Overcoming anxiety in open water swimming
Open water swimming can be a big limiter for a lot of people’s enjoyment of triathlon. However, it really doesn’t need to be. With more and more open water events becoming inclusive and the accessibility of open water swimming venues, Coach Soraya gives you some top tips to overcome any anxiety you may have and how to learn to love the open water environment.
Open water: the most terrifying part of a triathlon, right?
– Wrong! Well… it doesn’t have to be.
Before my first triathlon, my then boyfriend (now husband) offered words of encouragement including “keep calm in the swim, if you panic, do breast stroke”. With both of us having grown up by the beach and practically learning how to swim before we could walk, I couldn’t quite understand why he would make such a comment. All you have to do is swim, I thought: what’s the big deal? I entered the cold water completely unprepared and wetsuit-less, and completely confident I would have no problems. The first thing that surprised me was that I couldn’t see anything at all - between the muddy waters and all the people thrashing around and swimming over me, I had no idea where I was going. I suddenly understood why my husband told me not to panic. I wouldn’t say I’m the worlds best swimmer, but growing up in Brazil has given me the opportunity to feel comfortable with the water since a young age. At that moment, I cannot tell you that I was comfortable. I slowed down a little and let the washing machine progress ahead of me - from the back of the pack, I found my rhythm and calmly (and very slowly!) made it around.
I imagine that most of you reading this blog did not grow up in Brazil or with the sea on your doorstep. So I imagine that if it was hard for someone (who group up as a swimming baby) to keep calm in a small race, then it must be quite terrifying for those who haven’t been forced into growing gills! If you are one of those people, I have some good news: you can do this!
“If you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail”.
Below are a few tips on how you can make sure you prepare to succeed!
STEP 1: Find the Trigger
If you suffer from anxiety (or some fear) about the open water swim, the first thing you need to do is try to understand why it scares you, i.e. the trigger. It could be a number of things such as cold water, lack of visibility in or out of the water, depth, claustrophobia / breathing, things brushing against you or simply your level of swimming ability. I’ll confess, my biggest trigger is things brushing against me (twigs, algae, fish, sand…) - this usually sends a little panic message to my brain and I have to do a lot of self talk to keep going.
Once you have figured out the why, hold onto that key bit of information as you will need to address it when you start practicing your open water swimming (see step 2). The idea, is to put yourself in situations that could trigger anxiety but in a controlled environment. For example, as you know, I panic when things brush up against me. So every year, at the start of the season, I find open water venues that are particularly muddy and full of twigs, algae, fish..etc. The closest one to me is Hampstead Heath Ponds - I don’t think you can swim 50m without hitting your hand on the muddy bottom, or leaves getting stuck between your toes or fingers! The first few swims of the season are always hard (I put on a brave face because I also coach there and I wouldn’t want my athletes to realise that I am, well, human!), but as the weeks go by, I get used to it and by the time I’m racing, this is a problem of the past (at least until the following year where I have to start all over again!).
STEP 2: Practice and Learn the Skills
The best advice I can give you is to join as many coached open water swim sessions as possible so that you can get used to swimming around people as well as get some advice and corrections. It will also allow you to test out your gear - make sure your wetsuit fit, that your goggles don’t fill up with water…etc. It is also important to be aware of all the skills you need to master, and don’t be afraid to ask for help if you don’t know how to do them. I have compiled a non-exhaustive long list, but if you feel I have missed any, please comment below!
Sighting: there are many techniques for sighting and you should experiment with all to find what works best for you. How many strokes can you take without sighting but keeping a straight line?
Breathing: whilst you probably have a preferred side, it is important to be comfortable with bilateral breathing as well as different breathing patterns. There are many reasons for this including swimming straight, people splashing next to you or the sun (which coach Diogo doesn’t believe we have in the UK, but we totally do). Being able to change your breathing patterns can also help getting you into a rhythm. For example, you may need to breathe more frequently at the start and breathe 3 times to one side and 3 times to another, and once you settle down breathe bilaterally.
Drafting: whilst drafting is illegal on the bike (for most races), it is completely legal on the swim, and let me tell you - it makes a huge difference. Master the art of drafting and you will go faster for the same effort. #winning. You can draft from the shoulders, hips or feet.
Turning: there are different turning strategies including corkscrew and single arm swimming. You may also want to consider positioning: is it worth going a bit wider? It might actually be faster.
Swimming over people: no, don’t just swim over people for fun but you could find yourself in a position where you are wanting to go one way and there is someone blocking your access because they obviously didn’t practice sighting like you did. There is a way to roll over them discretely. Come to camp in Portugal and we’ll show you how ;)
Swimming straight: you’ll be surprised so see how difficult this actually is. At the pool, we have lines guiding us. In open water, there are no such luxuries. Practice closing your eyes for a few strokes at the pool and see if you are swimming straight (please don’t do this if the pool is packed!).
Stroke rate: whilst at the pool we are always promoting slower turnover rate with more catch for each stroke, with open water, you may find it is more efficient to increase that rate a little (a little, don’t go crazy!) because you inevitably lose some of the catch due to choppy waters and people around you.
STEP 3: Prepare Specifically for Race Day
In addition to the above open water skills, you need to be thinking about your specific race. If you know what to expect and prepare for how to deal with uncomfortable situations, then you are setting yourself up for success.
What kind of start is it?
If it’s a deep water start, think about your position when treading water (hint, you may want to be horizontal before the gun goes).
If it’s a beach start you need to practice running in (this will likely only be possible a few days before your race but this is why you get to do a swim recce). You wan’t to try and see how far out you can get. Some beaches drop off quickly, others have a long gentle gradient1
If it’s a platoon start, you need to practice your diving and make sure you’re not loosing your goggles in the process.
If it’s a ramp start, well, don’t slip!
Other considerations
Positioning: If it’s your first open water swim, it might make more sense to hang back a little or take the course a little wider so that you don’t find yourself right in the middle of all the swimmers.
Wetsuit removal: sometimes the simplest things can make your life difficult! Remember to practice removing the wetsuit and that the sooner you do it coming out of the water, the better as it is easier to remove when there is still water in there. You can start removing the top half of the suit whilst you are running to transition - but one little hint, don’t remove your cap and goggles before doing that otherwise you might lose them.
Swim recce: most races allow you to do a swim recce the day before. This will allow you to learn the course and find your sighting points. At the recce, it’s a good idea to walk though the process in your head with as much detail as possible.
Prepare for the worse case scenario: even though you have done everything in your power to prepare, things don’t always go as planned. It is important to think about what you would do if you did panic. The first thing I would recommend is to do some breast stroke and try to position yourself on the outside where there are fewer people. Use this time to gain control of your breathing again, and when you feel ready, get back into front crawl. If that doesn’t work, then you have the option to seek help: in most races all you have to do is turn onto you back and lift your hand up in a fist. One of the volunteers on the canoe or board will come over and you can hold on - you will no be disqualified for this as long as they don’t help you move forward. This is perfectly acceptable and if you feel you need a little break: you always have this option.
REMEMBER: Breathing is the most important thing!
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