A standard triathlon is swim some meters, bike some miles, run some miles. Sweet!… right?! But uhhh… I can’t swim. Well, I mean… I can float and I’m a self-proclaimed pro at the “Doggy paddle”, have you heard of it? 

Here I am… middle of summer, signed up for a triathlon, but can’t actually do 33% of the sport. Cool. I highlight that it’s in the middle of the summer, because most kids are out of school, which means parents are getting them out of the house before everyone loses their minds. This also means all of the kids are hogging the coaches for swim lessons. In fact, I contacted local universities, local YMCAs… all booked. What’s a girl to do, right? I turned to google, which led me to YouTube and I watched hours of How-To videos, and took all of that to my apartment pool. It went as well as you could possibly imagine. I took videos and sent them to Sage Hopkins pleading for help! He gave me suggestions on getting a couple of tools/equipment to help with my blaring issues. (Thanks Sage!!)

First team swim… the lake. It wasn’t the open water that terrified me. It was and had been, up to this point, holding my face in the water. I don’t know if many truly understand the panic that my body felt. The physiological response was cussing me out asking me why I was drowning my own self?! Luckily Pattie was there. God bless this woman. She had done a couple of sprint Triathlons before, so in my head… she was a professional. She brought a floatation device connected to a belt. Smart. I did not. I had nothing. We swam about 50m out and at about 20m I was full on hyperventilating, rolled over on my back to calm down… I looked at Pattie and told her Ima need her flotation device to save my life. The way back was better…. Ha. 

I worked with a couple of people who were swimmers and had one work with me an hour or so at a regular gym pool. That helped. Another suggested I find a masters program. Pft.. no way. I can’t hang with those folks… 

End of July rolled around… August was wrapping up and finally had to do something. I was getting better (loosely used here), but not better enough. 5 weeks from race day. FIVE. 

First master’s class. I did it. (This whole experience may call for a separate post.) Two days a week, 90 minute sessions. In no time, I was seeing improvements. I was hitting race distance at the lake under the time cap, feeling more calm, more relaxed… 

Outside of my amazing coach, Greg, I’ve watched videos and listened to podcasts. These coaches reinforce what Greg coaches. He’ll give drills or make small modifications that take my brain a little longer to comprehend, but seeing it helps me feel what I’m doing just a little better. 

Effortless Swimming 
Swim 360 

Additionally, I’ve accumulated tools for drills to help correct form and enable me to hit positions feeling the points of performance. 

Disclaimer: these tools should not be crutches, but should be used appropriately to help you. Don’t use them so much, that you can’t swim without them. 

Fins
Pull Buoy
Kickboard
Paddles
Snorkel
The list is the order that I bought them per demand.