W ith nearly 100 in- dividual U.S. Mas- ters Swimming Top 10 times and All-Ameri- can honors in multiple strokes and distances, New England Masters Swim Club member Liz Mancuso epitomizes versatility and fe- rocious competitiveness. But when asked what she values most about swimming, she doesn’t mention her times or awards. “It’s the relationships,” the 33-year-old says, noting that she’s made many lifelong friends and even met her husband through the sport. When their son was born in late 2017, Mancuso was forced to adjust. With few- er workouts, she knows she needs to stay focused. She swims a lot of IM and loves all-out speed sets of 50s and 100s that in- clude time for recovery. But her distance racing requires longer sets too: “400 IMs aren’t all that fun to swim in practice,” she says, “but I do them.” Mancuso credits barre classes with in- creasing her strength and flexibility: “My muscles don’t fatigue as easily, and it builds mental toughness.” Holding a position for up to six minutes creates a mind-over-mat- ter attitude she can tap into during compe- tition, and the core and leg work builds strength to maintain good posture. “Running after my son also counts as cross-training,” she says with a smile. Her confidence in shorter but highly fo- cused training was bolstered by her vic- tory in the 200 IM in the 2019 NE LMSC SCY Championships. “I was nervous, be- cause the race requires endurance, but I felt strong the entire way,” she says. She credits her teammates and coach for in- spiring her to work hard at practice. Mancuso prefers pool swimming because she can see her competitors, and the dis- tances are always the same. “I’m aware of the others,” she says, but she adds that she sticks to her own race strategy. In open wa- ter, it’s harder to strategize for competition. “I just put my head down and sprint the first part and then get into my own rhythm,” she says. She’ll draft when she can, and then pick a time to make her move. Mancuso is grateful that she has been able to incorporate morning swim work- outs as part of her family’s routine. She considers swimming a healthy founda- tion for life. “I’m a better mom and a bet- ter person because I get to swim,” she says. “Life has its ups and downs, but swimming grounds me and provides sta- bility.”—TERRY HEGGY FROM THE CENTER LANES Liz Mancuso TRAINING AND TECHNIQUE P lunging into open water is often a refreshing—sometimes even a shockingly cold—experience. But depending on where and when you’re swimming, the water may not feel cool at all. If said hot spot is the site of your next open water race, that makes performing your best all the more challenging, particularly if you’re more accustomed to dealing with cooler temperatures. Hot water can be more dangerous than cold. Although it might be easier to get into water that’s very warm, heat can kill you fast- er than cold. In fact, many hospitals now routinely induce hypo- thermia in patients dealing with certain heart conditions. The ma- cabre mantra in wilderness medicine is “You’re not dead until you’re warm and dead,” which means there’s room to maneuver between being hypothermic and unrevivable. On the flip side, being too hot can all but literally cook critical components of the brain in short order. This is why high fevers can be such a concern. If the body is too hot and can’t cool itself, that spells trouble with a capital T. It’s harder to recover from hy- perthermia than it is to rebound from hypothermia. Climate change is real, and many swimming locales are getting hotter. If you’re facing down a too-warm waterway this summer, follow these tips to stay safe. (Note: U.S. Masters Swimming open water races of less than 5 kilo- meters can’t be held in water hotter than 87.8 degrees and races of 5 ki- lometers or longer can’t take place in water hotter than 85 degrees.) Lose the Cap: Because the brain is such a big gobbler of ener- gy, a lot of heat is present—and lost—through the head. By far, neoprene caps retain the most heat, followed by silicone, latex, and finally cloth. If the water is super-hot, consider losing the cap altogether. For people with long hair, braiding it tightly may help keep it out of your face. Because wearing a bright cap is important for safety reasons, consider using a swim buoy to help boaters spot you if you choose to ditch your cap. Roll Over: If the air temperature is cooler than the water tempera- ture, there’s a readily available way to bring your body temperature down quickly: Simply expose as much skin as you can to the air. This is often achievable by simply rolling over and taking a break to breathe. Slow Down: A race in hot water is not a fair fight. Change your goal from winning to simply finishing the swim. Come back another time when the water is cooler to see how fast you can traverse the course. Choose Not to Compete: It’s just swimming, after all. Most of us are paying for the privilege to race, and even if there’s prize money at stake, consider carefully whether risking permanent health issues is worth the result of a single contest. Being hospital- ized with heat stroke or worse can certainly put a big crimp in your future swimming endeavors.—ELAINE K. HOWLEY In Hot Water OUT IN THE OPEN Strategies for coping with water that’s too warm Top: Stephanie Ganey Photography, Bottom: Mike Mancuso 12 usms.org