7 Ways to Shake up Your Swimming Routine ...

If like me you partake in boring laps and don’t really mix things up then add a little lift to your same-same routine by investing in a few swim toys. You could try swimming floats, pullbuoys, flippers, hand paddles or drag shorts. Each item will challenge you to adjust your swimming technique and style and help you break up your work out into clearer sets. Check out the collection at Speedo, for new toys to shake up your swimming: speedostore.com

Most people are solo swimmers as its hard to partner up with someone who is the same speed in the water as you. But make the effort to find a swimming buddy because you will be surprised at how much longer or varied your swimming will be when you have a friend. You can push each other to do new gruelling routines, with the promise of a drink and a catch-up after the water work out.

If like me you haven’t joined a swimming class since you were a child, perhaps now is a good time to reassess your skills and get some advice form the professionals? Most pools have adult swimming coaching at various levels or you might want to try something a bit different… say outdoor swimming, free diving and regular diving or water aerobics.

So many people in the water stick to their comfort zone and repeatedly just swim front crawl. Most likely because its their fastest stroke and their easiest. Well forget about front crawl and swim only the other strokes you know; breast stroke, backstroke, butterfly and doggy paddle. It's important to strengthen all your stroke styles as they use different muscle groups in the body. Besides if you find butterfly hard to master, isn’t that simply a sign that you need to practice it more?

There are loads of books and resources that can give you tips to brush up on your technique. Have your tried swimming double-armed backstroke or single armed fly? You might want to follow a series of training workouts that help you build up your endurance or introduce new practice drills or breathing techniques. Here are some ideas to get you started: active.com

Did you get lazy like me and stop tumble turning at the end of each length? With no one telling you what to do, it’s easy to let some skills slip. Bring tumble turning back into your swim routines. They stop you taking so many breaks, hence building your endurance. If you’ve forgotten how to do the turns or they look more like a wonky roly-poly you might want to check out tutorials on YouTube to refresh your memory:

When I swim I normally just count laps in my head and let thoughts drift through my brain. But lately when I look around the pool I cant help but notice the odd person who has invested in under water music technology. Now I admit underwater beats probably aren’t for everyone but if like me you intend to swim every week for the next 60 years maybe investing a little music might be a good idea for a little new swimming buzz. Check these out: proswimwear.co.uk

Swimming is the perfect exercise if you want to be leaner, meaner, fitter and stronger! But sometimes swimming can be lonely and a bit repetitive… fight back with these easy ways to shake up your swimming routine. You will be surprised just how much a new swimming buddy or some underwater music can change your attitude about your weekly routine and increase your swimming endurance and technique. Whatever you choose to do, as Dory would say “keep on swimming.” Your body will thank you for it as you get older. Do you have any tips for keen swimmers?