swimming troubles

[Elite_Fry]

im starting doing cardio again.. and today was my first day
i did 15 minutes of treadmeal @ 12 speed.
then did some ab stuff
then did some swimming.. after doing 1 lap of the pool i always had to stop and rest cos i was so fucked.. and i kept running out of breathe during the laps and all this water kept coming in my mouth. aww it was horrible!
so becos im so shit at it... should i not bother with it?
or is this something i need to keep doing to get better at?

 

[Haz]

Swimming is 70% technique. You need to learn how to swim efficiently for it to be useful as cardio. Otherwise, you won't be able to do it long enough to see benefits.

Try searching the net. There are lots of pages that can help with technique. I'm relatively new to swimming myself. I screwed up my knees running and cycling, so its the only cardio I can do now. With the advice I'm picking up from web sites, I'm getting ALOT better

First try and get your breathing down. Once you are good at that, you will be able to go much longer. Practice keeping your head under the water and turning to take a breath. Blow out hard through your mouth and nose when your face is under the water, and take a short quick breath when you turn it up and to the side for air.

The biggest enemy in the water is drag. Invest in some speedos, shave your body, keep your hair short. Also, try keeping your body long and straight through the water. Stretch your arms our far ahead of you when you do your strokes. You should feel it in your lats. Don't fight the water either. Try and match the stroke so you are going with the flow of water around you, not against it.

Kicking only provides 10% of your forward movement, so don't waste too much energy on it. I hardly kick at all. And don't bend at the knee. Kicking should come from your hips, and keep your feet flat like a paddle.

Just keep practicing, and you'll be knocking off the laps with ease. In about 2 months I've gone from being able to string only about 8 lengths of the pool, to doing 50-60 lengths without having to stop. Once you get comfortable with your breathing and stroke, it gets much easier.

 

[Vortexx]

i use a scuba mask so that i can keep my head in the water and continioulsy breath, this helps to speed up your technique and condition tremendously