I did 'em! All sixteen laps, all at once, on a Friday afternoon. That's a pretty productive lunch break, if you ask me. In case you don't remember, sixteen laps is equal to half a mile, which is slightly over the distance I have to go for this triathlon. (The actual race distance is .41 miles, so I'm good to go.)
There were two other people in the pool, and we were all wearing swim caps and goggles; the non-swimmer in me felt like I was part of The Club finally. The lady two lanes over was not doing flip turns, and I was, so I felt even cooler. The guy in the lane next to me was the really intense guy who I see at lunch sometimes; and my flip turns next to his were terrible as usual. Also, he could swim faster than me when he was doing drills that didn't even involve his arms. Awesome. But he wears Crocs to walk out to the pool, so I think I win.
All judgment of my fellow swimmers aside, the swim itself went well. I felt good the entire time, except that I somehow have lost my earplugs so I get water in one of my ears. I spent the next two hours after my swim at work with my head tilted to the right and finally succeeded in getting the water to drain. I hate having water in my ears. (I think subconsciously I imagine it goes in my ear and straight into my brain, so that freaks me out.) Anyway, the sustained head tilting probably contributed to my stiff neck later on in the afternoon. Lucky for me I work for a chiropractor and could have Dr. Eric take a look at it.
I don't know what the deal is, but swimming tends to make one specific muscle in my neck tense up. It's at the base of my neck on the right side (I should ask my boss more specifically what that muscle is). I wonder if it's from the breathing to the side; that's a common cause of injury with swimmers, along with shoulder problems. But I breathe every third stroke so I am turning my head to both sides, so I wonder why just the one side has problems. Maybe I'm not rolling evenly in the water, so when I turn to the right my neck has to work harder? For those of you who don't know, when you swim freestyle like what I'm doing, your body is actually supposed to roll from side to side with your arm lifting out of the water. I think it helps you cut through the water, and it's also a lot easier on shoulders, back, and neck. I'll have to pay more attention to my roll next time I swim.
In other news: I didn't do any training at all over the whole long weekend. I gardened, I helped some friends move into a new house, and I did some cleaning; but I did not go to the gym or run or even touch my bike at all. Oops. It was a nice break... but I also feel like the past few weeks have been a total break for me! And I now have less than six weeks until the big event! After my 16-lap swim on Friday, I am feeling pretty confident about at least being able to finish all of the three portions; my goal is just to finish and that's it. I do have to start doubling up my workouts: go for a swim and then bike right after; or go for a run as soon as I finish a long bike ride. That would, incidentally, streamline my weekly workouts, which totally appeals to my suddenly-lazy self. Oh dear. Should I be more concerned about this triathlon? Eh... for today, at least, it is too lovely outside for anything other than carefree enjoyment of exercise!
31 May 2011
27 May 2011
The road to hell...
...is paved with good intentions, right? Heh. I have found myself confronted by my good intentions this week. And I had so many! Such good intentions for this blog--consistency and cleverness and helpfulness in posting! Ha. Such good intentions for my training--did I mention that my original training plan included eight workouts a week? Ha and double ha. I'm even incapable of following through on seemingly minor good intentions--like getting a new swimsuit. My "real" swimsuit is more of a sit-on-the-beach-suit, not so much an actively-swim-suit; so I've been training in a hand-me-down suit that is noticeably ancient, and have somehow never managed to get myself a new one in all these months! At least I managed to finally get myself a swim cap, which may actually squish my brains out. It makes my head feel huge and look tiny. Strange, huh?
This week in particular, my training seems to have just gone down the drain, right behind my motivation. Swimming has not been affected so much, I suppose. I swam (swum? swimmed?) sprints on Tuesday, which was kind of random but fun. I usually just swim my allotted time at a regular pace, but this week I decided to push a little harder for my short swim. Probably good experience, but man was I pooped. I will be going for my longer swim today over lunch. I plan to take it slow and steady... or perhaps just slow and slower.
As far as my other training goes--well, that's where my good intentions lead to you-know-where. My original plan included a serious weight lifting regimen twice a week; I cut it way back after about a month, and now have not even touched a free weight in two weeks. Oops. Two bike rides a week? Well, I cut it down to one long ride, and that may or may not happen this week. To be fair, I don't have a car; I bike everywhere anyway, so I'm not terribly worried on that front. I'm too lazy to bother with feeling worried.
The two runs a week will also not be happening this week, unless I get super motivated to go for a run tomorrow or Sunday morning--but let's be honest, that's so not going to happen. I'd rather sleep. I did go for the longer of the two runs with my roommate on Wednesday, which was wonderful. We ran all around Silverwood Park, a spot I highly recommend to locals. We ran for half an hour and went significantly faster than the short run we did together last week (I was so tired and crabby about that run!), so things are looking up in the running department, aside from the irregularity in training.
I suppose all in all I'm trying to find a balance of adequate preparation and appropriate sanity as I approach this triathlon (Countdown alert: Race day is six weeks from tomorrow! Yikes!). I ran the Twin Cities 10-Mile race last October, and ended up having a terrible experience because I never allowed myself to rest! I was so strict with my training regimen that I started to hate running, my training group, and myself. Seriously, I was angry about the race the entire time. Such a badittude. (Get it? Badittude? Bad plus attitude? I love that word.) I don't want this triathlon to be that kind of experience. I want to train because I enjoy the activity, because I want to, not because I feel like I have something to prove or have to live up to someone else's expectation. Maybe I'll finish hours behind all the other triathletes, but you know what? That's just fine by me. Too bad there's already a blog titled "The Lazy Triathlete;" otherwise you know I'd be all over that.
This week in particular, my training seems to have just gone down the drain, right behind my motivation. Swimming has not been affected so much, I suppose. I swam (swum? swimmed?) sprints on Tuesday, which was kind of random but fun. I usually just swim my allotted time at a regular pace, but this week I decided to push a little harder for my short swim. Probably good experience, but man was I pooped. I will be going for my longer swim today over lunch. I plan to take it slow and steady... or perhaps just slow and slower.
As far as my other training goes--well, that's where my good intentions lead to you-know-where. My original plan included a serious weight lifting regimen twice a week; I cut it way back after about a month, and now have not even touched a free weight in two weeks. Oops. Two bike rides a week? Well, I cut it down to one long ride, and that may or may not happen this week. To be fair, I don't have a car; I bike everywhere anyway, so I'm not terribly worried on that front. I'm too lazy to bother with feeling worried.
The two runs a week will also not be happening this week, unless I get super motivated to go for a run tomorrow or Sunday morning--but let's be honest, that's so not going to happen. I'd rather sleep. I did go for the longer of the two runs with my roommate on Wednesday, which was wonderful. We ran all around Silverwood Park, a spot I highly recommend to locals. We ran for half an hour and went significantly faster than the short run we did together last week (I was so tired and crabby about that run!), so things are looking up in the running department, aside from the irregularity in training.
I suppose all in all I'm trying to find a balance of adequate preparation and appropriate sanity as I approach this triathlon (Countdown alert: Race day is six weeks from tomorrow! Yikes!). I ran the Twin Cities 10-Mile race last October, and ended up having a terrible experience because I never allowed myself to rest! I was so strict with my training regimen that I started to hate running, my training group, and myself. Seriously, I was angry about the race the entire time. Such a badittude. (Get it? Badittude? Bad plus attitude? I love that word.) I don't want this triathlon to be that kind of experience. I want to train because I enjoy the activity, because I want to, not because I feel like I have something to prove or have to live up to someone else's expectation. Maybe I'll finish hours behind all the other triathletes, but you know what? That's just fine by me. Too bad there's already a blog titled "The Lazy Triathlete;" otherwise you know I'd be all over that.
20 May 2011
Flip turn update
Hello everyone! Sorry it's been ages (it seems) since my last post. What can I say? Life gets busy! And I have certainly been flying around--work has been crazy busy the past couple of weeks, I've had meetings and outings crammed into every spare moment, and oh, did I mention that I'm training for a triathlon? I'm only just now able to catch my breath and think about what's been going on!
Without further ado, then, let me give you the short-version update: I learned how to do a flip turn! Now that I'm swimming longer and longer, it's helpful not to have to stop and touch the wall to turn around at each length. Also flip turns look awesome. See?
My friend/college swimmer Jess taught me (again) how to do a flip turn, and the second time was much more successful. My flip turns are nothing like the video above, but they're getting there! I'd say about half the time I complete an amateur-but-functional flip turn, and the other half of the time my flip turns look more like this:
Seriously. Just imagine that moose being under water--one great big awkward moment, limbs all akimbo, some struggling, then quickly moving away trying to pretend like nothing just happened.
It's only embarrassing when there are really good swimmers in the pool, and I'm there flailing around, ending up in other people's lanes, hitting the floor of the pool, and generally making a fool of myself. Ah well. I've seen one guy several times when I hit the gym over my lunch break, and I happened to catch one of his flip turns in action the other day. It was so inspirational.
Also big news in my swim-training: I swam 17 laps on Wednesday! The race is just under a half-mile, which is 16 laps, so I'm good to go! I'm pretty sure I've done it before, but the problem with learning flip turns is that I suddenly lost the ability to count laps while swimming and flip-turning. Too much to think about! Wednesday was the first time I remembered to count how many laps I was doing. I'm so glad I did--earlier in my training I had estimated my finish time at 32--35 minutes. Then I looked up finish times from last year's triathlon, and the people at the end of the pack were finishing the swim in maybe 24 or 25 minutes... and I was picturing myself as a tiny little spec on the horizon of the lake at that point, slowly splashing my way to the next leg of the race!
My 17-lap stint the other day reassured me: I'm still going to be at the back of the pack, but at least it looks like my time should fall in the realm of normalcy. I was beginning to feel like I was stuck in one of those bad dreams, where you have to run, but you can only move in slow motion... what a terrible way to begin a race! So I am very glad to find that I am right on track for my swim time; and my coach-friend Jess also told me that my time will only get better from here as I continue training! I suppose that makes sense, but I had not thought of it. Hurray for encouragement! That's so key at this point in training.
Stay tuned: Next week I'll update y'all on my non-swimming training!
Without further ado, then, let me give you the short-version update: I learned how to do a flip turn! Now that I'm swimming longer and longer, it's helpful not to have to stop and touch the wall to turn around at each length. Also flip turns look awesome. See?
My friend/college swimmer Jess taught me (again) how to do a flip turn, and the second time was much more successful. My flip turns are nothing like the video above, but they're getting there! I'd say about half the time I complete an amateur-but-functional flip turn, and the other half of the time my flip turns look more like this:
Seriously. Just imagine that moose being under water--one great big awkward moment, limbs all akimbo, some struggling, then quickly moving away trying to pretend like nothing just happened.
It's only embarrassing when there are really good swimmers in the pool, and I'm there flailing around, ending up in other people's lanes, hitting the floor of the pool, and generally making a fool of myself. Ah well. I've seen one guy several times when I hit the gym over my lunch break, and I happened to catch one of his flip turns in action the other day. It was so inspirational.
Also big news in my swim-training: I swam 17 laps on Wednesday! The race is just under a half-mile, which is 16 laps, so I'm good to go! I'm pretty sure I've done it before, but the problem with learning flip turns is that I suddenly lost the ability to count laps while swimming and flip-turning. Too much to think about! Wednesday was the first time I remembered to count how many laps I was doing. I'm so glad I did--earlier in my training I had estimated my finish time at 32--35 minutes. Then I looked up finish times from last year's triathlon, and the people at the end of the pack were finishing the swim in maybe 24 or 25 minutes... and I was picturing myself as a tiny little spec on the horizon of the lake at that point, slowly splashing my way to the next leg of the race!
My 17-lap stint the other day reassured me: I'm still going to be at the back of the pack, but at least it looks like my time should fall in the realm of normalcy. I was beginning to feel like I was stuck in one of those bad dreams, where you have to run, but you can only move in slow motion... what a terrible way to begin a race! So I am very glad to find that I am right on track for my swim time; and my coach-friend Jess also told me that my time will only get better from here as I continue training! I suppose that makes sense, but I had not thought of it. Hurray for encouragement! That's so key at this point in training.
Stay tuned: Next week I'll update y'all on my non-swimming training!
04 May 2011
So Sporty
I got a new watch last week.
The Easter Bunny brought me exactly one egg, but it had money in it, not candy (best Easter egg ever!). Instead of replacing the ratty old shoes that I wear everywhere as the Easter Bunny suggested, I chose to get a watch for my triathlon training. What can I say, I have my priorities. I really should replace those flats, though. They are finally growing holes after being worn for years, all over the world, through all sorts of weather conditions (ask about the snowstorm in Amsterdam sometime!) and the time finally has come that they should go the way of all mortal flesh.
Anyhow, enough about my strange attachment to my cheap shoes. I got a watch from The Wal-Marts for like ten bucks because it was the plainest waterproof design. It's good up to 50 meters, and since I don't like deep water anyway, I'm sure that will suit me just fine. My watch is silver and oh-so-sporty looking on my wrist. I chose silver over pink and am now regretting that decision, but otherwise this watch is perfect. It's very helpful to have the time in great big numbers right on my wrist, rather than stopping mid-swim to squint up at the analog clock which I can hardly read to begin with. I use the alarm to make sure I swim long enough but know when to stop. It's a great little system!
Now, for a quick update on the non-swimming parts of triathlon training: My roommate and I went for this week's long bike ride last night. We biked out to Snail Lake Park, which I would highly recommend for anyone in the area. The trails are great for cross country skiing in the winter, and just as fabulous for biking or running in the summer. It's so beautiful, in fact, that my 58-minute bike ride turned into a 90-minute bike ride. Oops! But I think I might do my training more like this from now on, because I bike everywhere, so I go on many 10-, 15-, or 20-minute bike rides throughout the week. Rather than adding a 35-plus-minute and a 58-plus-minute bike ride on top of that (my current training plan has me biking, swimming, and running twice a week each), I plan to just go on one extended bike once a week for my training. I think that will work out well with my schedule as well as my training needs. Plus I get to feel all important as I custom-design my training plan!
So that's where I am for now. Stay tuned, though: Tomorrow evening, my training buddy KC and I are both going to try to learn flip turns! We'll see if he has better luck than I did the last time I tried to learn.
The Easter Bunny brought me exactly one egg, but it had money in it, not candy (best Easter egg ever!). Instead of replacing the ratty old shoes that I wear everywhere as the Easter Bunny suggested, I chose to get a watch for my triathlon training. What can I say, I have my priorities. I really should replace those flats, though. They are finally growing holes after being worn for years, all over the world, through all sorts of weather conditions (ask about the snowstorm in Amsterdam sometime!) and the time finally has come that they should go the way of all mortal flesh.
Anyhow, enough about my strange attachment to my cheap shoes. I got a watch from The Wal-Marts for like ten bucks because it was the plainest waterproof design. It's good up to 50 meters, and since I don't like deep water anyway, I'm sure that will suit me just fine. My watch is silver and oh-so-sporty looking on my wrist. I chose silver over pink and am now regretting that decision, but otherwise this watch is perfect. It's very helpful to have the time in great big numbers right on my wrist, rather than stopping mid-swim to squint up at the analog clock which I can hardly read to begin with. I use the alarm to make sure I swim long enough but know when to stop. It's a great little system!
Now, for a quick update on the non-swimming parts of triathlon training: My roommate and I went for this week's long bike ride last night. We biked out to Snail Lake Park, which I would highly recommend for anyone in the area. The trails are great for cross country skiing in the winter, and just as fabulous for biking or running in the summer. It's so beautiful, in fact, that my 58-minute bike ride turned into a 90-minute bike ride. Oops! But I think I might do my training more like this from now on, because I bike everywhere, so I go on many 10-, 15-, or 20-minute bike rides throughout the week. Rather than adding a 35-plus-minute and a 58-plus-minute bike ride on top of that (my current training plan has me biking, swimming, and running twice a week each), I plan to just go on one extended bike once a week for my training. I think that will work out well with my schedule as well as my training needs. Plus I get to feel all important as I custom-design my training plan!
So that's where I am for now. Stay tuned, though: Tomorrow evening, my training buddy KC and I are both going to try to learn flip turns! We'll see if he has better luck than I did the last time I tried to learn.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)