soon as I can and hopefully I can acclimatise quicker this time. I am happy to hear that Windermere is currently 16.7 degrees which is more than 2 degrees warmer than Salford.
There are a few articles below which I bookmarked and found useful:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammalian_diving_reflex
http://www.feelforthewater.com/2011/06/avoiding-cold-water-shock.html
http://openwaterswimming.eu/node/1834
http://www.slb-coaching.com/trainingInformation.asp?Id=7
http://daretotrilife.blogspot.com/2011/05/open-water-swims-dont-panic.html
Dylan is swimming with me and although I am hoping I will be OK this time, to allow him to go at his own pace and try to get a good time, I know he'll stay by my side if I need him to be.
Should be a great weekend though. It's the babysitter's (AKA Grandparents!!) birthday (My Mum) and Father's Day, and we are all (my husband, four kids, and my parents) are spending it in the Lake District at a hugely exciting event, then we have a night in Hawkshead with them all where we can celebrate the occasions and enjoy the post-swim euphoria.
I also have a good friend swimming later in the day and she and her family will be staying nearby, so hoping to have time to catch up with her too.
So I have packed my swim bag (wetsuit, goggles, two hats, swim socks, timing chip, towel and park and sail voucher).. now just need to figure out what the six of us need for an overnight stay (everything but the kitchen sink!)
To say I am nervous is an understatement. Until now I have been remembering the euphoria I felt post-Salford but I am now remembering the difficult bits. My confidence is not helped by the fact that I haven't been swimming much recently and due to a holiday and now a cough I can't quite shake off, I haven't been cycling either. It's only been one month since Salford, so if I could do it then, I am sure I can do it again now, but it had been my intention to swim twice every week in the time in between the two events so I could hopefully do a better time.
On a more positive note, I have changed my wetsuit for a smaller one, so I hope this will mean I have less problems with buoyancy. I have also been educating myself in 'cold water shock' AKA the Dive Reflex. I am prepared for it to happen again and have been practising deep breathing techniques to ensure I cope with the involuntary hyperventilating which occurred last time. (Techniques learnt from Hypnobirthing, written by Marie Mongan, which worked successfully when I had my fourth child, three years ago!) I intend to get my face wet in the cold water as soon as I can and hopefully I can acclimatise quicker this time. I am happy to hear that Windermere is currently 16.7 degrees which is more than 2 degrees warmer than Salford.
There are a few articles below which I bookmarked and found useful:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammalian_diving_reflex
http://www.feelforthewater.com/2011/06/avoiding-cold-water-shock.html
http://openwaterswimming.eu/node/1834
http://www.slb-coaching.com/trainingInformation.asp?Id=7
http://daretotrilife.blogspot.com/2011/05/open-water-swims-dont-panic.html
Dylan is swimming with me and although I am hoping I will be OK this time, to allow him to go at his own pace and try to get a good time, I know he'll stay by my side if I need him to be.
Should be a great weekend though. It's the babysitter's (AKA Grandparents!!) birthday (My Mum) and Father's Day, and we are all (my husband, four kids, and my parents) are spending it in the Lake District at a hugely exciting event, then we have a night in Hawkshead with them all where we can celebrate the occasions and enjoy the post-swim euphoria.
I also have a good friend swimming later in the day and she and her family will be staying nearby, so hoping to have time to catch up with her too.
So I have packed my swim bag (wetsuit, goggles, two hats, swim socks, timing chip, towel and park and sail voucher).. now just need to figure out what the six of us need for an overnight stay (everything but the kitchen sink!)
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