Open water swimming: From dipping to swimming
Open water swimming has grown in recent years, after many people discovered it when swimming pools were closed during lockdown. From this start, a growing group of swimmers are looking to take their regular open water dips to the next level. This may be in improving swimming ability, looking to participate in longer swims or wanting to compete against other swimmers in races. In this blog Coach Denise looks at how you can move effectively from swimming for fun to becoming an accomplished, confident swimmer.
Recent years have seen a real growth in the number of people who enjoy swimming outside. While this was a trend before Covid lockdown, with more than 4 million people swimming in lakes, rivers, lochs and seas in 2018, and almost half a million of them swimming outside regularly, the closure of swimming pools during lockdown in 2020, gave this trend a boost. The level of interest, and participation in, swimming outside grew further, and since then many swimmers have carried on getting into the water outside.
As the number of people swimming outside has increased, there has been a parallel increase in the numbers of people looking at ways to progress their swimming journey in the open water. From short dips with friends, often for social and mental health reasons, the next step for many is learning how to swim front crawl. From here, a natural progression is to swim for longer periods and longer distances or compete against others in open water swim races.
There are two main types of open water swim events: mass participation swims over a range of distances; and more competitive swims aimed at those who want to test themselves against others. In addition, there is an increasing interest in swim-based holidays, where companies provide the accommodation alongside a series of swims over a number of days, often in very lovely locations.
Mass participation events are run by companies such as Great Swim or those with previous experience in putting on open water triathlon events. The emphasis in these events is on taking part. Often completing the distance is the challenge in itself, and any stroke can be used.
Competitive swims are also held over a number of distances, but races will have a specific stroke for the event, and swim speeds are generally faster, with a more challenging field of swimmers.
Finding suitable locations for safe, fun open water swimming depends a lot on where you live. If you are lucky enough to leave near the sea or an inland lake or river that helps a lot. However, while your local location may be great for a social dip or short swim, it may not have the distance to allow you to swim further, for longer, and not get bored. A number of websites list swim locations in England and Wales, NOWCA, Swim England and RLSS are some good resources. If you live in Scotland then the right to roam means you can access water bodies more easily, though do make sure you comply with the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. Local Facebook groups are also an excellent resource for advice on swim locations, as well as finding others to swim with.
Whatever you are looking for as your next open water challenge, the first step is moving from dipping to more focused swimming. How hard or easy this will be, depends on how well you can already swim different strokes. For most swimmers, the most effective stroke to swim for longer distances is front crawl. If you are a regular dipper who currently swims breast stroke, head out of the water, then you need to learn a new stroke and also get confident in putting your face into the water. If you have some basic front crawl ability, but are looking to achieve a longer distance, or to compete more seriously, then the focus needs to be on improving technique to be able to swim for longer and faster.
From all starting points, having a training plan will really help in achieving the target swim. Many companies offer generic training plans to help swimmers prepare for their event, AI training plans are growing in popularity, or a coach can develop a specific training plan for you. As with all things, you get what you pay for. A generic plan may work for many people but fitting in all the sessions and keeping the momentum going is harder than if you are working with a coach. The coach can adjust the plan to suit your own strengths and weaknesses, your available time to train, and provide support to keep you on the right track.
Alongside having a training plan, swim technique is hugely important. Water is not a natural medium for us as humans. Moving effectively through the water takes work and practice. Having a swim coach who can provide specific feedback on your developmental needs, suggest suitable drills and be a pair of eyes watching how you swim is really valuable. It can be very difficult to know just how you are actually moving in the water, so having someone giving you that immediate feedback is incredibly useful. Much of the technique coaching can be done inside in a pool, where the water is nice and warm. The open water sessions are used to build distance and familiarity with open water swim skills.
Whatever path you choose on your swim journey, the most important part is to have fun, both in the preparation and at the event. Swimming outside is hugely rewarding, being able to do it well, and with confidence makes it even better.
Denise has been coaching triathletes since 2019 as a coach at her local triathlon club in West Lothian. Between 2019 and 2022, Denise was the Head coach in the club, working with a team of coaches to support and develop triathletes with a wide range of capabilities, completing her BTF Triathlon Level 2 coaching qualification in 2021.
Denise joined Tri Training Harder as a coach in 2021, building on the qualifications through the experience and knowledge passed on by the coaching team.
In 2019 Denise set up and continues to run her own Jog Scotland running group, a mixed ability group of runners who meet weekly. This delivers on her passion for helping people to do much more than they think they can.
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