Wide Pull Update

Before I update you, I just want to say my last post on test taking was meant to be a humorous anecdote. Yes, I'm a bit frustrated but really, I was seeing the humor in it all when I posted that day. I guess sarcasm is mostly delivered in tone and can get lost in writing, but thanks to all of you who sent me encouraging emails. Alright, onto the wide pull update.

After three plus weeks of playing around with the wide pull, I've come to the conclusion that it's not the first pull I utilize when I start a swim workout; but it usually is a pull I end up utilizing at some point in the workout. In other words, when I start a set, I go with the pull that I'm accustomed to doing. As I start to experience fatigue, and I'm trying to maintain my pace or hold the interval, I find myself going to the wide pull--it's kind of like my emergency stroke. I just find this pull more efficient and easier to execute when I'm experiencing fatigue. I treat the wide pull as one more arsenal in my list of swim tactics such as: strong kick, fast turnover, distance per stroke, and body rotation. I'm attaching a series of videos with Karlyn Pipes-Neilsen that are quite informative. She really does a good job of explaining stroke mechanics, and even better, she has videos of her stroke and it really is amazing to watch her swim.

And one last noteworthy news. The DNF from Wildflower is already serving me well. This morning, I finally nailed this workout on the trainer that has eluded me the past four months. Close to my breaking point, I thought about my DNF and it got me up and over the hump that in previous tries, I was unable to do. Onward and upward.