How to become a well-rounded ocean swimmer

• Are you looking at getting into ocean swimming this summer but don’t know where to start?
• Have you completed an ocean swim or two already but you still feel a little out of your depth? or,
• Have you got the ocean swimming bug and simply want to be the best you can be?

Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been dabbling in the sport for a season or two, you’ll become a more well-rounded ocean swimmer and get more enjoyment out of your ocean swimming if you take the time to work on these three important elements:

OceanFit’s 3 Pillars of Ocean Swimming

Ocean Awareness

The ocean is a complex, natural and dynamic environment so you need to get to know the environment better, including how it works and how you can work with it, rather than against it.

Ocean Swimming Skills

Working on a more efficient swimming technique is paramount and there are no shortcuts. You will also need to increase your general swimming fitness and strength by learning to train more effectively, and there are specific ocean and open water swimming techniques you’ll need to master.

Ocean Experience

This only comes from time spent in the ocean, so take the time to swim (with a friend at patrolled beaches) in a range of ocean conditions so you can start to increase your ‘surf sense’ – that is, your ability to read, adapt and swim to the conditions instinctively.

Do yourself a favour and book into a stroke correction clinic and an ocean swimming clinic, then find a friend or ocean swimming group to spend more time swimming in the ocean.