Choosing Swimming Lessons

For a month now I've been getting automated emails to remind me that I'm almost out of pre-paid swimming lessons and I should buy some more. In January I took advantage of a members deal with my local council-run leisure centre and signed up for a set of 10 minute sessions. Although it's helped, I started to wonder if I'd progressed beyond what they could offer.

I've enjoyed the lessons, even if I've had three different teachers. All of them have brought something different to the table. Courtney taught me tumble turns, Cathy introduced me to pull buoys and Lynn gave me the confidence to pay the local tri club a visit. The lessons were very inexpensive and I got a little personal guidance each time but they were also short and somewhat unstructured. So I started to investigate alternatives. There are several options but the main ones seem to be as follows.

Council-run / Leisure Centre sessions
Pros: Cheap, local and run by qualified swim instructors.
Cons: Potentially short classes. Groups can mean little 1-2-1 assistance. Need to understand current ability.

Swim or Tri club
Pros: Could be very cheap with the first session sometimes free. Like-minded people. Structured, progressive sessions. Often have access to open water locations.
Cons: Can be intimidating and may require a certain level of ability or confidence.

Private lessons
Pros: 1-2-1 or small groups with focused coaching. Very structured and tailored to your goals. Often held in private pools.
Cons: Expensive!

Guildford Lido

When you're choosing the swimming lessons it's worth spending some time thinking about what your ultimate goals are, how far you're willing to travel, and your budget. That's the fairly easy part. The more difficult thing can be deciding what level you need to start at. I've noticed that leisure centres or council-run sessions have a sometimes bewildering array of adult classes at different ability levels. What's the difference between Improver and Pre-Advanced? What if I can swim 200m breast stroke but only 25m front crawl? If in doubt, call the centre, ask questions, take advantage of any trial sessions. It's well worth it.

Go with an open mind and a student mindset. No I don't mean planning to go to the pub straight after, but be willing to learn and take on board feedback graciously. You have paid your money to learn. You are not the expert. As adults it can sometimes be hard to rediscover that mindset. Being a beginner doesn't come easy and we can be impatient.

I've decided that the best next step for me is to join the local triathlon club. I mentioned Lynn earlier, one of my instructors at the leisure centre. She also coaches at the tri club and was adamant that I was strong enough to join in. This was a HUGE confidence boost as I still have little idea of how I compare to other swimmers. Although I'm a member of Team Bear, because we're so dispersed we just don't have these sorts of meets (yet...) so it's a good option for me. I'll get coaching that's a step up from what I've had so far and I'll have the opportunity to meet more like-minded people. I'm looking forward to it!

What are the swimming facilities like near you? Have you "out grown" your swimming lessons? What was your next step?

Running as Part of a Team

I'm taking part in two team events this year; Endure24 and Equinox24. I've found myself as captain of one of four teams that BoxBellFit have entered into Endure24 which means I need to rally the troops and get us prepped for the day.

I have only taken part in one team running event before, Equinox24 in 2014, but learnt a lot of lessons from that which I will be applying to my preparations this time around.

Agree Your Approach

It's a good idea to have a chat with your team mates before the day, quite some time before the day really, to get a feel for how you're going to approach it. Are you all aiming for a goal (most laps, fastest time) or are you just doing it for fun? Are you all of a similar ability or is there a marked difference between your speeds? Knowing this in advance will help to shape your training and avoid and niggly doubts about whether you'll be letting the side down if you're not a 45-minute 10k runner, for instance.

If you're all in it for the same reasons then that's great, just agree that you'll all train to the best of your abilities and get stuck in on the day. If not though, you might want to agree on some different goals. Perhaps Meg and Mike will aim to run their laps as fast as they can and Simon and Sue will take it easier in between. The team won't be gunning for any prizes perhaps but those with a more competitive edge can still have something to aim for. If you're of different abilities it can still be possible to make it work for everyone. Perhaps arrange your running order so that the speedier members could do a couple of extra laps.

Training
being clear on the aims of the team will help you to mentally prepare for the event and set your expectations appropriately. Arguments and fall outs can be avoided. This is especially key if you're running with people you don't know too well.

It will also help to plan your training. If at all possible, arrange a couple of training runs together, so that you are all comfortable that you can cover the lap distance. It's not essential, of course, but it will help you to bond as a team and learn how to encourage each other. Someone not so good on hills? You'll know to try and make it over to that point on the course to cheer them on. Someone got a niggly knee? Maybe you arrange your running order so they get a bit more rest between laps or suggest some strengthening exercises (if appropriate).

Other Prep
Just as important to think about is the logistics of the event. When are you all turning up, On the morning, the night or even afternoon before? Will someone save a camping spot? Have you got enough tents between you? Who's willing to share? Are you making use of onsite catering or bringing stoves? Are you each in charge of your own food and drink or are you going to club together and split the costs. Who's bringing the cake and who's bringing the beers? This is all important stuff to think about. Put your heads together, exchange packing lists, make it as easy for each other as you can. Try not to end up with three camping stoves but no lighters or fuel.

On The Day
Whatever your team strategy, be supportive to each other on the day. Think about what your runner might need after his or her lap, meet them with their warm layer and some water. Be generous with your cheers and encouragement. Create a team vibe somehow, perhaps matching t-shirts or all agree to wear the same colour. Come up with a team name. Make it fun, even if you're aiming high on the day, it doesn't have to be all slog.

Are there any other points you would include as advice to prepping for a team event? Are you taking part in any this year?

Dealing With Post Race Come Down

So that's it, my "A" race of the year done. I've had a week of rest (necessary since my hip flexors decided to cease up for a while) but am now super keen for the next adventure. I've got swimathon on the Saturday and Glow in the Park with my mum next weekend but no other serious events until June when I tackle Endure24 as part of a team.

After having had such a full and demanding training schedule for the last few months I'm feeling a little lost and have excess excitement and energy flying around with no outlet. This is normal but I continue to struggle with it. I'm used to having more events booked up than I have this year, to use as motivation. Where will I find it now?

I love taking part in events and the volume I've participated in in the past has been more a means of maintaining a level of fitness than anything else. There's certainly a place for those and they are important to remind me why I enjoy running and racing but without targeted training I won't improve.

But then again improvement isn't the be all and end all for me even if there have been occasions when I've had to give myself a stern talking to about my frustrations when I've failed to PB at a race I didn't train for. I'm still getting used to the idea of training with more purpose, to picking events I want to do well at and doing less races "because they look fun" or "have a shiny medal". There are so many events I would like to try just because they look fun, it's clear that this will always have to be part of my life but I need to make peace with what my priorities are. Do I want that new 10k PB, to achieve that ultra marathon, or am I going to be happy just "getting round" as many events as I can? Despite the investment of time that training for longer events requires, I still have a strong inclination towards those.

On asking "what next?" I've had various suggestions that include swimming, adventure races and maybe just a rest. The last one isn't going to happen. And I can't seem to shake the idea of MdS from my head.

What are your priorities when it comes to events? Do you like to improve or do you just like to take part? Can you happily have a mix of both?

Compression Socks and Recovery

As I sit here recovering from the Brighton marathon I thought I'd share an article with you that was posted on the RunFitUK Facebook group a while ago relating to compression socks and recovery. RunFitUK has close ties with the Run Mummy Run group who are fairly well known, not only for their supportive nature but also the compression socks. 

Many's the time I've recognised a fellow member of the group by the socks, but I don't own any myself. Actually I do own a set of compression sleeves but I only wear them on rare occasions. However, the paper presents some very interesting findings around whether wearing compression socks for 48 hours after marathon running can improve functional recovery.

SPOILER ALERT! 

Significant improvement in functional recovery was found in the group who DID wear compression socks compared to the control group. So for those of us planning races only weeks apart (like I used to) the finding are very relevant. Now there's an excuse for buying some properly funky socks...

Image from Run Mummy Run

Do you wear compression socks or sleeves already? Do you feel the benefits?

Should You Exercise When Sick?

I have followed the Precision Nutrition blog for some time. They're a good resource for anyone with an interest in health and fitness with a fine line in infographics. I wanted to share this one in particular because I know I often struggle to decide whether I should work out when I'm feeling under the weather and there really are times when it pays not to try and be superhuman.

When you're training for something it's easy to convince yourself that working out and pushing through is better for you than resting up. Every missed session can feel like a disaster but you need to recover. Maybe you switch the session for something lighter to help the immune system but don't go out and do a hill set. That ain't gonna do you any favours.

There's a full article on working out when sick, as well as the info graphic below and another accompanying infographic on what to eat when sick.

Source: Precision Nutrition

Stay healthy!

Like a Blister in the Sun...

I got an email from a friend of mine who is in training for a marathon. This will be her second one so she’s no stranger to the world of running so I was quite flattered to be asked for advice about blisters. Seriously, I was. Running publications often run articles on blister prevention and treatment so what follows may be common knowledge to a lot of you but I figured a post on what I have found effective might be useful to some of you.

Prevention:

• Let’s cover the very basics first. Wear appropriate footwear for what you’re doing. If you’re running trails, wear a trail shoe, if you’re running roads wear a road shoe. There is a reason for the existence of different types of shoes. A road shoe that gets soggy on a trail will chafe more than a trail shoe that’s had some water proofing treatment and stays drier. Plus your foot should move around less if you’re in the right shoe. Even better if it’s fitted properly
• I'll assume you're already wearing proper running socks as opposed to everyday socks. Do not underestimate what difference that makes! If you don't wear them then you can get pairs for around £5 in sweatshop or the cheap sport shops. You don’t need fancy.
• If your shoes do rub, there are things you can do to help. I have a pair of trail shoes I bought on a whim and didn’t get fitted for. First one shoe started rubbing, then a few months later so did the other. I put patches over the offending areas. These were great and I've had great success with gaffer tape :)

  

  Purpose-made anti-rub patches 

  

  but gaffer tape has a multitude of uses!

• I’ve never used vaseline or body glide on my feet but I’ve heard that some people do that so you could give that a try.
• Deal with hot spots before they turn into blisters. If you feel one starting, put a plaster on it right away. Decent fabric ones tend to stick best but DO get hold of some compeed or similar.

Coping with:

• I’ve only found one way to effectively deal with a blister once I’ve got it, namely by lancing it and then slapping on a compeed plaster. A normal plaster won't do the job here, it'll just cause more friction but compeed protects, cushions and starts to heal the blister. I've run on blisters like this for miles in comfort.

These are things that have worked for me. If you have any other tips please feel free to share!