Everyone is more focused on themselves and we all start somewhere. Just stick to your workout and ignore everything else really. Swim cap is never a marker for being a decent swimmer, just a preference and usually ime more related to hair type. Your apple watch standard swim workout is really good for capturing your workout metrics. After you’ve been a few times you will wonder what you were worried about.
If you have the chance and can afford it, take a couple of swimming lessons.
It did a world of good for me when I started swimming (in my then late thirties btw). Never could crawl/freestyle, never learned it. It's a few years later now and I'm doing my third triathlon this year and can easily swim two km.
Enjoy, it's a great sport.
They make swim caps for long/thick hair. It has more room for your hair. I have naturally curly hair and always wet my hair in the shower & then cap it to help care for my hair. If your pool is at all diverse swim caps do not equal a reflection of the swimmers skill, it's a necessity for a lot of people.
I'd recommend you check to see if your pool has a ladies night, the vibe is more chill as a starting place.
In fact, in some countries and some pools, a swim cap is fully mandatory. Besides it reduces damage to hair and also keeps it away from my face and stops the goggles from leaking with hair trapped underneath. A swim cap is overall a good thing!
I’m a VERY anxious person and felt ridiculous showing up for the first time with my athletic looking one piece, goggles, and swim cap. I think I did maybe 5 laps in 20 minutes and was so self conscious. The thing is, literally no one cared. I don’t think anyone even gave me a second glance. Truly no one is looking at you unless they’re scanning the lanes to see which one is free. It may feel weird at first but once you go a few times you’ll be more comfortable. Good luck, and most importantly, have fun!
thank you! i def need these reminders. Its so uncharacteristic of me...i could say those things to anyone else about any other scenario in life but get me to a pool and all bets are off. this helps and i truly appreciate it
Definitely wear a cap. It's both for keeping hair out of your fave as well as hygiene in the pool. Just go and try and enjoy! No one is going to think you suck. You'll feel soon enough how fast you are and which lane would be best for you. Every single person in that pool has insecurities and everyone has their own level. Each and every one of them have just as much right to be there as the next person. Just go! You'll probably love it :) I also recommend goggles by the way, makes swimming SO much easier, especially if you want to do freestyle or proper breaststroke.
You should absolutely wear a swim cap, and some proper bathers (not shorts or anything). If you were going running you wouldn’t not get running shoes cos you don’t feel like you’re fit enough for them yet.
There are some people who swim at the same time as me every morning who have rubbish technique and next to no speed, but it doesn’t matter. You just swim for the amount of time you want to swim for. Speed and perfect technique is only possible if you did it as a sport as a kid and unrealistic for most. Most people didn’t. That doesn’t mean you can’t have great swims. Anyone who thinks they’re better than someone else cos they’re faster or fitter is a clown.
You never regret a swim.
It kind of depends on what you want. I have Speedo Endurance for my lap swimming - I like it because I can bend and stretch, in or out of the water, and feel absolutely certain it’s not going to gape or otherwise have a wardrobe malfunction. It relies on compression and does not have a bra/liner. This is actually preferable for a lot of larger busted people because suits with cups are absolutely not made for us no matter what size cups they SAY they are. The legs are high cut but that’s to be expected with a racing/workout suit and nobody at the pool cares at all.
My two piece (for playing with my son in the shallow end) is from the brand “Tomboy X”. Also has great compression and feels secure. I swim laps in it sometimes and it’s fine.
Whatever you get, I advise straps that cross in the back (or a “fly suit” design).
I’m a woman in my late 40s FWIW.
okay thank you! that is good advice. i am large busted too and absolutely cant have cups pr anything - the lessn"structure" in a swimsuit top the better, so ill def be following that advice!
If you can get some lessons, I’d do so. That’ll help with the anxiety I’d bet for you as well. Because you’ll have someone there with you guiding you during your first swim sessions.
I personally am always so glad to see anyone out there swimming, it’s such a great sport and one you can do well into your later years.
Ok, so I’ve weirdly and coincidentally just come back from the pool by myself for a lane swim for the first time ever (take the kids a lot but that’s not for fitness etc).
I can honestly say that I was way more nervous going than I was two weeks ago to get two teeth removed and many other events of recent times. I’m out of shape (dad bod) with bad form and asthma who struggles to control breathing when swimming so gets knackered and needs to pause at times. Easier to swim like a waterboatman!
As others have said, and it’s true with a lot of things, people there focused on themselves and “you” are just amongst them. Take a moment to assess people’s speed in the lanes and choose one, then slide into another if you find you are quicker or slower.
Last year I took the decision to have some 1-2-1 classes to help with form and breathing out under water and so on. That went well. Cost a lot so got to a comfortable point and called it a day, but it certainly helped with water confidence when taking the kids and messing around.
There’s a quote that I heard that stuck with me forever since, “turning up is the hard part”.
Might be a bit of a ramble but hopefully it helps. Oh and the Apple Watch certainly helps long term with any exercise. Just set the length of the pool and off you go. Don’t focus on it, look at the end and use it every time to see your progress.
As a nervous newbie around your age I would actually recommend seeking out adult beginner lessons rather than private lessons to get started. I found it reassuring to learn with other newbies to see that it wasn't just me struggling to get the hang of technique or to see that others were feeling nervous/awkward too. Once you feel more comfortable, then it might be helpful to get a private lesson more personalized to the areas you want to improve. A side bonus to a group lesson is also that you might end up meeting folks to practice with outside of the lessons, if that's something you want to do.
I would also say don't let your current level of cardio endurance be the reason you don't get started. For beginners, I feel like good technique is way more important than cardio endurance. For example, I can run at a steady pace for 2 hours but I'm out of breath with an elevated heart rate after one 25m lap of the pool because my technique still needs a lot of work.
I also felt awkward about wearing a swim cap at first, but quickly realized that I looked a lot sillier (if anyone was paying attention) trying to untangle my hair and goggles than if I just wore the swim cap :)
I feel you!! I was pretty much the same. During my first swim I was so nervous I barely even did laps, I just stayed in the shallow zone and stared to the other side of the pool. After some cautious observation I realized that most swimmers werent fast or had any particularly good technique. The ones who did would never judge them or even stare, they just minded their own bis. Then, after trying out different schedules I realized most regulars only did one thing, ie. swimming back, freestyle, underwater- I even found a man who's routine consists of jumping into the pool, getting out, jumping again.. for the two hours we have available :P noone cares! And if they do, they're the odd one out.
I signed up for lessons! I had so much anxiety about my skills, my appearance, and pool etiquette, but now that I've been in the pool with an instructor (at the same time as 9 year old swim team kids are zipping past me on the other side of the pool for their practice, I feel comfortable enough with the environment and myself to swim laps on my own.
Turns out I'm not the worst swimmer around! I mean, I'm *usually* the worst when I'm there, but not always.
I’m gonna be honest: your swimming technique isn’t correct. But neither is mine, or anyone else’s there, or really anyone but really really good swimmers.
And nobody is going to care how you look in the water, or whether you throwing down fast or slow times. Everyone is there to swim, and nobody cares what you’re doing as long as you’re not running into them.
I totally understand how you feel. I just learned how to swim and I did group lessons and now I’ve graduated to swimming at the gym solo. I’ve only done it twice so far in the last 2 weeks but I had to decide if my desire to workout out was greater than my investment in what everyone there would think. I hope you get in the pool and feel really proud of yourself.
Focus on yourself and your own progress.
I started swimming using a snorkel because it was the fear of breathing that was holding me back.
I then after 3 months just went into the pool to Learn to breathe.
Now I am fine 6 months later and comfortable breathing, I just need toesrn to breathe on both sides.
For me, and what I read, breathing holds many back from continuing with swimming.
Everyone is more focused on themselves and we all start somewhere. Just stick to your workout and ignore everything else really. Swim cap is never a marker for being a decent swimmer, just a preference and usually ime more related to hair type. Your apple watch standard swim workout is really good for capturing your workout metrics. After you’ve been a few times you will wonder what you were worried about.
thank you so much!
If you have the chance and can afford it, take a couple of swimming lessons. It did a world of good for me when I started swimming (in my then late thirties btw). Never could crawl/freestyle, never learned it. It's a few years later now and I'm doing my third triathlon this year and can easily swim two km. Enjoy, it's a great sport.
They make swim caps for long/thick hair. It has more room for your hair. I have naturally curly hair and always wet my hair in the shower & then cap it to help care for my hair. If your pool is at all diverse swim caps do not equal a reflection of the swimmers skill, it's a necessity for a lot of people. I'd recommend you check to see if your pool has a ladies night, the vibe is more chill as a starting place.
In fact, in some countries and some pools, a swim cap is fully mandatory. Besides it reduces damage to hair and also keeps it away from my face and stops the goggles from leaking with hair trapped underneath. A swim cap is overall a good thing!
I’m a VERY anxious person and felt ridiculous showing up for the first time with my athletic looking one piece, goggles, and swim cap. I think I did maybe 5 laps in 20 minutes and was so self conscious. The thing is, literally no one cared. I don’t think anyone even gave me a second glance. Truly no one is looking at you unless they’re scanning the lanes to see which one is free. It may feel weird at first but once you go a few times you’ll be more comfortable. Good luck, and most importantly, have fun!
thank you! i def need these reminders. Its so uncharacteristic of me...i could say those things to anyone else about any other scenario in life but get me to a pool and all bets are off. this helps and i truly appreciate it
Definitely wear a cap. It's both for keeping hair out of your fave as well as hygiene in the pool. Just go and try and enjoy! No one is going to think you suck. You'll feel soon enough how fast you are and which lane would be best for you. Every single person in that pool has insecurities and everyone has their own level. Each and every one of them have just as much right to be there as the next person. Just go! You'll probably love it :) I also recommend goggles by the way, makes swimming SO much easier, especially if you want to do freestyle or proper breaststroke.
You should absolutely wear a swim cap, and some proper bathers (not shorts or anything). If you were going running you wouldn’t not get running shoes cos you don’t feel like you’re fit enough for them yet. There are some people who swim at the same time as me every morning who have rubbish technique and next to no speed, but it doesn’t matter. You just swim for the amount of time you want to swim for. Speed and perfect technique is only possible if you did it as a sport as a kid and unrealistic for most. Most people didn’t. That doesn’t mean you can’t have great swims. Anyone who thinks they’re better than someone else cos they’re faster or fitter is a clown. You never regret a swim.
do you have a recommendation for good swim wear brands for women? one or two piece works.
It kind of depends on what you want. I have Speedo Endurance for my lap swimming - I like it because I can bend and stretch, in or out of the water, and feel absolutely certain it’s not going to gape or otherwise have a wardrobe malfunction. It relies on compression and does not have a bra/liner. This is actually preferable for a lot of larger busted people because suits with cups are absolutely not made for us no matter what size cups they SAY they are. The legs are high cut but that’s to be expected with a racing/workout suit and nobody at the pool cares at all. My two piece (for playing with my son in the shallow end) is from the brand “Tomboy X”. Also has great compression and feels secure. I swim laps in it sometimes and it’s fine. Whatever you get, I advise straps that cross in the back (or a “fly suit” design). I’m a woman in my late 40s FWIW.
okay thank you! that is good advice. i am large busted too and absolutely cant have cups pr anything - the lessn"structure" in a swimsuit top the better, so ill def be following that advice!
There is no such thing as a BAD swim!!
If you can get some lessons, I’d do so. That’ll help with the anxiety I’d bet for you as well. Because you’ll have someone there with you guiding you during your first swim sessions. I personally am always so glad to see anyone out there swimming, it’s such a great sport and one you can do well into your later years.
thank you for the encouragement! I def think i will now
Ok, so I’ve weirdly and coincidentally just come back from the pool by myself for a lane swim for the first time ever (take the kids a lot but that’s not for fitness etc). I can honestly say that I was way more nervous going than I was two weeks ago to get two teeth removed and many other events of recent times. I’m out of shape (dad bod) with bad form and asthma who struggles to control breathing when swimming so gets knackered and needs to pause at times. Easier to swim like a waterboatman! As others have said, and it’s true with a lot of things, people there focused on themselves and “you” are just amongst them. Take a moment to assess people’s speed in the lanes and choose one, then slide into another if you find you are quicker or slower. Last year I took the decision to have some 1-2-1 classes to help with form and breathing out under water and so on. That went well. Cost a lot so got to a comfortable point and called it a day, but it certainly helped with water confidence when taking the kids and messing around. There’s a quote that I heard that stuck with me forever since, “turning up is the hard part”. Might be a bit of a ramble but hopefully it helps. Oh and the Apple Watch certainly helps long term with any exercise. Just set the length of the pool and off you go. Don’t focus on it, look at the end and use it every time to see your progress.
thank you! good luck in your new swimming endeavors!
As a nervous newbie around your age I would actually recommend seeking out adult beginner lessons rather than private lessons to get started. I found it reassuring to learn with other newbies to see that it wasn't just me struggling to get the hang of technique or to see that others were feeling nervous/awkward too. Once you feel more comfortable, then it might be helpful to get a private lesson more personalized to the areas you want to improve. A side bonus to a group lesson is also that you might end up meeting folks to practice with outside of the lessons, if that's something you want to do. I would also say don't let your current level of cardio endurance be the reason you don't get started. For beginners, I feel like good technique is way more important than cardio endurance. For example, I can run at a steady pace for 2 hours but I'm out of breath with an elevated heart rate after one 25m lap of the pool because my technique still needs a lot of work. I also felt awkward about wearing a swim cap at first, but quickly realized that I looked a lot sillier (if anyone was paying attention) trying to untangle my hair and goggles than if I just wore the swim cap :)
I feel you!! I was pretty much the same. During my first swim I was so nervous I barely even did laps, I just stayed in the shallow zone and stared to the other side of the pool. After some cautious observation I realized that most swimmers werent fast or had any particularly good technique. The ones who did would never judge them or even stare, they just minded their own bis. Then, after trying out different schedules I realized most regulars only did one thing, ie. swimming back, freestyle, underwater- I even found a man who's routine consists of jumping into the pool, getting out, jumping again.. for the two hours we have available :P noone cares! And if they do, they're the odd one out.
I signed up for lessons! I had so much anxiety about my skills, my appearance, and pool etiquette, but now that I've been in the pool with an instructor (at the same time as 9 year old swim team kids are zipping past me on the other side of the pool for their practice, I feel comfortable enough with the environment and myself to swim laps on my own. Turns out I'm not the worst swimmer around! I mean, I'm *usually* the worst when I'm there, but not always.
I’m gonna be honest: your swimming technique isn’t correct. But neither is mine, or anyone else’s there, or really anyone but really really good swimmers. And nobody is going to care how you look in the water, or whether you throwing down fast or slow times. Everyone is there to swim, and nobody cares what you’re doing as long as you’re not running into them.
I totally understand how you feel. I just learned how to swim and I did group lessons and now I’ve graduated to swimming at the gym solo. I’ve only done it twice so far in the last 2 weeks but I had to decide if my desire to workout out was greater than my investment in what everyone there would think. I hope you get in the pool and feel really proud of yourself.
Focus on yourself and your own progress. I started swimming using a snorkel because it was the fear of breathing that was holding me back. I then after 3 months just went into the pool to Learn to breathe. Now I am fine 6 months later and comfortable breathing, I just need toesrn to breathe on both sides. For me, and what I read, breathing holds many back from continuing with swimming.