Here I am, two days after my second End Wet, this time I swam for Epilepsy awareness and funding for the benefit of my Nephew, Sister in Law and Aunt. I know that this is going to sound a bit crazy, but I enjoyed this End Wet (2021 (16 hours 19 minutes)) a lot more than my prior (2017 (13 hours 41 minutes)). I enjoyed it for many reasons, I’d say the number one reason is that the water was cleaner, I could see my forearm with each stroke, it was a cool, sunny day, and I had my best friend Ryan (support paddler for each End Wet) by my side.
Today I’m sore and tired, but when I look back, and into the future it’s worth it. For those of you that don’t know my backstory, here’s the super short version. Full body cast after my third surgery and resulting fused right hip (12 years old), surgery to reconstruct my right knee (19 years old), living a “normal” life that would spiral into imbalance, disfunction and disability due to my existing challenges. By the age of 34 I was failing, had a hump in my back, 4 prescription medications including a statin. I was miserable, had little to no athletic ability and needed a change. I began swimming, when I started it was very difficult to swim a 100 yard interval, and a 200 was impossible. I’m 44 now, so this was a decade ago. Swimming can be a solution for many things, it undoubtably has saved my life (Full story written in an autobiography “Saved with Honu” that tells the story up to my first 10K). Because I’m a late bloomer in all of this (LOA “Late Onstage Athlete”), I don’t really have any fast twitch muscle left. As I’ve aged in this sport over the last decade, I’ve found more and more that my “competition” in this world are former collegiate swimmer that never stopped swimming. I quote competition because I cannot see it that way, it’s BS, when facing distances like these you may find inspiration in these people, but you must realize they are teammates. There’s really no room for competition the way I see it, because worldwide there are so few of us. With all that said, I’m usually a first wave swimmer and a bit of a thumper over all, I’m good with that. The night before the swim we were honored to speak with Sarah Thomas who gave an inspirational speech about vulnerability. She stated that we are a vulnerable group because we need help to succeed. This is correct in every sense of the word, not only are we actively putting our lives on the line, regardless of our ability or training acumen, but we must allow ourselves to find solace and strength in our team. I recently experienced the difference on a swim where my team was incomplete, I couldn’t source that strength and although a shorter swim I didn’t finish. It messed with my head a bit, but I’ve come to realize that the water conditions matter far less than the team conditions. We can train for the water, training for vulnerability and team ends up being an unexpected challenge. Speaking of team, that same race that I didn’t finish, myself and two others were on the same pull boat in that race, and we all finished End Wet 2021. This is my definition of team! Concerning the Red River, well it was pathetic, but like I said because it wasn’t flowing very well it was clean in comparison to 2017. We started the day by wading into mud, just when you thought you were through it there was another embankment, I finally just dove into about one foot of water and pulled myself hand over hand through mud and silt. Then I started the swim near the middle of the river. The first 15 miles was pleasant, I was in a mid-pace level two breath per side bilateral. The river for the first 25 is much more narrow than the last 11 miles, knowing this due to 2017 I was pacing to save energy. Looking back I could have given a bit more, I really wish I had given a bit more, but I didn’t understand how little flow there really was. Thinking about this, it may be worth having a 15 mile option of this race, that 15 is beautiful, and relatively forgiving. If the river gave miles away, they were given within the first 25 miles, and the river might have given 2 miles this year. I was swimming well, if you follow me (I don’t post much) I pull an infant bathtub (Ruck Duck) around Lake Pleasant AZ to take along nutrition, training aides (paddles) and Ruck is a valuable deterrent to not getting hit by the ample boat traffic. I train heavy, and my average pacing pulling Ruck is about 1.8 Miles per hour, without Ruck with a butt buoy 1.9 Miles per hour, and about 2-2.1 swimming free with support. I’m a bit slow for the community, but I’m happy to be able to hang with my “Competition”. I was swimming pace, comfortable and happy. Shoulder pain was creeping in at about 12-15 miles so I took in a bit of ibuprofen (bottle of children’s, with a chewable pepto, chase with water). Passing Thompsons Bridge was wonderful, in 2017 I burst into tears at this point due to the overwhelming emotion of supporting my cause and the realization that it had been the furthest I’d swam. This time around I was more composed, I gave the crowd two strokes of butterfly to thank them for their cheers and kept pace. The next ten were a dream, triceps, biceps, and lats were sore, but I pride myself on a balanced stroke. I’ll define this a bit, because I think it’s important. Try to develop a stroke that leans on your pectorals, biceps, triceps, lats and delts relatively evenly, and if something hurts slight variations in that stroke to lean on another group can make the difference in making your goal (Finis makes Iso paddles that are great for this). I was using this time to have fun with Ryan too, I was talking lewdly about my nutrition balls and how they fill my mouth with sweet goodness, and for no good reason I practice speaking in a Jamaican accent and decided saying Ibuprofen in said accent was a lot of fun “Eeei-buu-pro-fen”. We were having a good day, and although I was swimming stronger, faster and better we were consistently pacing slower than 2017 because the river was stationary. I make a point to not know where I am in the distance, I’d rather be in an unaware meditative space than be calculating pain over distance. People say it’s 90% mental, 10% physical, in my reality it’s about getting my mind out of the way, take in the feedings and trusting in my training. Now for the serious stuff, miles 25+ are the real deal. Up to this point you can swim corner to corner and always have an immediate gratification, that now changes. Not only have you completed 4 marathons already, but now the river widens, dies, and in both 2017 and 2021 your swimming into a head wind through longer, wider channels. With a stationary river this year, I’m pretty sure that due to the headwind it was flowing backwards, at least the top 6-8 inches were as they were forming head slappers and disrupting my breathing. I see the 9 mile sign, I thought we were further along, but the river was done gifting distance. I wasn’t worried about that, I knew I had 9. We are about 8.5 out and Ryan says; “checkpoint is around the corner we need to haul ass”. Ok, I’m thinking let’s make this checkpoint, so haul ass means sprint? That’s a bit to ask, but let’s make that checkpoint. “Around the corner” was in reality a mile away. Ryan knows better than to let me know this, and was not the only time he misquoted distance till the end for my benefit. Ok, so I’m 27 miles in and I’m sprinting a mile, I’ve never been here before, but I’m trusting my training, and trusting my nutrition (which conversely I changed since SCAR 2021). I sprint out that mile, and we pull up to find out we are getting pulled for the day; but wait, there’s more. I yell out; “I can make that distance before dark!” After a brief and maybe heated conversation we get passed through given the knowledge that if we don’t make up time, we’ll get pulled at the next checkpoint. Now I’m tracking the sun, and it’s not really on my side. I don’t train like this, I pull an inflatable duck behind me, I don’t sprint much, but here we go. I did 1 mile in sprint, I can do another 7.5 right? Sure, yeah, I convince myself it’s possible, but more over I decide to put on a show. I’ve got 3.5 miles till the last checkpoint, if I can shave a bit a time, put on a show, leave no doubt that I’m deserving of the chance, then maybe I get that chance. I take off in my strongest, fastest stroke, a left side single breath (Same stroke that caused my left pec to cramp and a bonk on Canyon at SCAR). My mind goes blank, with the exception of this internal drill sergeant who commands stroke over stroke. I tell Ryan; “I’m not stopping, I’m going liquid feed only, at this pace I have to feed every 15”. I have a full 3 liter camelback on the back of the support boat and the hose just hangs in the water. This way, I can see him, get nutrition and grind out distance. I just don’t want to squander this chance. I push through another 3.5 miles of dead sprint at 100%, I get to that checkpoint. There are a couple of things that are happening that I’m unaware of at this point. My family is on shore at the 3 mile checkpoint, my children, wife, race directors and deputy sheriff are in conversation and at some point the sheriff says something to the effect of; “Well it doesn’t really get dark until about 10PM”. He also says something to the effect of “I’ve been watching these guys all day, it’s monumental, I can’t tell them they can’t finish” (A special thank you goes out to this gentleman). All things were on my side at this point, it’s summer solstice so I’ve got a bit of light, the river and flow is no longer a reason, much less and excuse, my mind is dialed in, and my body, well I’m no longer listening (a lesson learned while in that body cast 32 years ago), ignore and override! I guess I swam far enough fast enough to again be given a chance, and this is an opportunity I could not squander. My goals kick back in, and this drill sergeant is commanding my body, the three more miles don’t phase me, nutrition is kicking due to the shortened feeding schedule, and I’m taking each stroke my body will give me, none of which are for granted. It’s just a 5K, I swim them all the time and it’s been base training distance for the last 5 years. Have a ever sprinted one? Hell No! The sun is lowering in the sky, there’s no longer a sun line on the far shore of the river, and I’m still sprinting as hard and fast as I can. It takes a bit but I can now see the bridges towards the end, I know I’m last swimmer now because the support boat is right there. I do the math on feedings and decide I don’t need anything else, I’ve got to be within a mile now. It’s just sprint, breath stroke from here on out. Ryan keeps trying to get me to move to my left, I finally pick up my head and ask him to move to that side so that I can follow his line in. The end point dock is not lit, my goggles are tinted, and a bit worse for wear anyway, I just can’t see it. I ask Ryan; “How many yards?”, he says “100 yards!” Liar! It was a bit farther than 100, but in the moment I give it all I can give for 100, still can’t see it, so another 50, still can’t see it so another 50, still can’t see it, another 25 and then I could see it! I’m now sighting over breath, get close, and to be true to myself and my training requirements I put in three butterfly strokes to finish the swim! I have a fan club there, and there’s a glint of sun still over the horizon. I stayed true to my word, I made that distance before dark, which was mentioned by the race directors; “You’re a man of your word”. Everyone was excited for me, I was exhausted, but I could have gone further if needed (trust in the feedings, trust in the training, get the head out of the way). 16 hours 19 minutes (36 miles), the most swimming I’d done because the river wasn’t giving today. Now some of you may be wondering what mental fuel could possibly be worth putting myself through all of this? Sure I was supporting charity, but bigger than that there are two things; I’m supporting my Nephew, Sister in Law and Aunt. Above and beyond that is the following romantic idea; I have two daughters, but only one 2017 medal. These medals are unique, they have your all time finisher number on the back (2017 #108), (2021 #150), and they are shaped like a dog tag. Here’s where I entrust you with a secret that I need you to keep from my daughters until after Christmas day 2021. I’m giving them each a End Wet medal paired with an engraved dog tag medal of; “Always remember you are Braver than you believe, Stronger than you seem, Smarter than you think, and Loved more than you know.” I did it for them, I did it to prove to them that they are capable, courageous and strong and that eventually it’s a matter of choice to be capable, courageous and strong. I can’t think of a more proof positive way to make this point. Moreover, if you find inspiration in this story then I did it for you, because after all we are teammates. To Sarah Thomas’s point, it’s necessary to be vulnerable, and it’s out duty to give back into the marathon swimming community. There are graced moments in that line between life and death, this was one of those moments. Strength is a test of will, will is a test of self-belief. Much Love, Arlo PS - Sorry I've not posted for a long time, I've not been coaching as much with Covid and a recent move, as such less material. I'll try to get my SCAR experience from this year written too and post that.
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I’ve been coaching for some time now, and I’ve had great success taking existing athletes and creating great swimmers within six weeks. This is predominantly true with triathlon hopefuls. I’ve also had success in cross training athletes for their primary sports, examples are high elevation climbers, and fighters. My greatest accomplishments are helping the non-swimmers become swimmers, make their goals, and thrive in a lifetime sport. I’m at a place with my class where I have all of the above, and although it’s challenging to design a multifaceted board, I’ve learned a couple of tricks over the years. These tricks also increase the validity of pool training for open water swimming and are integral to my personal training program. Some of these are mainstays in the swimming world such as interval training, but I’m going to share with you some of my shortcuts. Then the hard part, IE motivation is up to you, but as a coach, I can provide that.
Pressure the lungs So much of this comes down to breathing, and swimming is one sport where taking breathing for granted is impossible. Fact, in any given breath the human body is functioning on 17% of the oxygen in our lungs. This is great news for a swimmer because air is buoyancy. Getting to a point where you can retain 80% of the buoyancy in your lungs, and only cycle off the top 20% of the air in your lungs to obtain the oxygen that you actually use is a great advantage. In doing this, you increase your O2 saturation, VO2 max, and increase your ATP regeneration real time. If there is one thing you do in the off season to make an impact on your Open Water Swim season it’s to pressure your lungs. Keep your full length A lot of people hit the weight room in the off season, and this is exactly what you want to do if you’re are in an anaerobic sport. Swimming is an aerobic sport, and one where muscle mass makes you prone to drowning IE (fat floats, muscle sinks). The down side to the weight room is your body often tightens up via your facia, and you loose stretch. This can take a couple of weeks to loosen up while getting back into to the pool. I’m proposing that you increase the resistance in the pool, and gain your muscle there. That way you are still keeping pressure on the lungs, and staying loose, or at least packing muscle in the pool environment. Both of the next two focus on building up the minor muscles necessary for swimming. Up the resistance – Banding This last year I introduced fitness bands into my personal workouts. I’ve used them in two primary ways; ankle banding in kick sets in place of fins. Cutting propulsion while creating resistance in the ankles has proven itself formidable in leg, and kick strength. Banding in the center of your quads does a couple of things, it pressures your IT Band shortening your reach. This causes you to overreach, and pull a little higher. The other piece is it forces rotation in your hips, making your breathing line more efficient over time. Once the band is removed the reach and rotation remain, and you become more efficient. Pressure the core – Sculling Sculling looks like the easiest thing to do in the water, but is also known as lifting weights in the water due to its aerobic qualities. My base is called bathtub, and you sit in the water; toes, and head are the only parts of you out of the water. You then move head first towards the opposite side of the pool. Most new students will move their arms flapping them somewhat like a chicken, because they are still fighting buoyancy (See pressure the lungs). Once things begin to come together the buoyancy becomes more automatic, and the movement required to scull gets more efficient. Swim with waves – Masters Swim with a group that makes waves. If you don’t’ have a group, share a lane. You can also swim sets near your local Butterflier. Finding a wave, and trying to breath keeps you ready for open water. Spot the clock If there is a deck clock available in your facility, spotting the clock while swimming is a good way to keep track of your pace, and also preparing for spotting buoys and corners. If you can read a clock while swimming, you can spot a buoy. Change it up You can also get most of this section with a Masters group. Change it up: Mix up your intervals between distance and sprint sets. Add in kicks and sculling. Learn to kick So many open water hopefuls are in a three beat or wide scissor kick. This is a challenge because those kick lines give you little for propulsion, and are generally outside of your natural streamline creating resistance. Taking the off season to grab a board, band your ankles and get the strength and rhythm necessary to kick in open water gives you great advantage in the regular season. These will all make your off season training that much more impactful when you get back to the lake river or ocean. Happy swimming, and if you are looking for an open water race check out the Midwest Marathons. We have many options, including SwamThat, Cornhusker State Games, End Wet, and Minnetonka Challenge. I wanted to write an article dedicated to the New Years resolution crowd. Since I’ve been a member of the swim community, I have witnesses so many individuals change their life. Many of you know that water changed my life, and created stability, both physically and mentally where there was instability. My story is readily available. I don’t want to focus on me but rather the larger picture, and I want to start this article with someone who inspired me.
In my early twenties my wife and I lived in Kansas City. While there we membered at a local YMCA. As I was trying to put in a little distance I became witness to a one legged individual who would swim on a pretty regular basis. He was solid in the water, had great streamline, and good endurance. One day he volunteered the information that he was training to become a lifeguard. From everything that I’d seen I would trust my life to him. Sure enough a couple of weeks later I saw him test out, shortly after that he took the stand, and my life was indeed in his hands. I found this to be inspirational, and of great quality. Years later I’m again at a YMCA and run across an older man that had had multiple heart attacks. Proudly weaning his scars, he would scull for two hours daily. Due to limited accommodations, and my focus on becoming the swimmer I am today we would often share a lane. I continue to be in awe at his ability, and the core strength necessary to perform this daily feat. Over the years, I’ve come across swimmers who have changed their lives. Two have traded out two packs of cigarettes daily for a daily 5K, and have become channel swimmers. I’ve seen amputees swim great distance, including channels with more grace than most people could with a fully able body. I’ve seen people battling their weight find athleticism and comfort with their bodies trading obesity for muscle through their daily triage. I’ve seen people who are struggling to get out of their head to find themselves, be it depression, loss, even anger find the calm of water. I’ve seen people come from a place of addiction to pain killers activate their own bodies natural systems to defeat pain. I’ve seen people who would never consider themselves an athlete, become just that regardless of the disadvantage they may face. I’ve seen athletes of other sports begin swimming to increase their strength and VO2 max gaining ability, and advantage in their primary sport. What is this magic? It’s the birthplace of all life, the water. We the swimmers and future swimmers of this world call it home, and for good reason. For instance all of the reasons listed above and more. I consider water to be the great giver, but above that, the great equalizer for those that are looking for more. You can swim without arms and legs, not only is this possible, but proven. In addition, and in general swimmers are good natured, positive people. It’s hard to find a angry swimmer, it’s hard to find a swimmer that is not good natured, and honest. Let’s face it we are all running from or toward something, but it seams that many of us find peace in the water. Yes it’s hard, anything worth doing will take effort, tenacity, and consistency. In my coaching I always tell new students, the uphill climb is to establish your lungs. Six weeks in the water three hours a week and you’ll have them built. Four weeks, four hours a week in the water and you’ll be close. Through that time you begin to feel your body respond through Serotonin, Endorphin and Dopamine release. You also get the efficiency that comes along with a higher level of oxygen saturation. Some people report clarity of mind, lower levels of pain, and a more level mood. Fact, it takes 31 days to create a positive habit, but only three days to break it. Additionally, you spend three weeks out of the water, and that lung capacity you once enjoyed has taken a hit. It’s important to be consistent, and stick with it for a lifetime of benefit. The point, water is the great equalizer, and is a gentle starting place for everyone regardless of skill or ability. As a wise friend of mine has said; “There is no injury that can be caused by swimming, that can’t be healed through more swimming.” I’d like to expand on this to say, there is no injury, mental or physical that can not be balanced and strengthened through swimming. I’ll see you out there friend! As another friend of mine said; “Let’s go out for a short 4 or 5 miler someday”. I’ll go shorter, slower or longer for anyone. Faster? Well we all have limitations, I just want to see you out there. In the meantime, let us (the swimmers of the world) know what you need. I can confidently speak for us all, we want you amongst us! With a swimmers love, Arlo |
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