Water Running

[OakLeaf]

Tell me everything I need to know about deep and shallow water running!

Your favorite instructional videos? YouTube videos? Technique faults to especially look out for?

Your favorite flotation belt?

[OakLeaf]

OK so I guess I'm the forum expert now. I'm using the AquaJogger belt and footies and (very necessary) the underwateraudio.com waterproof iPod.

I am loving it (as much as I can possibly love being inside in chlorinated water). I think it's the belt that's helping my posture - not sure, but I feel so much lighter and quicker on the road now. The first few times, it was really noticeable when I'd run on land the day after water running. Now, it's less apparent, but that means I'm incorporating the posture automatically. Yay.

It only took a couple of sessions to realize that music is a necessity for me. I'm very much opposed to listening to anything but my body when running on land, for a whole list of reasons. My natural cadence on land is right around 90, since I didn't start running until after I'd been cycling for years, so the cadence just transferred naturally, and I never needed a metronome or anything to keep my cadence up on land. In the water is a different story. I had a hard time keeping even 60 rpm. The iPod has been a lifesaver, and I'm gradually improving my cadence ... today I was at 180 bpm (i.e., 90 rpm, without the footies) by the end of my workout, and getting better every time.

Cases and dry bags are NOT meant to be submerged (read the specs for all of them, including Pelican and Otterbox). If anyone's interested I'm just delighted with my iPod from underwateraudio.com. I clip it to my belt, so it's a couple of feet underwater for my whole workout, and it works just fine.

Extra bonus is that while on the one hand water running lets me work my legs without impact on my spine, I'm actually getting more resistance with my arm swing, so it's helping me build my upper body back up.

Extra bonus ... I still have a membership card from my gym that lets me use a local hotel pool for free. It's way too small for swimming, but if I tether myself over the drain it's just deep enough for running, there's hardly ever anyone there, they have big plate glass windows so I get natural light, they use way less chlorine than the high school pool that I can pay to use during open lap swim hours. I like to use the high school pool sometimes just for form corrections so I know I'm not listing to one side or another as I might on the tether, but otherwise it's hard to beat.

Yay.

[crazycanuckoz]

Oak, just going to bump this thread up if it's cool..

I turned to DW running when i tore my calf last year & thoroughly love mixing up my running week with water/land...

I'm the only crazed individual dw running in the outdoor pool when it's pouring... nice n warm!

[OakLeaf]

And you don't have to worry about your shoes getting soaked!

Been a while since I've been to the pool. I should do a little soon.