Hi everyone, welcome back to Jen Tries! For those of you who don’t know me, I have a history of challenging myself to achieve athletic goals. Running half-marathons, competing in triathlons … spin class. This week, I tried to swim a mile without stopping.
A mile is 66 lengths in the Weinstein Natatorium, the swimming pool in Kirby Sports Center — 1,650 yards.
I did not prepare for this at all. My qualifications are: I swam on a summer swim team from the age of 5 to 15, and I carb-loaded for dinner the night before attempting this challenge. I was feeling a bit nervous, only relying on my past swimming experience and the energy from my delectable pesto fettuccine.
I put on my orange tiger swimsuit and packed up my Kevin Jonas tote bag with all of my swimming necessities. I was ready to go.
I arrived at the pool at approximately 8:45 p.m., 15 minutes after the pool opened for open swim, which left me with an hour and 15 minutes to get this done. There was only one lane open: lane four. I claimed my spot and started to mentally prepare.
I asked Abby Gallagher ‘27, the lifeguard on duty and a distance swimmer for the Lafayette College swimming and diving team, what it takes to swim a mile.
“You definitely need endurance, I will say, and you need determination, because it is not for the faint of heart,” she said.
This could not be truer. After the initial shock of jumping into the water, which was a perfect 79 degrees Fahrenheit, my first few laps felt great. Then, the next 10 laps felt horrible. I had to engage all of my muscles and think about my form to eventually reach flow state.
The laps started flying by. I was enjoying the rhythm of my freestyle and letting my mind wander. My Apple Watch was one lap off, so 67 lengths later, I was done, and I was exhausted.
“You had some good high elbow catch,” Gallagher said when I asked how my mile went. “And pushing off the walls with your streamline, all helps make it easier.”
I appreciated her generous words, but it took me 32:02.65 to complete. For comparison, Jenn Nunn ‘10 holds the school record for the 1,650 with a time of 17:22.49.
I think it is fair to say that I probably would not have done well on the swimming and diving team. However, I have a lot of love for swimming, and I plan to continue swimming during open swim; maybe not a mile, but at least a few solid laps. My real takeaway here is that determination and a pasta dinner can get me through tough athletic challenges.
There is an open swim at Weinstein Natatorium every day of the week except Saturdays. Don’t tell anyone, though, I’m trying to gatekeep it.
