Tip of the Week: Adjusting to a New Pool

November 17, 2008

Ever get to a new pool and wonder why your turns and timing of the wall are off? You may think you are just making a newbie mistake. But adjusting to a new pool is something even experienced swimmers struggle with. The location of the "T" on the pool bottom in relation to the wall is a visual cue we all use in order to determine when to initiate the flip turn. You may not realize this fact until you swim in a pool with a different layout. Also, the position of the overhead backstroke flags is another unconscious cue on wall location. Even swimming freestyle, swimmers see that flag pole and sub-consciously guess where the wall is. However, some pools place the flags at 5 yards, and others place the flags at 5 meters, which is a difference of about a half a stroke. Some pools don't have any bottom markings at all, which makes it very difficult to tell where the wall is. It is equivalent to experiencing a "whiteout" condition in the pool! Knowing that you may have to time your turns a little different if you swim in a new pool will help you swim more consistently and safely regardless of where you are. Until next time, happy training.

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