Loving the over 50s

So, I've already mentioned about me going swimming. Generally I do 100 lengths and it takes me about an hour. That's quite a long time to have to cope with your own thoughts so I've developed a number of coping strategies.

Firstly, you'd be surprised how difficult it is to keep count of the number of lengths you have done. You'll be swimming down the pool repeatedly saying “34...34...34...” and the next thing you know you're on “36...36...36...” despite it still being the same length. So I've started alternating: I do two lengths of breast stroke, and then two of front crawl. I've had to work up to this – before it was 3 breasts and one crawl. I struggle with the breathing on front crawl for too great a distance so I am quite pleased to be up to a 2:2 ratio.

But this helps with counting the lengths too. Obviously swimming up the pool is the odd numbered lengths, whilst returning down the pool is evens. Good. But this means if I'm doing crawl the length number is either 3/4 or 7/8 or 11/12. Basically, the return length on front crawl will always be divisible by 4, which means I am less likely to get confused as to whether I'm on length 4 or 8.

And the target setting is very important. The first time I went after the hiatus I targetted 64 lengths: one mile. But then I started swimming 80 lengths, beating the target. So then I targetted 80 lengths and started swimming 100. Now I set the target at 100. This is actually a bit disappointing. When I targetted 80 and swam 100 technically I had exceeded my target (despite being fully aware at the beginning that I probably would); whereas now I only 'meet' it. Well, except for last week when I did 116 lengths. Don't worry, the pool is only 25metres long – it's not a proper Olympic-size.

But then I set mini-targets. Steps on the way to be proud of, where I can say “I've done a quarter” at 25 lengths. And this is where the 50+ comes in: they get better, and more frequent, once I have completed 50 lengths. 50 is obviously halfway. Good. And then there is 64 – one mile. And it's no distance then to 67 – two thirds of the way through. And that's only 8 lengths short of 75 which is three-quarters. And then it's 80. And then 90. It really helps when you can say “Come on boyo, you've done 90%, you only got another 10 lengths to do”.

But all these things keep the interest levels up. Well, for the moment at least.

You see I've bought a waterproof MP3 player to try to keep me going. It will probably make keeping track of the number of lengths more difficult, but may make it more enjoyable. The only problem is that I have to fill it up with a suitable swimming playlist and, despite having owned the thing for 2 months or so I am only at D in my alphabetised song library, so it may be some time.

Until then I might start counting the number of tiles on the bottom of the pool.