I went back to the gym today to and went directly to the pool! I needed to go find the weights, my awesome-ish abs (okay that might be a stretch) and 11 inch biceps are going away because I spent the past 3 weeks "cramming" for my tri. But after seeing my horrifying and disgraceful swim time I figured I'd just get started on what will inevitably be my focus over the winter months.
I'm a slow swimmer, yes, but I'm not THAT slow, I'm not 25 minutes to finish 750 meters slow, so I have to think that since it wasn't panic and I wasn't being drowned by the Clydesdales, I must have added a great deal of distance by not swimming straight. I was talking to a Michael Phelps-y kid at the Y and he thinks that's most likely what happened. This leads to me to a deep thought...wait for it...Not enough emphasis is put on swimming that straight line! I probably put a lacing around the triangle in the lake and therefore used up time, energy, and my ranking! I need to really work my siting drills to avoid this in the future. Maybe one day I'll open my eyes under that murky lake water (shudder...maybe not).
So here's what I did today. Keep in mind that I'm over 30 and still recovering from Saturday's race...yes...after 30 your muscles hate you and your joints forget about lubrication. Okay, here's what I did:
250m warm up
400m race pace
250m with training paddles
50m race pace
25m sprint
50m race pace
25m sprint
50m race pace
25m sprint
I did learn that there is not much difference b/t my sprint pace and race pace. Darn.
For the next 6 weeks I'm diving into my 1/2 marathon training. I'm too A.D.D. to do a full marathon, so I think I'll only get through a 1/2...let's face it..I'm only doing it to get the 13.1 sticker on my car :)
Your thinking like a triathlete now, working on your weakest leg, most people over look this and keep working on their strength but their weakness stays week, you are ahead of the game.
ReplyDeleteI bet, and I bet your hubby agrees, that down the line, maybe 4-5 years from now, you will thinking about an Ironman (stop laughing and saying "ya right") and your response will be "I'm only doing it to get the tattoo"..... and the chance to brag for the rest of your life.
That's SO funny! Mike wants to do an Ironman and I really do thinks it's just to get the tattoo! LOL! I think he should get it on his calf!!
ReplyDeleteI have to say, I'm a bit addicted to this stupid sport. It was said best in a recent article from Runner's World, "You stop wondering, 'can I do this', and start wondering, 'can I do this...faster!'" Isn't that the truth!