Yes, You Can Dunk in this Swimming Pool

I found this video to be one of the most fun I've ever posted on this blog.  Enjoy!


Pool Domination 2010 - Watch more Funny Videos

Tips to Dry your Swimsuit

A reader asked me for tips on drying a swimsuit and I figured the question would certainly make for a good post, since if you don't do it right, or at all, you'll lessen the life of your swmsuit many times over.

Well, there are probably a million ways to dry one's swimsuit, but I have my preferences, some of which I've learned the hard way.  Here is my swimsuit drying Do's and Don'ts list and a few tips to go with them:

Do Not:

• Leave your swimsuit in your bag if it is damp - the bacteria that survives the chlorine will eat away at the elastic and will thrive in the warm dark place that is your bag (do this just once and you'll see what I'm talking about)
• Let your swimsuit dry in direct sun light - this will fade the pattern/colors faster than you might imagine
• Routinely dry your swimsuit while you are wearing it - this will stretch the fabric and you won't even notice it until one day when you get out of the water and it falls off your a**.
• Hang your suit from a clothes line or hook as this too will stretch the fabric (duh).
• Wring (ring?) your swimsuit out - this will stretch the fabric

Do:

• Rinse the suit in cold clean water to get out the chlorine and other pool chemicals (I just do it in the shower after my workout)
• Dry the suit on a flat surface - I use the shower floor at home works great, or on a dry towel which you one can do just about anywhere (e.g., in the back of your car, etc.).  Sometimes your suit won't be dry in 24 hours but will almost always be dry in 48 hours, so I keep a second suit in my bag for the next day's swim.  Then I just swap out suit from the drying place when I'm done.
• To speed things up try using a spinner.  They work like a salad spinner and do a great job whicking the water away from the swimsuit.  Spin the entire cycle, i.e. don't stop until you hear the unit click.

If you must get the water out of your suit manually - maybe because you don't have a spinner, or a plastic bag or towel to wrap the suit up in when you leave the pool - I suggest scrunching it into a ball and squeeze the water out (once again, do not wring it out).

These are just a few of the things I do and/or recommend.  Other suggestions always welcome.

Another Great Swimming Picture from the Past

Huntington Beach, CA circa 1928.  Honey, will you put some oil on my back, please.  (source unknown)

Why Some Swimmers Wear Watches in the Pool

Have you ever noticed that there are a lot of pretty good swimmers who wear their watches in the pool?  There's a good reason and it isn't just because they spend a lot of time in the water and need to know when to get out in time to get to work, home for dinner or their next appointment. 

If you look closely, most - if not all - of the watches are digital.  Most digital watches have a chrono function (stopwatch), a timer (lap counter), an alarm and several other functions. 

You don't have to be a great swimmer to take advantage of using a watch in your workout.  Even the slowest swimmer can find creative uses for the functions that are available.  I personally use the stopwatch function daily.  I just push start at the beginning of my session and track lap-times during my flip turns (yes, under water) to be sure I'm keeping a pace that I desire. Some people push a button at this time to count their laps and to use after their workouts or between sets to see how their split times compared.

There are innumerable watch choices out there.  I've used many over the years and none are expensive.  Currently I favor the Timex Ironman Triatholon.  The numbers are large enough that you can see it underwater in limited light, the buttons large enough to press without injuring the nerve endings in your finger tips, plus their functions are fairly intuitive.  The added bonus is that the strap is rubber (or something like that) so it instantly repels water.  You can pick it up at Target and other big box retailers for about $39.95.

Finally, my two best reason for wearing a watch in the pool are:

• It's too easy to think you are swimming faster than you really are - wearing a watch will bring you back to reality - fast.
• The watch strap is a great place to put your ring(s) - I always think they are going to fly off my hand if I don't strap them down and I don't trust storing them being in my locker or pool bag. 

Taking a Vacation? Here are some Cool Hotel Pools

Taking a vacation can be a problem if you are a lap swimmer.  You've almost always got to compromise.  Here are some hotel pools where the compromise just might be worth it (several of these are reruns from prior posts)