So after having almost 14 months break from any form of swimming, I have now clocked up 3 swims this week in the pool and it’s great to be back!

I honestly thought that I might have forgotten how to swim but it seemed natural and easier than I thought. I seemed to have eased myself into it quite gently this week as I haven’t yet set myself any ‘goals’ in the water but I think that next week, things might need to progress a little.

I have been taking B12 injections for pernicious anaemia and they really do seem to have helped with my energy levels in general so I need to take advantage of this now and start increasing my stamina and fitness in the water.

Time to also take a look at the training plans sent through from the Henley Swim team. I seem to be at the ‘in-between’ stage of the beginners and intermediate level though.

On Sunday evening I will be joining South West Swim for a taster training session in the pool. They are setting up a new squad training session due to popular demand. Jason Tait is a very experienced swimming coach with lots of experience coaching in the pool and in open water using the Swim Smooth technique.

I’m a little apprehensive about my first squad session as still not confident about my fitness and technique and I imagine I will be the slowest person in the pool 🙂

There may also be the opportunity to have my swimming technique assessed using underwater video analysis (gulp!). If I’m brave enough then I will post the videos here!

I am imagining that the experience will look a little like this!

So the plan is to spend a few more weeks in the pool, before I venture into open water.

If you are new to open water and live within reach of the Cotswold Water Park in South Gloucestershire then I highly recommend Jason’s ‘Introduction To Open Water’ course. It’s very comprehensive and covers everything from wetsuit fitting, water acclimatisation, safety and open water swimming technique. Course details can be found here although they are very popular so book well-ahead of time

If you are interested in getting into open water swimming then there a couple of Facebook groups that I recommend. You can find a lot of inspiration and support on these groups as well as recommendations for local open water swimming spots and lidos.

Women In Open Water – for all swimmers regardless of ability (I’m not aware of any groups specifically for men as most of the groups are mixed but if there are any then I will add them here)

Did You Swim Today? For open water and pool swimmers, wherever you are in the world. If you swam today then you can let everyone know about it here.

Outdoor Swimming Society Over 15,000 members (and rising) so lots and lots of tips, advice and swim buddies. The OSS also maintain the Wild Swim Map.

Cotswold Open Water Swimmers (COWS) – this is my local group that meet for swims in and around the Cotswolds Water Park. Lots of swimmers from the Wiltshire and Gloucestershire areas are to be found on here (but there are 100’s of other local groups dotted around the country too)