Swim Class- bane or boon?

When I first started training for triathlons, I devoured some books on the subject and thought I could do decently just going to the pool and do the laps and then watch youtube videos to try and perfect my swim strokes. I had come off a running background and gone into multi-sports for variation, to break the monotony of pounding on the streets and mainly because I had started to get niggling knee and back pain and I was losing a lot of weight. Triathlon training would put a bit of upper body muscle from swimming and cycling would build leg strength and endurance and all the while, cardio workouts will not be compromised.

I had experienced improvements in my riding since training with the FOTR riders and picked up a lot of valuable tips from the gang. Sometime after the Aviva 70.3 where i clocked a dismal 50 minute swim, I thought I would benefit from proper swim classes. I was focused on stroke correction and wanted to get out of the water feeling better than more rested than all the races I had been in.

A colleague introduced me to YF. Mind you, i had started with another group but motivation was a real problem. I ended up going only for had of my signed up classes last year. Well, YF classes last 1 hour 45 minutes and it was heart poundingly tough. I learnt certainly more than stroke correction. I learnt that training at a consistently higher intensity was something I never did. Pushing the limits constantly was tough for me and I was literally panting after each set. Mind you I am still the slowest in the class but I have increased my distance and have gone faster( albiet only slightly). Above all it has made me fresher when i come out of the water and can get in some decent bike and run splits. Oh, and it has done wonders for my running as well