So another month of running has gone by. I gotta admit I haven't been running much. This past month was the month of 1 milers. I'd just warm up at the gym by running 1 mile. No excuses. For the whole month I ran only 31.38 miles. I've decided that since I can't get off my ass unless I'm under some goal gun I'm going to challenge myself to run 40 miles in May! That's not a whole lot but it's more then this month. This year hasn't been a good running year so far. I've ran more in one month than what I've run so far this year. Not having a marathon coming up really isn't motivating me. I may have to enter a 1/2 or something to get my ass into gear. All these little 1 mile runs. So sad! I've ordered an extra workshirt so at least once a week I'll leave clothes at work the day before my 8am shift. Then that morning I'll run to work. So that will give me at least one 6 mile run a week. My shirt won't come into the end of next week but soon I'll start to do that. Gotta trick myself into running! Last year after the LA Marathon I ran for a month then gave up in May. This year I ran a bit after the Disney and then the next month just stopped running. So in some repects I guess I'm back on track. Just want to run more then I have been. Come on motivation!
For months I've been inching towards The Purple Level on Nike+. Finally I only had less then 4 mile to run. I told myself I had to do it today. I had to end April on a somewhat high note. I had to defeat one goal! That was To Be Purple! So after work and dinner I fought my inner laziness and hit the road. I ran 4.53 miles. I ran a bit extra to make sure I didn't miss The Purple Level. So why is it still blue? I'm still fucking blue! I failed! Nike+ is so fucking with me! I know that it rounds up and down. The other day I was at 5 miles to go and then ran 2 miles and it then was 4 miles to go. So then I looked up what I needed to run to get to The Purple Level and by my calculations had to run 3.83 miles. See 1553 miles! I ran 1553.71. I'm PURPLE! But it's telling me one more mile! So tomorrow on May 1st I'll run 1 mile at the gym just to get this damn thing Purple. But really Nike+ is so fucking with me as this video popped up...
Update: I went back and logged into Nike+ to add up my running for April and it turns out I'm Purple After All! If only they had a Pink Level!
Now that I'm settling into a work schedule that includes working at 8am on Tuesdays and Thursdays my swimming has dipped down to around my old average yards per month. For April I swam 44,950 yards. That is down from last month but whatever. I also missed one long Sunday workout this month.
1. US Masters Swimming tweets some record breaking swims "Rowdy Gaines (52) blazes a 21.36 in the 50 Free…Men's 100 Breast was #Fast! Ed Moses (30) 53.44, Jeff Commings (37) 55.12, Robert Strand (65) 1:07.71 all USMS National age group records…More USMS National Records in Men's 200 Back! Nelson Silva, Chris Stevenson, Tom Barton and Bob Miller! Miller is 81 went 3:03.89, Amazing…Patricia Murphy (60) swims 29.82 in the 50 fly for a NEW USMS Natinoals Record…Congrats Mathew O'Brien and Josh Davis for Breaking USMS National Records in the 50 Fly (22.09 & 22.26!)…Even without the suits, records are going down. Congrats to Carolyn Boak, Charlotte Davis & Lawrence Day in the 400IM!"
2. From USA Today "USA Swimming partners with child protection firm. USA Swimming is working with a company that specializes in child protection to produce and distribute educational material about athlete protection to its 300,000 members. The national governing body has partnered with Praesidium and will offer the education program free to athletes and their parents. The education program is required for USA Swimming's 30,000 non-athlete members, including coaches and officials."
3. Michael Phelps via Facebook released "5 new photos to the album Shooting with 505 Games today...my video game comes out in June!"
4. The Capital reports "Pasadena swimmer sets mark…Nancy Brown of Pasadena set a United States Masters Swimming and FINA world record in the women's 75-79 100-yard backstroke at the Albatross Open in Bethesda recently."
5. Old news sorta new again. WBAL 11 reports "Phelps Promotes New Swimming Video Game. Game Is Controller-Free…The swimmer stopped by the Baltimore Hilton on Thursday to offer a sneak peak of the game called 'Michael Phelps: Push The Limit.' The game will hit stores in June."
6. BREAKING HEADLINE HUMOR from SCAQ Blog "Thorpedo arrives at Abbey." But sorry folks it was only Westminster Abbey and not the WeHo Abbey!
7. From Gatorzone "Thirty-Three Gator Swimmers and Divers Named to 2010-11 SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll…The University of Florida swimming and diving program placed 33 student-athletes on the 2010-11 Southeastern Conference Winter Academic Honor Roll, announced Thursday by SEC Commissioner Mike Slive. The UF men’s program placed a league-high 19 swimmers and divers on the list, while the Gator women had 14 athletes selected. In all, a total of 395 student-athletes were named to the roll, including 44 from UF, tied for the second-most selections in the conference."
8. io9 reports "How masses of swimming fire ants capture oxygen bubbles to stay afloat…How masses of swimming fire ants capture oxygen bubbles to stay afloat One ant sinks in water, but a bunch of them? It turns out they can link together and become an unsinkable life raft. New research shows that when fire-ants are dropped in water, they quickly form a pancake-shaped floating mass, which traps air beneath them."
9. From Go Swim "All Strokes - Math. In a world where we calculate most things (like money) on a 100-based scale, athletics brings the need for a new type of math, the 60-based scale." Anyone who has swum with me knows some days my math skills are not so great. Okay my math skills are horrible!
10. London 2012 Posts "Photos of the week: London 2012 mascots visit Tower Bridge." Okay with the Beef Eater hats on they look less like walking sperm.
BONUS - Wahoo! Joystiq reports "Mario and Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games headed to Wii and 3DS." As someone who owns the Bejing and Vancouver editions I can't wait to play the London version. The games aren't realistic but lots of fun. I still always seem to come in last during the swimming events!
Outsports is reporting "Peter Vidmar, anti-gay marriage advocate, chief of mission for U.S. 2012 Olympic team…The U.S. Olympic Committee has named Peter Vidmar, a 1984 gold medalist in gymnastics, as its chief of mission for the 2012 U.S. Olympic team in London. In this job, Vidmar will be the liaison officer for the U.S. team in dealing with the International Olympic Committee and London organizers. Vidmar, a Mormon, is an active opponent of gay marriage. In the 2008 fight for Proposition 8 in California, Vidmar donated $2,000 to pass the ballot initiative and also protested in public.
This is not the first time the USOC has made a decision antagonizing the gay community. When Dr. Tom Waddell started an international multisport event for LGBT people in 1982, he wanted to call it the “Gay Olympic Games.” But he was successfully sued by the USOC, which hounded him for $96,000 legal fees as he was dying of AIDS. The event was renamed the Gay Games. The USOC at the time had no problem with there being events called the 'Rat Olympics' or 'Dog Olympics.'"
SHAME! SHAME! SHAME! Actually I should be chanting "Have You No Shame USOC?" The U.S. Olympic Committee really should know better.
This afternoon it was time to hit the gym. Wahoo. Umm..yeah, right. On the first floor of the gym they've set up some equipment in one room that has been slowly collecting dust. No one uses them including myself. So the gym has been running these 30 minute instructional classes on using the machines. I keep missing the classes so today I planned my working out around the last session. So I got to the gym after 1:30 knowing that I'd have less then an hour before the session at 2:30. Well I was running a bit late so had a bit less then an hour. I got on the treadmill and ran 2 miles. I wanted to run more but I had my eye on the clock. Now for months I've been so close to reaching the next level in Nike+ which is the Purple Level. But this level has been illusive to me. I haven't been running much so it's taking me forever which should have been over with months ago. But now as I inch closer and closer the goal keeps moving. Mostly because of rounding up and down. A few runs ago it was 7 miles then 6 miles then lastly 5 miles. Then I ran 2 miles today and it read 4 miles to go. What!?! I did the math and found out it's actually 3.83 miles. Guess it has been rounding up and down on me! Damn it! So I gotta make a choice of running later tonight or waking up tomorrow and running. No matter what I will have run another 3.83 miles by May 1st.
After the treadmill I got in about 25 minutes of working on chest / arms weight training. Then headed down for the session. I sorta knew the equipment. I've use them all at one point but figured I needed the referesher course. Afterwards I realized I really could have skipped it but it's always nice to hear other people use the various machines. Since this was only 30 minutes long I had my choice of Group Groove or Group Ride. I decided to go for the fun one and try Group Goove.
Umm..I can't dance! But boy did I laugh at myself. I had a good time. Don't know if this is a class for me or not. But I'll be trying it again. I'll be a dancing queen, yet!
1. From PopSugar "Aussie Swimmer Ian Thorpe Arrives at the Royal Wedding!"
2. Swimming World reports "Jessica Hardy Cleared to Compete in 2012 London Olympics…Hardy has been cleared to compete in the 2012 London Olympics, according to her attorney Howard Jacobs. The announcement is surprising considering yesterday's announcement that the International Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic Committee were asking the Court of Arbitration for Sport to provide a definitive ruling on how IOC Rule 45 will be applied going forward."
3. From US Masters Swimming "A Swimmer's High After a Frightening Low…Eat. Swim. Sleep. Repeat. You’ll find this slogan on a sticker that Ray Venture has placed on his car. For him, it is more than a slogan though, it is his way of life. And he only started swimming four years ago at age 59, after serious heart surgery. Passionate and fun to talk to, Venture wants to inspire the world to take up Masters swimming."
4. Canada's Leader Post reports "Master swimmers 'forever young'…Every day seems to be a good day for Mary Brown and Ada Lou Watson. It takes only a few minutes with the senior swimmers to realize that they are living their lives to the fullest. Swimming and being active play significant roles in their lives. Both feel their level of activity is among the reasons for their longevity. Watson is 82. Brown is 81. The two train three times a week at the Lawson Aquatic Centre and are members of the Regina Masters Swim Club (RMSC)."
5. US Masters Swimming youtube "2011 U.S. Masters Swimming Spring Nationals." (update: embeding was revoked by us putz' I mean us masters)
6. FAIL blog posts a picture of the worst sign in swimming in "Oddly Specific: No Reason In Sugar Coating It."
7. Check out this summers ultimate fashion report from The Race Club "Trunks of Leisure…Howzah! It’s your old pal, Gary Hall, Jr. Summer is here and it’s time to outfit yourself with a fresh pair of trunks for the pool, lake, ocean or river. Wherever your adventure takes you this summer you’re bound to be near water in these sweltering days of fun and sun. Be prepared!"
8. The Alleghany Journal reports "Stonewall Masters Make a Splash at Zones…The Stonewall Masters, a local club affiliated with U.S. Masters Swimming, won the First Place Trophy for the Small Team Division at the Colonies Zone 2011 Swim Meet. The meet was held at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA, on April 15-17, 2011."
9. What's better then Prince Albert in a can? How about Prince William in a speedo? From The Wobbly Block "ABANDONED: Prince William's plans for Speedo-themed wedding 'revised'."
10. The Tribune reports on "Swift masters to compete at Spring US Nationals…SWIFT Swimming once again will have its masters programme represented at a major masters swimming championship. According to a press release, for the last five years, Swift has had swimmers at either the US Nationals or World Masters Swimming Championships."
Grrr...I am so wimping out on running of late. Another morning of setting my alarm to have an easy run before swimming has gone by with me hitting snooze. I kept hitting snooze and it eventually defaulted to reset. Luckily I woke up on my own in time to go swimming.
Warm Up 200 Swim / 300 Pull / 200 Kick then 300 alternating Catch Up Drill and Build by 50. (1000)
Main Set -
6x100's Free on 2 mins. descend (600/1600) I was okay with my descends. Not as fast as what I had set in my mind as my goal but not so bad. I started with a 1:15 then dropped to a 1:09 then slowly dropping down to a 1:03. Now I've always had lazy bad turns but since I've been working on them I'm tried to keep them somewhat okay. But after I swam I realized my third turn always seems to be the one that falls apart. I really felt it on my last one. Something for me to keep in mind.
Then I did a 50 easy (50/1650)
8x50's Pull on 50 Breathing every 3 (400/2050)
So not the greatest swim but felt a bit better then Wednesday. The neck and lower back pain seems to have moved over to my right shoulder. More specifically the area I had a pinched nerve a few years ago. Taking yesterday off from working out really helped my body reset. I'm just going to start listening to my body a bit more and see how I'm feeling over the next week.
I'll be heading to the gym for some weight training today and maybe a possible spinning class. It all depends. The gym is having a demonstration at 2:30 on some of the machines on the first floor of the gym so I want to check it out. I've used some of these machines in the past but that was when I first joined a gym some 7 years ago. I think it was 7 years ago last week. I know I joined a gym on Easter Sunday for what it's worth.
