How Swimming Saved My Running

By Paul Bieraugel

At 36, I was a self coached runner; I believed that if I kept running faster and farther on a regular basis I could eventually run a sub 4-hour marathon. I would run fast, recover from injury, run fast and recover from injury, in an increasingly fruitless cycle. Just prior to the marathon, I ran a half- marathon in1:52 and was encouraged to keep hammering out the miles in an effort to achieve my goal. After completing the marathon in 3:50, I promptly vowed to never run another one as long as I lived.

 Fast forward to my 39th birthday when I settled upon my new goal of completing an Olympic Distance Triathlon. I got my cycling act together for a 6-day, 660-mile charity ride, which went great. The problem was swimming. As much as I churned, I couldn’t swim a lap without becoming exhausted and hanging on to the side of the pool or the lane marker to catch my breath; that 1500 meter swim was looking really long. After a month, the furthest I could swim with an all out effort was 250 meters. I was doomed.

I scoured the internet for a solution to my swimming problem. This “Total Immersion” thing kept coming up, but didn’t promise the immediate solutions I was seeking. It seemed to prescribe weeks of drills before “full stroke” swimming should be attempted and With an entry fee already committed, I needed to swim like Marc Spitz in a couple months!

However, my older brother had taken up the TI program months earlier as a way to stay in shape without running or going to the gym. Eventually I thought if he can do it, I can and decided to give TI a try. I watched the DVD and read the book and decided that a clean slate was required if planned to succeed with TI. I inhaled water as I attempted to balance on my back but eventually found my Sweet Spot and within a few weeks was cruising effortlessly across the pool. I still could not “swim” but I was convinced that Terry’s promise of “happy laps” would come true, and if it didn’t I would drive to Lake Whatever where he was swimming and attack him while he was “rolling like a log to the air.”

I swam every morning for 30 minutes and for the first four to five weeks it was all drills. I did my first ZipperSwitch with two weeks until the triathlon and it clicked: after stringing a few ZipperSwitches together I was swimming effortlessly across the pool with just a short pause in Sweet Spot to breathe. A week later, I swam continuously for an hour (pausing for breath in Sweet Spot as I saw Terry do on the DVD), occasionally making a successful whole stroke breath when I felt really in synch. I was not even breathing hard when I got out of the water and completed the triathlon.

I now swim three times a week: sometimes a mile, sometimes a little more; sometimes fast, sometimes pretty slow. In any case, all laps are happy laps. When the laps get sad, I do some balance drills, string together a few ZipperSwitches, and am back in balance. Terry’s promise was fulfilled.

On land, I discovered training with heart rate and slowed everything down. Injuries became a thing of the past and I felt like I was in the best shape of my life. So upon turning 40, I decided to revive my running. I still swam three times a week, but added a few running sessions. Because I avoided injury, I was able to add mileage at a faster pace, with a similar heart rate. The endurance I developed while swimming improved my running without wear and tear on my legs.

I arrived at the half-marathon without having run more than 9 miles at a time in the past four years, but still feeling that I would race well. I set off at a solid pace. It felt good and sustainable so I kept going. I rounded the half-way point still at a good pace. At mile 11 I sped up and finished strong. I credit the TI swimming program with giving me a more successful approach to fitness. Flow and form, staying in the moment, and smart, injury-free training are the critical components which led to the personal half-marathon record (1 hour 34 min) I ran that morning. Swimming saved my running and I have Terry and TI to thank for it.

About the Author:

Paul is a US Navy Commander working on the Navy Staff at the Pentagon. His four children are part of a junior Olympic national champion cross country and track team. They also play soccer, baseball, piano, and guitar. Two of them are ballet dancers although he has trouble remembering which two. Paul spends his spare time driving children to track meets, soccer practices, baseball games, dance studios, and music lessons.