Swimming

SwimmingNew

My Personal Swimming Journey

1991-2000: I swam competitively on 3 swim teams/year.

2006: I completed my first 1/2 marathon and full marathon

2010-2013: I voluntarily chose to use a road bike as my primary means of transportation

2012-2013: I competed in 5k’s and 10k’s (and a bike race) and earned corporate sponsorships. My interest in triathlon began here.

2013: I fractured my T11 & T12 vertebrae in an trampoline accident (back flip gone bad)

2017: I fractured my L2 in a car accident

2020: I reinvented myself and I’m training to compete in triathlons. I begin racing again on 9/5.

Swimming is one thing that has made a lasting impression on my life beyond what I realized it would when I was younger.  Looking back, I have a lot of gratitude for all the years I competed as a year round competitive swimmer. I see that I genuinely loved the sport and was motivated to participate out of my own desire. When I was younger I didn’t realize that it was helping me develop discipline, strength, drive, healthy habits, and expectations of success, but it’s clear to me now what an impact it had on my life.  It is my hope that all children could have something in their life that serves them as well as swimming served me.

Primarily due to my desire to be an entrepreneur I later identified areas where I became stuck in my physical training and I have decided to incorporate these things into my training as I embark on a familiar, yet new path.

My swimming experience

Most of my swimming experience is from the earlier part of my life. Yet, as I have decided to return to the sport, it feels very natural. I was competing at a high level and attending practices sometimes up to 5x/week.  These habits are engrained into me for all time and they influence my success in the world!

  • Swim team events
  • Swim team history
  • Competitive swimming develops strong character traits
  • A great way to enjoy nature
  • Low impact sport

Swim team events

My best events in while swimming competitive events were- 50 free, 100 free, 200 free, 500 free, 100 breast, 200 IM. I have joined a masters team and will be competing in meets again when the opportunity arises. I practice twice a week with a masters team in the Denver area and I will begin competing in many of these same events again once meets resume Stay tuned for results to be posted! Coming soon!

Swim team history

I joined the neighborhood summer swim team with some neighbors I spent a lot of time with and I was hooked! I was part of this summer swim team for much of elementary and middle school.  When I was in 8th grade, I joined a year round competitive team and began practicing all but 1-2 months/year.  Then, as I moved into high school, I swam with my high school team during the regular season and during the rest of the year I would practice with the year round team.  We had many 2 a day practices, some practices began as early as 5:30am.  These practices were not only in the hot summer months, but in the snowy, Colorado winter months as well.  Imagine jumping into a pool when it’s 40 degrees outside at 5;30am while it’s still dark outside.   I was a dedicated athlete and had a lot of natural motivation to go to these practices and participate wholeheartedly.  I participated in the year round team and my high school team through my senior year. I swam on the junior varsity and varsity teams.

Character traits

Time management, teamwork, coach ability, communication skills, work ethic, perseverance. Not only do swimmers develop physical strength, they develop positive character traits that help overcome challenges and contribute to leadership skills.  If you are looking for a sport that helps to create positive character traits, try swimming on a team and you will surprise yourself with how your limits are challenged.

Enjoy nature with swimming

There are many environments to enjoy swimming, including pools, rivers, lakes, the ocean, etc.  One of the factors of becoming a competitive triathlete is overcoming fears of open water swimming.  Swimming in a pool is very familiar to most people, many people have also swam in lakes, but putting on a pair of goggles after being used to seeing the clear blue water in a pool and instead seeing murky green water is a lot to get used to!  I was always grateful for my swimming experience because of all the fun places there are go to swimming, it is a very useful skill to have, one I suggest everyone have at least basic knowledge of.

Low impact sport

Swimming is a sport that people can participate in until they are in their 80’s or 90’s.   When it comes to training for triathlons, incorporating a swimming workout after a hard run can be very refreshing.  It uses different muscles and avoids injury to the joints so it can feel almost like a recovery, in comparison to running or cycling.

Focus on the 5 Areas of Health

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