By Erica Davis
This is the first blog of a three-part series to explain to you, my dear readers, and to give you a mental image of how I, as a challenged athlete, do triathlons. So, since the first leg of a triathlon is swimming, here goes…
If you don’t do this already, try swimming with a pool buoy in between your legs so you are only swimming with your arms while the pool buoy holds your legs up. Then, try to avoid using your abs on top of not using your legs! Swim with your arms and your arms only.
I have a two piece wetsuit that, while in the pool, I wear just the wetsuit bottom. In the ocean I will wear a full wetsuit. Then, I put on braces that go from the back of my thighs down to my calves, keeping my legs straight. Next, I put on a strap that goes around both legs - binding them together.
As mentioned, try to swim without using your abs. I have very limited control of my abs- so if I roll over too far, I could throw off my swim stroke. Despite my limited abdominal control, swimming is a great workout for both my arms and my abs, for they help in any way they can.
All in all, we can get our swim technique looking pretty good just like anyone else even though we don’t have as much power without our ability to kick. So, knowing that, it definitely feels good when I pass someone in a race! Its just all about adaptions and figuring out what works for you, no matter your situation.
My next blog will be on handcycling which is the bike portion of my triathlon. Thanks for reading!
a healthy alternative before many of my races. The one I settled on for my National Championships run over memorial day is the great: