Heading Back into the Open Water?

So, as the lakes are opening back up, and the mad ones are dipping in at 12'C, the full open water swimming and triathlon season is just around the corner.

Many swimmers find the transition from pool to open water surprisingly challenging—navigating currents, dealing with limited visibility, and swimming in close quarters with others can all take time to adapt to. But by introducing some focused open water preparation into your pool sessions now, you’ll be well ahead of the curve once it’s time to ditch the lane ropes and head into the great outdoors.

Here, I've taken some practical techniques and training strategies from Swimsmooths latest blog, and you can implement them right away. These will help you swim straighter, sight more efficiently, and make use of drafting—transforming you into a more confident, capable and quicker open water swimmer.

One of the most important skills in open water swimming is staying on course. Many athletes swim 10% to 20% further than necessary due to veering off course—an easy way to lose valuable time and energy.

Sighting effectively is essential. Rather than sighting and breathing in the same motion—which disrupts your rhythm and causes your legs to drop—try sighting just before you turn to breathe. Lift your eyes slightly, spot your target, then rotate to the side for a breath. It may take practice to get it fluid, but this small adjustment can make a big difference:

How often you sight will depend on how straight you swim naturally. The straighter your stroke, the less you’ll need to lift your head. Focus on alignment drills to improve this, such as side-kicking with fins and the lead arm extended, switching sides every 25 metres. These help correct crossover and encourage a "gun-barrel" straight trajectory through the water.

The Tactical Edge of Bilateral Breathing

Bilateral breathing—being able to breathe to both sides—not only promotes stroke symmetry but also gives you a major tactical advantage. In open water, the ability to switch sides can help you monitor competitors, adapt to wind or swell conditions, and avoid glare from the sun.

Even if you don’t use bilateral breathing during a race, the training benefits it offers in the pool are significant, and if you've had a 1-1 video analysis, you will already know this!

Master the Art of Drafting

Drafting is one of the most powerful tools in open water racing. Swimming behind or to the side of another athlete can reduce your energy expenditure by up to 38%, giving you a chance to conserve energy and even out-sprint competitors at the end of the race.

There are two primary drafting positions:

• Directly behind a swimmer, on their toes.

• To the side, with your head level with their hips or belly button.

Drafting to the side takes more skill and confidence, as it requires closer proximity, but the energy savings are often greater than swimming directly behind.

Practise these skills in the pool with a small group. Swim in threes, with a lead swimmer and two others drafting on each side. Rotate positions and gradually increase the pace. Expect to get dropped occasionally—but work on regaining the draft rather than dropping back completely. This builds the ability to maintain close contact even when things get competitive.

Embrace the Chaos

If you’re new to open water or accustomed to structured lane swimming, you may find the physical closeness of racing—arms flying, legs kicking, the occasional bump—unsettling.

That’s completely normal. But it’s also why it's important to simulate these conditions in training. Incorporate close-quarter swimming into your weekly routine. With practice, the experience will become less intimidating and even enjoyable.

Make Open Water Skills a Regular Focus

If your goal is to race well in open water, don’t let your skills stagnate during the off-season. Work on swimming straight, efficient sighting, and strategic drafting. These are not just survival tactics—they're performance multipliers.

Here are a few great open water skills sessions you can try in your pool with a mate or two this weekend. (You may need access to the Swimsmooth GURU to see these sessions however.)