Naomi from Manchester Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 (edited) Competing (for fun) in the ocean swims around Sydney is my favourite thing about emigrating, I love it! There's usually a few inspirational competitors in their late 60s / early 70s. Next weekend is pretty much the end of the ocean swimming season though. I still buy all my swimming costumes from a UK website though, sounds daft but I just can't find decent swimmers over here. Edited April 21, 2013 by Naomi from Manchester Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacaranda Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 Oh Harpo your OP got me laughing.My OH can't swim properly and its hilarious wtaching him.I should'nt laugh but,just looks so funny.The washing machine comment you made fits my OH to a T!lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 Theres hope for me yet then, i cant swim very well but i find its more like i cant find a technique, i dont really get anywhere and end up tiring myself out very quickly if that makes sense! I'd like to start again and see if i can improve then maybe one day i'll make it to the scary side of the pool haha! Its good fitness, i think i'd enjoy it more than the gym or jogging Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 Oh Harpo your OP got me laughing.My OH can't swim properly and its hilarious wtaching him.I should'nt laugh but,just looks so funny.The washing machine comment you made fits my OH to a T!lol Thats what im like, my legs give up then i start freaking out and swallow water lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted April 23, 2013 Author Share Posted April 23, 2013 I did 30 non stop laps this morning (750m), first 10 were hard, 2nd 10 relatively easy (cos my breathing pattern had settled), 3rd was hard cos muscle fatigue was setting in. Bloody hell, this is amazing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 I did 30 non stop laps this morning (750m), first 10 were hard, 2nd 10 relatively easy (cos my breathing pattern had settled), 3rd was hard cos muscle fatigue was setting in. Bloody hell, this is amazing! This is getting bad Harpo. You are making me feel lazy mate, failed to get up for my ski paddle this morning. I think I'm still on Sydney time after my trip last week as I can't wake up properly. You are my inspiration at the moment. Went for a swim last night though so I'm not a total slack arse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted April 23, 2013 Author Share Posted April 23, 2013 This is getting bad Harpo. You are making me feel lazy mate, failed to get up for my ski paddle this morning. I think I'm still on Sydney time after my trip last week as I can't wake up properly. You are my inspiration at the moment. Went for a swim last night though so I'm not a total slack arse. :biglaugh:WTF?? Wonders never cease! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 This is getting bad Harpo. You are making me feel lazy mate, failed to get up for my ski paddle this morning. I think I'm still on Sydney time after my trip last week as I can't wake up properly. You are my inspiration at the moment. Went for a swim last night though so I'm not a total slack arse. I thought you were supposed to be the mr motivator of perth? You should be disgusted with yourself! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 I thought you were supposed to be the mr motivator of perth? You should be disgusted with yourself! Back to sort of normal this morning stacey. Managed to get up at 6:00 this morning for the ski paddle, just about light by 6:30. Nice morning today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Back to sort of normal this morning stacey. Managed to get up at 6:00 this morning for the ski paddle, just about light by 6:30. Nice morning today. I feel tired even just reading your posts lol, hope you dont see any sharks! Are the rest of your family into fitness all the time, i remember you saying your wife wasnt though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 I feel tired even just reading your posts lol, hope you dont see any sharks! Are the rest of your family into fitness all the time, i remember you saying your wife wasnt though My eldest goes to the gym every day. The kids both had a go at aussie rules and the eldest also played tennis, soccer, modcross. They are both members of the surf club and the eldest one was a really good swimmer and boarder when he was going regularly. I used to take him to swim squad training at 5:30am, 3 times a week up to being about 17. We used to have to get up at 4:30 to get there. On top of the swimming there was either board or ski training every day too, including weekends. He used to enjoy it all though as it was what all his mates were doing. He tried to carry on competing at surflifesaving after he started work but couldn't get to the training enough. After about a year when he was going backwards in the races he stopped competing. The guys that were able to carry on were all at Uni. including his best mate, who now lives in Mooloolaba and competes for them. He's a professional athlete really and the surf club find him a job, pay for his digs, coaches, equipment. Sounds great but they have to train hard. You can forget the ideas of going out drinking and clubbing. They are up every morning at 5:00 for swim training and train mostly 3 times a day. He's had some good gigs though. Spent the summer last year In Jersey as a life guard and had a great time. Youngest has autism so isn't competitive but loves swimming and helps out with the age group coaching. He likes a game of squash too. The wife likes sport and used to do 10Km runs in the UK and we did a couple of triathlons together. She's a pretty good swimmer, mostly due to her doing her schooling in Canada. She told me the school she went to there had a 50m pool and she thought she was a good swimmer in the UK. She joined the swim team in Canada and the first training session she went to the coach said "right, 1Km warm up". My wife could only just about swim 1Km at the time. She let herself go a bit after the kids and has put on a lot of weight so is supposed to be trying to lose weight constantly. She goes on a diet every now and then and does a bit of running until it gets hard, then she finds an excuse. She can usually find an excuse not to do stuff. :wink:. You soon realise it's not the done thing to try and persuade the wife to do stuff, even though you know it will do her good. In winter the surf club has a break but a guy does a running type of club on Sunday mornings and uses the surf club gym for warmup. We do a bit of a gym circuit and a few stretches and then go for a run of differing lengths and intensities. Sometimes we go on the bike paths, sometimes the beach and sometimes the cliff tops. I like the trail running. The wife goes to this squad too and enjoys it most of the time. She usually loses a lot of weight if she keeps it up and feels a lot better for it. She's a good fitness talker really, always full of good intentions. Every time we do a race and she comes along as a spectator she gets fired up and says I'll train up and do that next year. Never seems to happen though lol. Not seen any sharks myself but a guy I paddle with in the mornings got his ski bitten in two last June. Was lucky as another one of my friends got him on the back of the ski and managed to get him to shore. He got a bravery award for it. His ski is in Sharky's chip shop in Hillarys.:biggrin: He said all the way in he was wondering if the shark would take his arms or legs first as they were dragging in the water. Luckily it was more interested in his ski. The way I try to look at it is it's the one and only shark attack at our local beach ever and it's not likely to happen again (I hope). Day off tomorrow for Anzac day so more paddling, running, swimming. All free too Stace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted April 30, 2013 Author Share Posted April 30, 2013 This morning I had a swim at the local pool. Warmed up with 10 lengths, then started swimming to see how far I could go without stopping. On the 19th lap my wedding ring fell off my finger* and I had to stop on the 20th to stop, catch my breath and dive down and get it. If anything it disrupted my rhythm rather than giving me the advantage of a few catch up breaths. Anyway, I carried on and reached a new milestone, 40 lengths (1Km). *cynics or the superstitious among you may take this as an omen of impending infidelity on my part. But I know which side my bread is buttered thank you very much and realise it was purely because my fingers are slimmer as a result of all this exercise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted April 30, 2013 Share Posted April 30, 2013 This morning I had a swim at the local pool. Warmed up with 10 lengths, then started swimming to see how far I could go without stopping. On the 19th lap my wedding ring fell off my finger* and I had to stop on the 20th to stop, catch my breath and dive down and get it. If anything it disrupted my rhythm rather than giving me the advantage of a few catch up breaths. Anyway, I carried on and reached a new milestone, 40 lengths (1Km). *cynics or the superstitious among you may take this as an omen of impending infidelity on my part. But I know which side my bread is buttered thank you very much and realise it was purely because my fingers are slimmer as a result of all this exercise. Good stuff Harpo. Swimming in the morning makes you feel good for the whole day doesn't it. Your story about the wedding ring reminds me of the joke about the guy losing his wedding ring while gardening. His mate in the pub asks him if he found it. Guy replies "No I stomped it in well". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted April 30, 2013 Author Share Posted April 30, 2013 Good stuff Harpo. Swimming in the morning makes you feel good for the whole day doesn't it. Your story about the wedding ring reminds me of the joke about the guy losing his wedding ring while gardening. His mate in the pub asks him if he found it. Guy replies "No I stomped it in well". Yeah Paul, swimming in the morning really does make my brain feel clearer and I feel more alert/awake. After I'd done the 40 laps I basically had a play by doing various different combinations, like swimming with snorkel/pull buoy (which is soooo relaxing) and using fins/kick board (hate that but my legs need strengthening) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Love Shoes Posted April 30, 2013 Share Posted April 30, 2013 I'm 34 and actually can't swim at all. I know how to do it but I have some kind of psychological barrier over me and I feel extremely anxious going in a pool. I really should do some lessons!! I am the same, as a child our school swim instructor pushed me in backwards ... and I have been scared ever since ... many people have said they could teach me how to swim, my MIL was a qualified swimming instructor and has taught a celebrity sports person but still failed with me .... I will get into a pool, I love seeing pools, but I have to stay in the shallow end, as long as me feet touch the bottom I am fine, I can swim a little, and find if I do manage to pluck up the confidence to put my head under the water it is much easier .... I have even been snorkelling in the Maldives and was fine, but once I realised my feet couldn't touch the bottom I had to get out (pretty darn fast BTW) ... it is a psychological issue I am sure and no amount of lessons in the pool would get me to swim, maybe a psychologist would have a better shot .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted April 30, 2013 Author Share Posted April 30, 2013 I am the same, as a child our school swim instructor pushed me in backwards ... and I have been scared ever since ... many people have said they could teach me how to swim, my MIL was a qualified swimming instructor and has taught a celebrity sports person but still failed with me .... I will get into a pool, I love seeing pools, but I have to stay in the shallow end, as long as me feet touch the bottom I am fine, I can swim a little, and find if I do manage to pluck up the confidence to put my head under the water it is much easier .... I have even been snorkelling in the Maldives and was fine, but once I realised my feet couldn't touch the bottom I had to get out (pretty darn fast BTW) ... it is a psychological issue I am sure and no amount of lessons in the pool would get me to swim, maybe a psychologist would have a better shot .... Hmmm, maybe they would, but have a look at the swimsmooth link I posted in the OP. They deal with learners of all levels, including those like yourself who are nervous in water http://www.swimsmooth.com/beginner.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted April 30, 2013 Share Posted April 30, 2013 Im the same - as soon as my feet dont touch the bottom of the pool i start freaking out. I've had some funny/embarassing pool incidents before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Love Shoes Posted April 30, 2013 Share Posted April 30, 2013 Hmmm, maybe they would, but have a look at the swimsmooth link I posted in the OP. They deal with learners of all levels, including those like yourself who are nervous in water http://www.swimsmooth.com/beginner.php Thanks HD I might take a look and see if it can help, I feel as if I miss out on so much being unable to swim .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Love Shoes Posted April 30, 2013 Share Posted April 30, 2013 Im the same - as soon as my feet dont touch the bottom of the pool i start freaking out. I've had some funny/embarassing pool incidents before. It is scary though ... I can be doing really well, then once I realise I am a MM out of my depth panic sets in ... the last summer I spent in Spain I swam the entire length of a pool, I don't know how I did it without freaking out ..:elvis: .. then I grabbed the edges and realised what I had done and started to panic a bit , I do think a lot of it is psychological .........I am going to have a look at the site Harpo has recommended .. :yes: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted April 30, 2013 Share Posted April 30, 2013 It is scary though ... I can be doing really well, then once I realise I am a MM out of my depth panic sets in ... the last summer I spent in Spain I swam the entire length of a pool, I don't know how I did it without freaking out ..:elvis: .. then I grabbed the edges and realised what I had done and started to panic a bit , I do think a lot of it is psychological .........I am going to have a look at the site Harpo has recommended .. :yes: Definitely psychological. I need to sort it out, i want to be able to swim on holiday etc without freaking out. I told you about me trying to drown the dolphin when i freaked out lol. That same day me and dave went down one of the "lazy river" type things in the discovery cove, i had a massive life jacket thing but i still freaked out when i saw the sign saying it was going to 8ft, even though i knew i would be fine. Im ashamed to say the lifeguard dude had to come and drag me out to the side lol. Total red neck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted April 30, 2013 Share Posted April 30, 2013 This morning I had a swim at the local pool. Warmed up with 10 lengths, then started swimming to see how far I could go without stopping. On the 19th lap my wedding ring fell off my finger* and I had to stop on the 20th to stop, catch my breath and dive down and get it. If anything it disrupted my rhythm rather than giving me the advantage of a few catch up breaths. Anyway, I carried on and reached a new milestone, 40 lengths (1Km). *cynics or the superstitious among you may take this as an omen of impending infidelity on my part. But I know which side my bread is buttered thank you very much and realise it was purely because my fingers are slimmer as a result of all this exercise. last time I did laps I found someone's wedding ring - I thought it was just a tatty ring but picked it up anyway and when I looked at it afterwards it was a nice platinum engraved and all - he was one very relieved chap when they called to let him know it had been found! Well done on the km! It really is all about the rhythm and once you get started you can go forever! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted April 30, 2013 Author Share Posted April 30, 2013 last time I did laps I found someone's wedding ring - I thought it was just a tatty ring but picked it up anyway and when I looked at it afterwards it was a nice platinum engraved and all - he was one very relieved chap when they called to let him know it had been found! Well done on the km! It really is all about the rhythm and once you get started you can go forever! Yep, it certainly is, in my case more specifically the rhythm of breathing out slowly and calmly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted May 5, 2013 Author Share Posted May 5, 2013 Another milestone achieved at the weekend: ran my first 10K in 2.5 years (since doing Run Geelong 12K). It wasn't pretty, it wasn't fast, in fact it was downright ugly towards the end! But its a start (not gonna say the time I did it in), and swimming has made all the difference Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted May 6, 2013 Share Posted May 6, 2013 http://bmsc.org.au/ Hey Harpo - maybe come and join us ... :-) Maybe the Bellarine Pool at Ocean Grove tomorrow evening at 7? Best regards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted May 6, 2013 Author Share Posted May 6, 2013 http://bmsc.org.au/ Hey Harpo - maybe come and join us ... :-) Maybe the Bellarine Pool at Ocean Grove tomorrow evening at 7? Best regards. Cheers Alan, that actually sounds quite cool. The Sunday mornings are probably do-able; the Tuesday evenings might be pushing my credit limit a tad with the Mrs, what with kids to put to bed and all that, but I might be able to get the odd pass. What's the format with the Sunday mornings at Leisurelink? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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