With an Ironman three weeks away, it was time to try out the old wetsuit. After half a mile in the pool, my arms and shoulders were aching. I mentioned this to my 8x Kona son, Nigel, and he said, “Use a straight arm recovery stroke, Dad. In fact, I’ve been using straight arm recovery for years.”
I tried it with a pull buoy (to emulate the wetsuit) the next day, and being a scientist, I needed data. I jumped in the pool, did a couple of warm up laps, and carried out the experiment (once was enough!).
One-hundred yard test:
High elbow recovery swim stroke: 1:58
Similar effort, straight arm recovery swim stroke: 1:46
One-mile test:
At that time, my mile swim time (much neglected due to pool closures) had degenerated to about 45 minutes.
OK!
One mile with straight arm recovery swim stroke: 36 minutes, shoulders feeling great.
Guess I’m done with high elbow recovery swim stroke.
Fixing my run with PAD will be a whole ‘nother matter.
Never stop training for aging,
Roger A Renne DVM on Keep Your Feet With Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) or Diabetes: “Thanks Kevin for helpful advice on avoiding numb feet.” Feb 24, 13:11
Speak Your Mind