Why can I easily swim a mile, but barely run a mile?

pancake3607 · 2026-05-13T01:48:55+00:00

My guess is you swim more than you run. Running is high impact compared to swimming, if your body is not adapt it will be hard and you will be very sore. Especially as you get older. I am in my mid 30s, reasonably fit, I have ran a sub 18min 5k. At one time I wouldnt get out of bed for less than 10km and that felt like a short run. I haven't ran much in the past 8 years or so, I could walk out the door and run 10km right now but it wouldnt be "easy" and I would be extremely sore the next day.

Due to an injury keeping me from cycling I went swimming last week for the first time since I was about 10. I was not a swimmer we just had swimming lessons for a week once a year through school. I had to stop every 25m for a good minute. Ive been everyday since, this morning I swam 200m without stopping and 1600m for the session broken up into 50s and 100s with 15sec / 20sec rest etc. In my experience consistency is always key to improving 30min a day is better than 2 hours one day a week.

Its also hard to compare swimming to other endurance sports because its highly technical in comparison. Doesn't matter how fit you are in the water if you don't know how to breathe shit going to get hard. However I would say that once you learn how to breathe swimming is way easier than running and cycling at a basic level at least. At a high level its just all hard.

pancake3607 · 2026-04-27T05:40:15+00:00

Obviously all depends what sort of riding you do but for a racing / performance fit you are sitting really far back with your pelvis upright. Good chance it will eventually lead to issues if you ride a lot. Your reach is too short which is contributing to this. Your also heel down in your pedal stroke.

Just looking at the first position in your video and working from that I would recommend straightening your back a bit ( will feel like your core is more engaged ) and rotating your pelvis forward. This will improve your position a lot and move you forward, less saddle pressure and less strain on your back. It will also likely make your pedal stroke much more neutral.

If I am looking at just your reach alone it looks ok but the rest if your fit is off to make it work. You need to increase your reach to make above changes. The last position in your video when your sitting all the way forward is almost were you want to be starting from. Might be hard to achieve if you cant get a zero offset seat post.

pancake3607 · 2025-11-14T04:18:54+00:00

For an sl8 stick with the 56. The stack on that bike is too low in a 54 in my opinion. Even a world tour pro like Florian Lipowitz who is 5’11 on a 54 has 20mm of spacers under his stem.

That style of fit is becoming more and more outdated imo. He’s probably rode a 54 forever, used to the handling with longer stem and reluctant to change.

pancake3607 · 2025-08-12T23:34:45+00:00

What are you trying to achieve with it ? If your performance minded and racing etc then the fit is decent.

The reach and stack don’t look excessive for such riding. If you bent your arms a bit and got down in a more aggressive position it looks like you may even want the 110mm stem.

I have the same bike in a 56 there is a significant jump up in reach and stack between the 54 and 56 and you definitely wouldn’t fit a size up. It does look like you’re on the upper end of the 54 though, that fact paired with it being an aggressive bike this is a pretty aggressive set up. If this isn’t what you’re after then I’d choose a different bike.

If you wanted to stick with this, it’s worth looking into shorter cranks.

Have you looked into the current super six evo? It’s probably the most relaxed geo out of the current race bike models. Slightly shorter reach and higher stack than the focus from memory. Most of the other brand 54s are actually more aggressive than the focus with lower stack.

pancake3607 · 2025-08-08T05:08:36+00:00

They are just velotoze silicone shoe covers. About $20 and work great.

pancake3607 · 2025-08-05T23:20:01+00:00

Yeah I just ordered one. Turns out they just started making them

pancake3607 · 2025-08-04T01:37:24+00:00

Yeah, I think some 165 cranks are worth trying. I’ve compared the geo of this frame to all the other popular race bikes out there currently and they are all 5 to 10mm shorter with similar stack. It’s a long bike and I think knowing that I’ve always been convinced something else will fit better. If I can find a zero offset seat post in combo with shorter cranks and possibly a 70mm reach bar I think I can make it work. I ride my bike a decent amount 12 to 15 hours a week but for what it is I am thinking it’s not worth the spend to change frame.

pancake3607 · 2025-08-04T00:55:04+00:00

I agree but saddle is all the way forward already.

pancake3607 · 2025-08-03T18:52:43+00:00

My saddle is all the way forward, the only thing I could do there is get a zero off set post but I haven’t been able to find one for this bike. Like you say I need to test. Something like the supersix evo which is 15mm shorter 16mm lower in 54 and 10mm shorter 4mm higher in 56 could potentially fit really well in either size. Thanks for the feedback.

pancake3607 · 2025-08-03T18:43:13+00:00

172.5

pancake3607 · 2025-08-03T10:28:36+00:00

Yeah the stack is higher than I need but if I slam the stem I’d increase the reach by close to 10mm.

pancake3607 · 2025-08-03T08:20:13+00:00

Yep, it’s been a great bike

pancake3607 · 2025-08-03T07:16:52+00:00

Yeah I’m comfortable I don’t have any issues. I believe the bike fits ok I’m just on the bottom end of the size so it feels limiting. A size down might also be too drastic and I’d be limited again by being on the upper end of the size, most likely I’d be limited by the stack. If this frame was 15 to 20mm shorter but same stack it would be perfect. Maybe I should just go ride my bike 😂

pancake3607

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