I was swimming with hubby today, in the glorious Gold Coast Aquatics centre, 3 outdoor pools, two outdoor fully equipped gyms! That’s when you know they don’t expect it to rain that much! He regularly asks how does he get his swim fitness up, he is more of an endurance runner.
Have a think about that question. What would you do if you wanted to build up running distance: start small, build gradually, but ultimately, just run! Well, it’s much the same for swimming! It must be more frustrating for someone coming from another sport that they have mastered but it’s fundamentally the same: PRACTICE!
How did I get to the point where 4km is an easy pre breakfast workout? I just swam! Gradually built the laps up then kept it ticking over.
The second thing you mustn’t do, specially with a new sport: stop, come back to it and expect it to be the same. Phase fitness is built up over time, and time is what it needs to sustain. I have been swimming several year so a gap for me would be less problematic than a new runner, for example.
- Build distance gradually.
- Just swim! Make it steady.
- Keep it ti king over.
