Swim Yoga
Body position, flow, breathing, relaxed yet controlled awareness of body and mind … am I talking about yoga or swimming? The reality is I could be talking about either. After decades of swimming , poor posture and some brief experiences with yoga I finally have a season, routine , means and motivation to dedicate some proper time to yoga. For the past two months I have been attending yoga sessions 2-3 times a week. After a month I noticed changes....
Bridge to Bridge
For the second season in a row I made the trip out to Henley on Thames for the Iconic Henley to Marlow ‘Bridge to Bridge’ 14km sportive swim. This year I was accompanied by five enthusiastic Fit&Abel swimmers, four of whom were completing a 10km or greater swim for the very first time. The Henley on Thames bridge is the starting point for this marathon swim. The bridge was constructed in 1786 and sits picturesquely on the river Thames. It is a beautiful site from upon the bridge and the same can be said from under the bridge as swimmers soon discover. How many people can...
On The Move
It doesn’t seem like that long ago I was packing for the Southern Hemisphere summer. Well here I am following the sun (supposedly) and find myself back in London. Water temperatures are hovering around the 10-12 degrees Celcius and with incessant rain and cloud it will take some time before the water heats up. There are plenty of swimmers who have through acclimatisation managed to adapt to swimming in these temperatures. It’s important that everyone is realistic with their abilities, for comfort and more importantly safeties sake. ...
Use it or lose it!
What an ingenious design our bodies are, they have mobility, agility, temperature control, intelligence, etc. Disappointly we make little use of the vast array of attributes our bodies provide. The scary thing is the human body is so clever it can recognise that we no longer need a function. Your nervous system basically 'forgets' how to perform a task. This can be summarised by the term 'use it or lose it', and when it is applied to the human body it is oh so true. That is why consistent movement is so important to keep the nervous system in tip top condition. What is your nervous...
Dryland Resistance Training
I truly believe swimming is one of the best forms of exercise available. You get a terrific all round work out that places demands on the majority of muscles as well as your cardiovascular system. It provides conditioning and weight loss opportunities with a reduced risk of injury. ...
Aquasphere Kayenne goggle review
Yesterday was my first time using the Aquasphere Kayenne goggles, talk about a terrific experience. You know when you want to buy a new pair of jeans how difficult it can be? You try on 100 pair but only 1 fits well and when you find that pair...
Zoggs Predator goggle review
I have had my Zoggs Predators for a couple of months so have had ample time to try them out; this last two weeks in the Greek Islands I have truly put them through their paces. They are what I would call a hybrid goggle, built for both good visibility as well as performance. In the pool I found them disastrous, the drag profile ensured that on most streamlined wall push offs the seal broke and they filled up. This never happens with a purpose built pool goggle but is not uncommon with the hybrids. ...
Aquasphere Swim Goggle review
I have had a few excellent open water swims now and have been able to properly test out my Aquasphere Vista Smoke Lens and Clear Lens goggles. This trip has required swimming and boat travel between the Greek islands; with all the traveling and all the sand on the beaches it is terrific to have the hard storage case to store my goggles in. The visibility is terrific, nothing would be more annoying than having damaged goggles, the hard storage case protects them well and stops the lens becoming scratched....
Fit&Abel heads to the Greek Islands!
I am very excited to be teaming up with SwimTrek www.SwimTrek.com for the month of July, I will be guiding their Greek Cyclades tour over the next four weeks. For those who have been following my FitandAbel.com blogs you will have seen my passion for swimming runs deep. My swimming background was primarily pool based for many years. I still love the challenge and the speed of pool based competitions however, that black line on the bottom of the pool can get pretty tedious after 20, 40, 80, 120 laps and it is always great to swim in different locations, away from the line on the...
Cancer, Exercise and You
I am just back from a short notice trip to New Zealand. Dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer so I went back to lend a hand and support while he had surgery. Dads’ surgery went very well; we are now awaiting the outcome of the post-surgery biopsy. It all looks positive! It was also an educational journey for me, according to the UK National Health Service website men are more likely to die from cancer than woman and the most common cancer is prostate cancer. It is not doom and gloom though, the mortality rates are dropping markedly and this is due in large part...
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