Like many who take up the sport of triathlon, swimming was the sport that I dreaded the most. 

I still remember my first time in the pool, when I swam 25 yards and was totally gassed when I got to the wall.  It took me months to get comfortable in the water and to be able to swim well enough to actually do a triathlon race.  I continued to swim but struggled to get to the point where I could say I enjoyed it.

Today, I can say I do enjoy going to the pool.  My coach gave me a ‘Choice Day’ today, which meant I could do anything I liked, including doing nothing at all if I wanted to.  I chose to swim.  That would never have happened a couple of years ago, so what changed?

A $9 Pull Buoy is what changed everything.  Sounds crazy, but choosing to always swim with a pull buoy has made me not only enjoy swimming, but also a better swimmer.  Swimming with my pull buoy puts me in a good position in the water.  Swimming with a pull buoy allows me to focus on my arm action and technique.  Swimming with a pull buoy means my motion is all arms, which makes me stronger.  Swimming with a pull buoy makes me feel like a swimmer and not a runner who needs to swim to do triathlon.

So try it… just swim with a pull buoy.  It’s not cheating, it’s a way to have fun and get better!