Swimming Hurts

Why does it seem that swimming is frequently the triathlete’s nemesis? In his article, Diary of a Wimpy Swimmer, Jordan Rapp states that he never learned to be comfortable being uncomfortable in the water, “which is the real difference between someone who just swims and a swimmer.” I have embodied this mentality over the past 6 months and forced myself to think like a swimmer. This means doing whatever excruciating workout our master's coach Kyle devises at our 5:30am sessions. I’ve become more accustomed to doing IM until I resemble an active drowning victim. I’m learning to embrace that lung-bursting, tingly-legged sensation that follows hypoxic sprint sets. Though I’m tempted to agree with my friend Dusty, I’m also gradually learning that pushing myself out of my comfort zone in the water is taking my weakest leg of triathlon into a new realm. More on this later.