Slappin' The Water

I pretty much used Thursday as a recovery day except for some cycling around town.  I ran a couple of errands but only cycled less then 10 miles total.  Figured it was a little bit of cardio.   After a recovery day I figured this mornings swim would be a good hard swim.  Well with a bad night of not being able to sleep then lots of tossing and turning I spent most of the mornings workout trying to wake up.  Usually the quick cycle ride to the pool wakes me up but not this morning.  Then when I did eventually wake up I had no speed in the water.  I figured at least I got in some cardio even if it was a bad swim for me.

Warmed up about a 500.  It was a very slow 500 stopping almost after every 50.

Then we did a warm up set:

3x100's 50 kick using no board / rotating (basically with arms to our side we were to kick but rotate on our axis.  for some reason I couldn't do this and basically just swam backwards)  the second 50 was catch up drill.  Since I was going backwards I sat out one of the 50 kicks.  (250/750)

3x100's 50 breaststroke kick / 50 breaststroke drill (300/1050)

6x75's  odds - 25  backstroke drill / 50 backstroke swim & evens 25 free drill / 50 freestyle swim all on 1:20 (450/1500)

Main Set:

4x100's free on 1:25

200 free all out on 3:00

3x100's on 1:25

200 free all out on 3:00

and i got out.  we had two fast lanes the other lane did the 100's on 1:20.  Since I was feeling tired I went with the slower interval.  If I had gone on the faster interval I think I would have broken down even sooner then I did.  I had nothing in the 200's.  The first one after about 150 I was out of gas.  I was struggling.  My arms were all over the place.  In the two 200's I did I was hitting people in the next lane with my arms.  That is when I knew my stroke had fallen apart and it was time to get out.  I was going to hurt someone or even myself.  (1100/2600)  The rest of the set was 2x100's, 200, 1x100 and a 200.  When I was dressed and heading out the coach was giving them a 100 fast for time.  So glad I got out.  I would have been broken down and been swimming all over.  One of my swim mates jokingly asked "if i ever swim a full workout anymore" and I got to be honest that I don't think I do.  It's getting easier and easier to get early as it seems more people are of late.  I guess I am just in one really long taper season!


Morning Swim Workout

If swimming last night wasn't enough I woke up this morning and decided to swim.  The weather has been mild enough that cycling to the pool in the morning isn't so bad.  Actually it's nice.  Once at the pool I was still half asleep so it took me a bit to wake up.  I did about a 400 warm up just to wake up.  After that we did a few warm up sets.  I just remember them but not the order we did them. 

3x200's Pull Breathing 3/5/ by 50.  One of the coaches gave me a tip about how I should be swimming breath control sets.  But of course when I was in the water today I couldn't remember.  I did it without paddles which seemed to make it worse.  They were to be descended but I just got frustrated about the breathing every 5 that I just did what I had to do to finish it.  Breath control sets is something I need to work on.  Just now I had to pull up the email from the coach who gave me advice.  What I needed to do was relax and slow it down also to relax my arm in it's recovery.  Hopefully now that I've read the email again and typed it myself just now it'll stick in my memory.  If all else fails I'll read his email before the next time I swim. (600/1000)

Then we did some 75's.  Odds 50 drill / 25 swim on 1:15 and evens 25 drill / 50 swim on 1:15. Hmm...I think we did a total 6 or 8.  I didn't do all of them.   I did the first one butterfly and had very little rest and then did the second one backstroke.  Once again with very little rest so I went last and just took ignored the interval and just took like 15 seconds rest in between the 75's.  Let's say I did 4 of them.  (300/1300)

Main Set:

200 Free on 2:40

100 IM on 1:30

3x50's on 50 choice

take 30 seconds rest 

300 Free on 4:00

100 IM on 1:30

3x50's on 50 choice

take 30 seconds rest 

400 Free on 5:20

100 IM on 1:30

3x50's on 50

It was a good set.  The intervals gave us plenty of rest.  Well enough.  The 50's were all choice of stroke and I did backstroke for all of them.  1650 yard set.  In the IM I felt okay in the fly but the breaststroke I just tried to get to the wall.  I felt okay during the distance freestyle although I think I could have gone faster.  The 50's backstroke were all over the place.  I was trying to remember to keep my head back and rotate my axis and kick.  But then I'd try to go fast and it all fell apart.  The last round it was all about speed and just moved my arms like a windmill. (1650/2,950)

We then finished up with 12x25's butterfly.  The intervals were 25/30/35/40 repeat for 3 rounds.  (300/3,250)

In one of my workout posts I rambled on and on about the workout a bit more then usual.  Luckily I was able to get some feedback.  It's interesting how I view a situation as compared to how others view the same situation.  I guess in the past when coaches have given me feedback I've always had an excuse and well was set in my ways.  I think I can sum it up like this "I want to improve my swimming but is can I go an easier route then working on it?"  There was one more thing that dawned on me when I was cycling home but I now can't remember.  Oh well guess I'll save that for another day.


Tuesday Night...Meh...Swim.

I was going to comment a little bit but I'm too tired and well The Biggest Loser is on.  Here is tonights workout.

warmed up about a 500 or so.  mixed it up with some free and stroke.

200 50 drill /50 swim

500 Pull

then we did this alternating drill / swim thing.  i got out and read the board but then i got back in my lane everyone was asking so many questions about the set and how many times we were doing it that it all slipped out of my mind.  was it 25 drill / 50 swim and repeat to a 600 or was it 50 drill / 25 swim or do we start with the swim or the drill.  I tried looking at what people in my lane and the other lane were doing but it seemed everyone was doing something different.  so i got in a 500 out of what was to be a 600.  So so far 1,700 yards.

Then we did 3x200's descend.  First one on 2:40 and the 2nd on on 2:30.  So 2,300 yards. I actually felt pretty good in these.  First time in a few weeks.

I think up next was three rounds of 4x50's free fast on 45 take an extra 15 seconds then 4x25's stroke on 30 with no extra rest between the 25's and 50's.  3,200 yards and it was now 8:15 or 75 minutes into the workout.  This is when I got out.  Not a lot of yardage for the amount of time but some quality drilling even when I got confused to what the hell we were doing.

On the way home I cycled at a good speed.  I even decided to go up one of the hills between Santa Monica Blvd and Fountain.  Normally I walk my bike up the hills but figured I'd push myself.  I was huffing and puffing by the time I got to Fountain.  

The best part of the day was when I got home and UPS left me my order from roadrunnersports.com.  New running socks and a pair of shorts I got on sale.  wahoo! Now I just have to get running again!


Fly-tastic, Well not so Fantastic But It Had Some Fly

It was downright chilly this morning on deck at the pool.  Too cold for this to be my first swim of April!  I jumped in the pool right away and started my warm up.  400 Swim, 300 Pull then got in 150 Kick.  So a good 850 warm up.  I really wasn't feeling it in the water during warm up.  Felt like I was sleep swimming.  Then we did a warm up set with some kick:

Three Rounds

100 Kick

75 Drill

50 Kick

25 Swim

I did the first round butterfly, the second round free and the third round butterfly again.  I figure I need to get some butterfly training in.  (750/1600)  We had intervals but I sorta fudge them to get more rest.  I switched lanes to go in the slower fast lane but after the warm up we ended up swimming the same intervals as the other lane.  I'm sorta glad I sucked it up and did the faster interval but boy am I sore now.  

Then we did one last quick warm up set:

3 Rounds

4x25's on 30 1st one easy free / 2nd one reverse build / 3rd one build / 4th one all fast.  I did the first round fly, second round backstroke and the third round free.  (300/1900)

Main Set:

Four Rounds

100 on 1:30 easy recovery free

100 on 1:30  25 stroke / 75 free

100 on 1:30 50 stroke / 50 free

100 on 1:30 75 stroke / 25 free

100 on 1:30 stroke.

The emphasis was on the stroke  I did the 1st and 4th rounds butterfly for my stroke and the 2nd and 3rd rounds backstroke.  No extra rest in between the rounds but the first 100 recovery free made up for that.  (2000/3900)  I will admit that my times were not that impressive.  It was more an exercise in survival.  I am still coughing a bit when I'm swimming as the last bit of the cold is lingering.  Next week I am going to try to push myself a bit more and may swim a bit more.