Home19 Strokes
A quick post, since I've been sort of busy lately and my roommate needs to stop playing with our wifi.
Went to swim class on Sunday and it went really well... for a majority of the time. The worst part of the class was when we did the catch-up drill while holding sticks. The goal is to remain tall and the stick is used to reinforce the drill's technique. Unfortunately it just seemed to discombobulate me, and I dubbed it "the drowning stick". Luckily everyone in my lane seemed to have major issues using the stick.
Later, while counting strokes I counted 19 in one lap! That is a huge improvement from the 24 I was using just a few weeks ago. They say under 20 is great. In the article, 'Beginner's Guide to Swimming', writer Matt Bean writes: "Elite swimmers like Phelps can easily traverse a 25-yard pool in seven strokes (each hand entry counts as a stroke)." Yeah well... Phelps can suck it. If I was built like a man-sea-monster I could too.
Anyway, on my return lap from counting the 19 strokes, I surfaced to see the other coach (who during my first class made me feel hopelessly terrible) giving me the thumbs up. He said I've definitely improved and seemed really excited by this. So I left class feeling pretty awesome and optimistic about improving even more in the future.
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1 comments:
Practice makes perfect. It does help to have someone around to notice your improvements and make critiques though. On a semi-unrelated note, the writer of the zen books I have been reading says to concentrate on the exhale when breathing, and allow the inhale to come naturally. It does actually work very well, though it distracts from technique as it clears your mind. Regardless, I have been using it while running, with positive results. Without your mind in the way, you can do a lot. I was EXHAUSTED by the time I stopped though. :)
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