Don’t underestimate the pace clock

Technology is fun, but sometimes it’s old-fashioned equipment that makes an impact, says marathon swimmer Sarah Thomas

Two years ago, for my 40th birthday, my friends banded together and bought me my first ever smart watch, a Garmin Swim 2. I think they took pity on me; I had serious FOMO not being able to track my open water swims and draw cool maps in my favorite bodies of water. Prior to the Garmin, I’d relied on my trusty Timex Ironman to take splits and tell time. I was happy with it – minus not being able to draw fun GPS pictures.

I have since graduated to a Coros Pace 3 watch, which I think far exceeds the Garmin in capabilities. And while I very much enjoy the novelty of a smart watch, I don’t want to overlook the most important piece of technology available to a swimmer: the pace clock.

Call me old-fashioned, but for pool swimming, no piece of equipment is more important than the pace clock. Smart watches are fine for measuring heart rate and giving you an idea of pace in open water, but even the best brands have questionable accuracy, especially in the pool. When it comes to the pool, I haven’t found a solid benefit yet. They’re a fun gadget, but nothing beats a real clock. Truly, all swimmers should learn to master the pace clock.

So many swimmers go to the pool with the aim of “just swimming.” And that’s fine if you need a mental break or just want to swim comfortably for fitness. But, if you want to get faster, build in variety, or find a solid way to measure progress, you need the pace clock. Of course, you can use the timer on your watch, but that requires enough rest and good enough vision to look down at your wrist, through foggy goggles, at the end of every repeat. That’s fine without an alternative, but if you’ve got a clock handy and aren’t utilising it, you’re doing yourself a disservice.

Benefits of a pace clock:

• Easily measure time over distance. Hate to tell you this, but your watch lies about your pace. A pace clock tells the brutal truth with 100% accuracy.
• It helps with counting. My watch doesn’t reliably count laps and if I’m not monitoring the clock, I get lost in the set. If you know you can cover 100 meters in 1 minute and 45 seconds, simply by checking the clock on every turn you can count your laps indefinitely, a digital clock makes it easier, but analog will suffice.
• It keeps you on pace. Are you trying to get faster? Doing intervals like 10 x 100 on a set send-off will help build stamina. If you do 10 x 100 on 5 seconds rest and slowly find your pace fading, use the clock to help maintain a set pace. Set an interval you can maintain and then use the clock to hold you accountable.

Technology is great fun, but don’t underestimate the power of the pace clock! And it’s OK: take the watch off sometimes to enjoy the freedom of swimming solo. I promise, your workout still “counts”.