5 Tips To Overcome That Open Water Swim Nervousness
1. Practice before race day – don’t expect to feel confident on race day if you have not put in some open water swim practice before-hand. Leaving the big pressure of your 1st open water swim to race day is not a great idea.
2. Warm-up prior to the start of the race – this does not mean you have to get in and some (especially if the water at the venue is cold). Jumps/Arm Swings and some Running will do the trick – elevate that heart rate so that the muscles is pumping and does not go from 80 BPM to 180BPM when the gun goes off
3. Buy yourself a pair of new leak free CLEAR Lenses goggles – nothing worse than starting a swim with goggles that leak and fog up. To swim well, you got to see well. Invest a few Rands into buying a reliable pair of goggles – this will definitely help you around that swim course
4. Start on the sides – not in the middle and not in the front – if you swim wider, you will have more open space and water to yourself – don’t get caught inside the “washing machine” if you are a nervous swimmer – the sides or right at the back are the best places to position yourself
5. Survey the swim course before you start the swim and look for large land-markers so you are able to sight your way around the swim course easier. Once you are in the water at eye level, the marker swim buoys are sometimes hard to spot. By focusing on larger land markers, you are able to plot your way around the swim course a lot faster. If you know where you are swimming to, you will ultimately feel more comfortable and confident which translates into you swimming faster
