Happy New Year everyone! Wow, can you believe it’s 2012?! That’s just crazy. As you saw in my last post, 2011 was quite the year and I’m so excited for what 2012 has in store. I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday season with their family and friends. The new year always brings about a certain refreshing attitude and everyone seems psyched (at least at first!) to make changes that will make them better people all around. It’s always nice to wrap up the craziness of the Christmas season and return to a somewhat normal schedule.
Speaking of schedules, over the past month and a half or so, I’ve been on my new training schedule. We’re steadily increasing the load and a few weeks ago, I hit my first official 20 hour schedule. Needless to say after that week, I was definitely ready for a recovery week! Let me tell you people, training as a pro is no joke. As Michelle warned me, it is utterly exhausting! I wouldn’t have it any other way though and am thoroughly enjoying all the miles and yards that I’m logging. If all goes well, the time, sweat, and dedication will pay off come racing season.
I thought it might be kind of fun to step through each of the disciplines and give you a run down of what Michelle and I are focusing on. First up is a crowd favorite. Can you guess what it might be?! I’ll give you a hint: it’s the most feared of the 3. That’s right people, swimming! I say it’s the most feared because almost every new triathlete I talk to is coming from either a running or cycling background, has confidence in picking up the other (running or cycling), but always croaks at the thought of getting into the water. I suppose it’s because we’re naturally land creatures and most people weren’t exposed to a ton of water as children. I am a firm believer though that anyone can improve their swim rather than just surviving that first leg of a race. It just takes time and dedication so keep at it!
Fortunately, I am blessed to have been put in the water at less than a year old and then just a few years later, placed on the swim team. I competed until I was a Junior in high school. Like riding a bike, you never lose the ability to swim with a proper stroke; it’s embedded in your muscle memory.
With all that being said though, as a pro, I am actually a weaker swimmer compared to most of the women out there. Many of the pro triathletes were swimmers in college so they have got some mad speed! If you’ve ever watched the pro wave of a race, you’ll notice how closely they swim. They go out VERY fast and usually end up in a single-file line just like in a cycling race. If you can’t hang on to that fastest pack, there is no way you’ll be able to catch back up because as a group, they can obviously handle a quicker pace. That’s exactly why drafting is so beneficial. I discovered this phenomenon first-hand in my pro debut race back at the Dallas Toyota Open in October. The group took off at a quick pace and I (along with a few others) was left in the dust. I wasn’t the last out of the water but I was pretty darn close. Needless to say, I have room for improvement so that I can hang on during the quick start.
How am I going about doing that you ask? Well – it’s simple, a TON of swimming! That’s the only way to get faster. In swimming, shaving off a few seconds requires a lot of yards and time in the pool. Michelle has been giving me 5-6 swims a week with the shortest one usually being in the lower 4000s. If you had told me just a few years ago that I’d get back in the pool and swim yards like I swam while on FLEET, I would have laughed in your face. But – I’m in this to give it my all so to the pool I go, day in and day out.
Aside from a lot of yards, swim technique is also important so a few weeks ago, TJ Fry (owner of SwimShops of the Southwest, a rockstar triathlete, and a former pro-triathlete himself) gave me a lesson. He watched me swim and took some very cool underwater videos. Check them out:
After he shot these, he went back and replayed them so that he could hone in on what needed tweaking. The main thing that I do, according to TJ, is that I have a flat stroke which is caused by not extending my arm and really rolling each stroke out. I was pretty shocked to hear this news because when I was younger, I was always told that I bounced too much! I think at the time, I developed that bounce because I was a butterflier. The more bounce the better, right?!
So anyways – I have developed a flat stroke in my older years and because of this, the front part of my pull is a little too far out to each side rather than closer in line with my eyes. I occasionally get shoulder pain and that’s probably due to the pressure being put on my shoulders by pulling a little wider. It’s my suspicion that butterfly is to blame for this as well. Since you’re pulling with both arms at one time in butterfly, the stroke is naturally wider. I guess I traded the bounce for the wide pull?! So TJ told me to roll each stroke out to where my cheeks actually brush up against my shoulders. He said if it feels weird, that means I’m doing it right! Well I’ve been incorporating that technique change ever since our lesson and I must say, it certainly feels funny! I think I’m beginning to do it more naturally but like all technique changes, it will take time.
I’m so thankful that TJ took time out of his day to help me out; it’s much appreciated and I look forward to learning a lot more from him. I’m still taken aback every time I think about all of the people who were strangers not too long ago who are now supporting and encouraging my athletic pursuits. It’s an amazing blessing!
That wraps up the swimming recap. Keep on putting those yards in everyone; I promise it will get better! Happy training folks!
Sarah Gray Hankla 