Hey ADLCers,
Some time ago I posted seeking info about the Total Immersion (my boss
asked if I was going to learn Spanish while I was there) swim camps. I
just got back from a (nearly) week long 4 stroke clinic.
My concern had been whether it would be suitable for me - I've been
swimming on and off since somebody tipped me into the pool at 2 - but it's
always been entirely recreational, and it's been quite a few years since I
was 2. As it turned out, while most of the swimmers were considerably
younger, there were 5 of us in the 35+ish range.
I really enjoyed the program, and I felt that my swimming improved
dramatically. Well, I *know* it did - I used to do a sort of modified
lifesaving freestyle in part because it was the only way I felt like I
could breathe and I couldn't 'fly at all. I can now butterfly (using fins,
but still) and do a proper freestyle while still being able to breathe.
Obviously if you're working 4 strokes in a little less than a week, there
isn't enough time to do all the drills for long enough to get really good
at them, but I feel like I've got plenty to work on for the foreseeable
future.
One of the things I particularly liked about the program was how they got
us to start to get away from ingrained patterns. By starting with drills
that aren't much like the actual stroke, they get you concentrating on
doing the drill rather than doing the stroke in your accustomed pattern.
Because I'm not all that seriously involved in the swimming world, I can't
say how a non-TI workshop would have been different, but judging this on
its own, I have to say that I thought it was a great experience. And I
know a number of the other adult swimmers expressed an interest in doing
it again next year.
Oblowcarb: Because the pool was pretty cool most days and there was a fair
amount of standing around while stuff was explained, I was frequently
pretty cold. Despite that, I wasn't particularly hungry for most of the
workshop except for the last day when I got out of the pool and felt that
a protein bar would be a good thing. My only problem with staying lowcarb
was the usual problem when eating in restaurants: it's hard to know what
exactly is in some items, and it's harder to judge portions if you're not
weighing things out for yourself. But, I didn't have any cravings or
excessive hunger and I didn't feel overly full after meals, so I think I
did ok. I did give myself an off-plan day traveling home, but I've had no
problem getting back on course, so no worries there. I doubt I lost any
significant weight or built up any muscle, but I can already feel some
places where working this way regularly will build up some areas.
Later,
Martha
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