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- Q I’m doing an open water swimming event. How different is swimming in open water to swimming in a pool?
- A Open water swimming can be very different to pool swimming for a number of reasons. Firstly, there is usually a current, which if against you, can be extremely difficult and make swimming a lot harder. Pools are normally heated and relatively quiet, whereas outdoors you will have all the elements to battle against plus other swimmers close by splashing about, unlike in pools, where swimmers are generally restricted to lanes. Distance and pace are harder to calculate outdoors, as you don’t have the laps of a pool to count from. If you're trying to improve your swimming technique instead of stamina or durability, it is best to stick to the pool as environmental factors can affect your technique, such as currents, temperatures, other swimmers and so on. Open water swimming is, however, a great way to add some variety and push yourself.
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