I’m not really sure how to train for a 70k swim, let alone how to train for it with Multiple Sclerosis, but then again I didn’t know how to train for a 10 or 34k swim either. Somehow I just got moving and did it.

I have found that for me the best way to start a training program is by understanding what I am getting myself into. That way I can design a program that simulates event conditions and works on a number of the challenges I may have along the way.

Here’s a little about what the swim will look like:

  • August 22 at 2pm Alex Cape and I will jump in the waters at Lakeview Park, Lake Cowichan, British Columbia and begin our 24+ hour swim.
  • We will wear a bathing suit, a cap and goggles – nothing more.
  • Escorted by kayakers and a motorized medical/safety boat, we will swim to Heather Campground and then turn around and swim back to Lake View Park.
  • Other swimmers will jump in the water at various times; they will not swim within a meter of us ensuring we are not able to swim on their draft.
  • Throughout the swim we will not touch the boat, a person or any device that may assist us with floating or moving forward. We will touch the bottom of the lake at the start and finish only.
  • Food and liquid will be passed to us in a bottle fastened to a rope by our kayaker every half an hour or as required.
  • Safety lights will be attached to our head and our back during darkness.
  • We will likely swim in 4 foot waves/chop 16 hours into the swim for a 3 to 4 hour period.
  • The water will be approximately 20-21C on the way down the lake. Once we reach Heather Campground the temperature will be 16-17C (brrr).

Knowing this, here’s my list of swim things to work on:

  1. Distance tolerance
  2. Swimming in the dark
  3. Cold water tolerance
  4. Swimming in waves/chop
  5. Nutrition
  6. Not going crazy along the way!

And here’s my list of MS things to work on:

  1. Fatigue
  2. Brain fog
  3. Tingling and numbness
  4. Visual issues
  5. Poor balance and dizziness

Here’s how I will prepare for the swim part:

There are two types of training programs I will follow. The first in Progressive Overload Training (POT) and the second is the Pyramid of Open Water Success.

Progressive Overload Training (POT)

I have heard that while competitive pool swimmers typically use a periodization system, open water swimmers seem to benefit from POT. POT cycles through gradual periods of increased muscle stress used to stimulate muscle adaptation followed by a decrease in stress at the end of the period. Lactic production, lactic threshold and lactic tolerance all improve while the chance of injury from over training is reduced.

My cycles will be 4 weeks, with my swim load increasing a few kilometers each week. At the beginning of each cycle I will decrease my load to what it was in the second week during that cycle. It will look something like this: 1,2,3,4…2,3,4,5…3,4,5,6…6,7,8,9…etc

Pyramid of Open Water Success

Developed by Steven Munatones, the Pyramid of Open Water Success is based on John Wooden’s (UCLA basketball coach), Pyramid of Success which includes 15 blocks – from industriousness to enthusiasm.

The Pyramid of Open Water Success is designed to prepare me to deal with each possible scenario that can present itself over the 24+ hour period Alex and I will be swimming. It includes base training, speed training and distance tolerance on the first level, race specific training, skill training and open water acclimatization on the second level and tactical education at the top.

I have spent the past several month base-training using POT.

Find out more in Part 2

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