I’ve been using the Fenix 2 since April of 2014 and it has been an invaluable training partner for me. The Fenix 2 is a pretty advanced training tool and having come from much simpler training computers (running is just not as complicated as triathlon) it took me quite a while to really appreciate all the different capabilities the Fenix 2 provided me. With that in mind, I plan to do a series detailing each of the different capabilities and how to use them.
The first function I want to talk about is swim drills. This is actually a feature that was added after I got the watch and even though I had heard it existed, it took me a while to figure out if and how to use it.
When to Use
The purpose of the swim drill function is to allow doing drill work in the pool that the watch may not normally register. This could include any drill using a kick board or that otherwise involves abnormal swim movements that may not involve your arms.
Why to Use
Without drill mode, you have to manually track your sets. I’ve found I have a really hard time remembering what set I’m on when I’m swimming and while there is a variety of ways this can be handled, I am wearing a watch that does this.
Basically, if I’m doing a 100 x 4 on the kick board, and I’ve done a 200 yard warm-up, then I know after that drill I should be at 600 yards. This becomes very helpful to me on much longer days. The more tired I am, the less capable I am of keeping count (strange how that works).
How to Use
Step 1: Turn drill mode on
Step 2: Start an indoor pool session
Step 3: Go into drill mode by scrolling to the correct swim data page
Step 4: Start the drill by pressing the lap button
Step 5: Stop the drill by pressing the lap button again. This is when you’ll be able to select how far you just swam. Also, the entire activity will be paused which will allow you to scroll through your data pages. I use this to watch the timer to count down to my next set or see how far I’ve gone so I know when its time to end that set of drills.
Step 6: Repeat until done!
Once you’re done with the drill work you can simply go back into normal swimming mode by scrolling off the Drill page to continue normal training. If you want to do more drills, simply go back into drill mode.
Swimming is my weakest sport in triathlon and in the short time I’ve been using the drill mode I’ve found it’s really helped me with my swimming. Since I can evaluate sets I did now on Garmin Connect I can see where I am and where I am not improving which really does let me target specific things in subsequent sessions.
Obviously this is just one tool in the toolbox but I’ll take all I can get!
Great information thank you.