Hi all, I joined yesterday and have got a separate thread where I gave a quick overview of what my plans are.
On this one I will post weekly updates and also every one to two months, will post how it has gone and any bumps in the road.
Here is my first 2 month write up so you will get an idea of how it's gone so far I started this journey September when the kids went back to school.
Bit of a text wall sorry 😔
🏊 2 Months of NPLQ Swim Training
Two months into training towards my August 2027 NPLQ, and it’s quite surprising looking back at where I started.
Early sessions were tough. I regularly had to stop, climb out and recover my breathing. I also had a bad calf cramp that ended one session. Breaststroke quickly became my weakest stroke, while front crawl and backstroke became my stronger ones.
An early benchmark was 25m breaststroke in 1:11.
I’ve also dealt with an intermittent right-shoulder niggle, which led me to create Plan A, Plan B and eventually Plan B+, allowing me to adapt sessions rather than force them.
Then came a breakthrough:
🏊 6½ lengths
⏱️ 25m front crawl: 37 seconds
🛟 Rescue-stroke practice
💪 4 deep-end get-outs
More importantly, I stopped needing to repeatedly get out just to recover my breathing.
Backstroke has since become a real strength and I’ve started practising single-arm backstroke as my rescue-stroke drill.
Week 7
This one was a grind. Poor sleep, busy pool and I was flagging badly near the end. I skipped rescue practice rather than force it but still completed:
10 lengths = 250m
A difficult session at the beginning meant repeatedly getting out to recover. By Week 7, a difficult session meant swimming 250m.
Week 8
Then everything clicked.
🔥 12 lengths = 300m
🛟 20m single-arm rescue practice, 10m each arm
💪 4 get-outs
⏱️ 25m front crawl: 33 seconds, improving my previous 37-second best by 4 seconds
That feels like a massive way to finish my first two months.
I also feel stronger and think I’m beginning to trim up physically.
🎯 Target: August 2027 NPLQ
🔄 Backup: October 2027
Two months ago I was trying to survive lengths. Now I've completed 300m and a 33-second 25m.
“Progress doesn’t always announce itself. Sometimes you just look at the clock and realise you’ve knocked four seconds off.” 🏊♂️💪
My new journey
Hi all, I joined yesterday and have got a separate thread where I gave a quick overview of what my plans are.
On this one I will post weekly updates and also every one to two months, will post how it has gone and any bumps in the road.
Here is my first 2 month write up so you will get an idea of how it's gone so far I started this journey September when the kids went back to school.
Bit of a text wall sorry 😔
🏊 2 Months of NPLQ Swim Training
Two months into training towards my August 2027 NPLQ, and it’s quite surprising looking back at where I started.
Early sessions were tough. I regularly had to stop, climb out and recover my breathing. I also had a bad calf cramp that ended one session. Breaststroke quickly became my weakest stroke, while front crawl and backstroke became my stronger ones.
An early benchmark was 25m breaststroke in 1:11.
I’ve also dealt with an intermittent right-shoulder niggle, which led me to create Plan A, Plan B and eventually Plan B+, allowing me to adapt sessions rather than force them.
Then came a breakthrough:
🏊 6½ lengths
⏱️ 25m front crawl: 37 seconds
🛟 Rescue-stroke practice
💪 4 deep-end get-outs
More importantly, I stopped needing to repeatedly get out just to recover my breathing.
Backstroke has since become a real strength and I’ve started practising single-arm backstroke as my rescue-stroke drill.
Week 7
This one was a grind. Poor sleep, busy pool and I was flagging badly near the end. I skipped rescue practice rather than force it but still completed:
10 lengths = 250m
A difficult session at the beginning meant repeatedly getting out to recover. By Week 7, a difficult session meant swimming 250m.
Week 8
Then everything clicked.
🔥 12 lengths = 300m
🛟 20m single-arm rescue practice, 10m each arm
💪 4 get-outs
⏱️ 25m front crawl: 33 seconds, improving my previous 37-second best by 4 seconds
That feels like a massive way to finish my first two months.
I also feel stronger and think I’m beginning to trim up physically.
🎯 Target: August 2027 NPLQ
🔄 Backup: October 2027
Two months ago I was trying to survive lengths. Now I've completed 300m and a 33-second 25m.
“Progress doesn’t always announce itself. Sometimes you just look at the clock and realise you’ve knocked four seconds off.” 🏊♂️💪