Swim the 8- 25 meter lengths for 200 meters, that's not all that long in a big lake or big river. Betcha rethink the life jacket idea about the first 50 meters with a hella long way to go! And that is in warm flat pool water, not cold water with waves pounding you!
Master Class swims available at many pools and fitness clubs will redefine what seems normal. Life Time is $35/month for two classes per week. A routine warmup during a master class is 400-600 yards. An hour long class will often end up over 2,000 yards, and an hour open swim around 3,000.
NAUI-certified in '75, but I haven't used it in years. I do a lot of open water swimming including a 5-miler this summer - Lake Minnetonka, Excelsior Beach to Wayzata Beach.
