swim coaching injuries

1tony

Hi,

I have just started swim coaching, most of my technique is wrong (well all), anyway have done 4/5 coaching sessions and my right shoulder is very stiff and sore - I generally breath to the right but am beginning to use both

is this something that would be expected or should i be concerned about it

thanks for any advice

tagoona

Hi 1tony,
Stiff and sore would generally be a sign that long underused muscles are getting a workout.
However, if it's painful, you're failing to warm up properly, or your technique is wrong.

Doing anything differently (bi-directional breathing) will always be difficult, but worth it in the end.

1tony

thanks for that
i'm reasonably fit - getting ready for a marathon and thought swinning would be good to relax as a cross training day, not quite working out like that, now signed up to 2 lessons per week so the soft days have turned into harder ones...
anyway i understand that my breathing is totally wrong and need to balance left and right so hopefully that will sort it in a a week or so
Im probably not warming up correctly either - (10-20 lengths is the wam up) so if there are any specific exerrcises out there it would be greatly appreciated

thanks again

WeeBushy

1tony wrote: »

thanks for that
i'm reasonably fit - getting ready for a marathon and thought swinning would be good to relax as a cross training day, not quite working out like that, now signed up to 2 lessons per week so the soft days have turned into harder ones...
anyway i understand that my breathing is totally wrong and need to balance left and right so hopefully that will sort it in a a week or so
Im probably not warming up correctly either - (10-20 lengths is the wam up) so if there are any specific exerrcises out there it would be greatly appreciated

thanks again

Well seeing as swimming is much more taxing on your upper body than lower, your shoulder muscles mightn't be used to that sort of activity even though you're very fit.

For your warm up try at least 400 meters of swimming (I'd often do 200 free, 100 back and 100 breast, just an example), followed by some kicking and pulling drills (ie. legs only and then arms only). When you're doing these kicking and pulling drills try and really concentrate on your stroke, even swim that bit slower so you're sure you're getting it right. Using a leg float is brilliant for this when doing arms only, stops your legs from sinking.

Some good arms only drills that help you concentrate on your stroke are:
One arm freestyle: use a float in the other hand, good for stroke technique and breathing
Catch-up: only use one hand at a time, hold both arms out in front of you, and only when the first hand returns in front of you can the second start pulling, again it's good for concentrating on technique and also stroke timing.
Fist freestyle: A killer! Use your legs in this one, so no floats. Swim normal freestyle but make a fist with your hands. It helps improve forearm sculling.

What is also crucial is to stretch both before and after your swim, it's something that many people tend to neglect and increases risk of injury significantly.

As you've mentioned get your coach to help you out with your stroke and breathing, spending even 10 mins per lesson on this will make a big difference.

Hope this helps.

Clseeper

This is something you should defiantly discuss with your coach. It could be due to a number of things or a combination of all.

1. It may just be you are not used to the upper body work. Get your coach to help you find the exact muscle group which are causing you problems and make sure to stretch these after your warm up and after your cool down.
2. It could be that your stroke is not even and you are putting excess load on one side of your body.
3. It could just be a flexibility issue which will disappear with stretching and time. Something similar to DOMS [Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness]

So talk to your coach. That’s what they’re there for.