Reservation Required

Some gyms are busy - You can’t just jump in!

This entry was written in winter 2023-24 while I was in Palo Alto, CA for the winter.

Mostly it’s all the same but it’s interesting how different areas handle things, booking swim lanes like conference rooms in Northern California, or other de facto swimmer systems in other gyms in Denver, San Diego or Virginia.

In my Palo Alto gym - we get 30 minutes only, unless you’re lucky or crafty.

I learned to bend the system to get 40 minutes when lucky!

It sounds silly but it’s not silly - swim lanes there - require lane reservations. This mandatory 30-minutes time pressure can leave us needing to game the system.

Many prefer to swim for 45 minutes — you can’t imagine how much tension exists around booking these precious lanes in Palo Alto if you haven’t been there. To get an edge, target less-demanded pool time.

Sometimes the full distance is not possible and you’re stuck with a short workout. It might be slightly shorter than what you might have been wanting. This is not a problem if you swim in the middle of the night. What’s great in the day is if you can get into the lane 10 minutes early.

If you are ever stuck waiting for a lane, please consider — some people water-walk up and back from the far wall; sadly, this can cause strife among the community but let’s set the record straight - swim is not more valid than water-walking.

Water walking is no less of a valid use of a swim lane than proper swim — so don’t be haughty, uppity or overzealous about what is being done there but, do grab that lane if you don’t see the slow up and back traverse.

A lot of people are overweight to where all they can do is water walk. Do not hold contempt for that activity - those people should be applauded. Water walkers are making a brilliant move - they should be encouraged.

When you finally do get into the pool - I hope you can do your full routine. Slow acclimation to pool water and two unassisted laps is a great way to begin your regular workout.

It’s especially nice to sneak in 10 minutes before your time. Most pools are not nearly as uptight as the pool in Palo Alto but as I have stated to some other members there.. that uptight scheduling benefits us — so lean in and play nice. The manager took a lot of heat for that but didn’t bend.

Before you leave this post, ask yourself how motivated you would have to be.. to seek and find just 10 extra minutes on top of 30 scheduled minutes.

Use those found moments to make your mile.

There is no being late - The next swimmer won’t understand.