So I finally did it and converted one of my longer sessions (2.5 hours) to a run session in the pool. I know it sounds crazy but I was genuinely looking forward to this until I realised how cold the water can be at 4:45 in the morning.
For those of you who are undecided if aqua jogging is something you want to experience, I would strongly encourage the usage of this run format on your recovery days or when you just want to change things up. The post session feeling is quite different from an actual run and I’ve listed them down below together with the lessons learnt from spending 150 minutes in the water.
1. It builds patience. To clock 15km in the pool, I had to run for 2.5 hours at a snail pace and not to mention the repetitiveness of going up and down 300 times. If you’re looking for an activity to develop patience, this would be it.
2. It’s a calf killer. Because I spent 2.5 hours running on my fore foot, my calves were getting the workout of their lives and trust me, I felt it when I walked out of the water.
3. Meditation time. If you think running is moving meditation, wait till you’re stuck in the water for hours. Best time to get your mind sorted out and to ponder the greater energies of life.
4. It’s not easy. It may seem easy to go at a slow pace but once you cross the hour mark, the resistance starts to pile on the pressure with your muscle groups. It’s actually a pretty good workout.
5. Blisters still happen. I didn’t wear any form of footwear and after the run noticed that my feet had some blisters.
6. Hydration is equally important. Always keep a bottle nearby. We perspire even in the water.
7. Low heart rate and impact workout. Your heart rate never really goes very high so it’s perfect for those who are looking to recover from injury or just wanna get a low intensity session in to supplement the actual run.
8. Keep your running form. I found that running in the water allows me to work on form and technique.
9. It gets cold. After a couple of hours in the pool, the chill can get to you.
10. Run stronger. After a two sessions in the pool, I found that running on dry land is easier and my legs/core has gotten stronger.
11. Mix it up. Sometimes I run the perimeter of the pool while sometimes I run the laps. Mix it up and have fun.
12. Give way to swimmers. It’s a swimming pool after all.
13. People will look at you strange. Got a few of those 🙂 Someone even asked me if it was effective. Hope he reads this post!
14. Listen to music. Trust me. It helps.
15. Get a mantra going in your head. Keeps you focused and your mind in the game.
There we go, 15 tips from completing my first ever 15km run in a swimming pool. I’ll be looking to do my first ever half marathon in the pool as part of my recovery training so please stay tuned for that. Also, i’ll be starting my own podcast to speak about grit and resilience very soon and that will come together with the update of this site that I’ve been living off a free WP plan for quite a while now. Its been exciting recording my first 10 episodes and hopefully you’ll have fun listening to it!
Till then, stay healthy and keep moving forward!
Onward.
Commentaires