Not What it Seems

Fraud in a bowl

I occasionally make assumptions about things and then am surprised when my truth and the truth are different. For example, take two news stories from this week. The first was that Captain and Tennille are getting divorced after 39 years of marriage. Thirty-nine years! What? Then, as if that did not rock my world enough, it turns out that Fruit Loops are - wait - ALL THE SAME FLAVOR! What a charade of horrors! I tested those as a 8 year old and swear the red ones were best. Anyway, it turns out that lots of things are not as they seem, and swim coaching is one of them. Today I filled in for coach Bill as I have done a few times. But I always forget how hard it is. From the confines of your lane, it seems easy - get the workout from the coach and swim. But from the deck it is a different story. You need to wear many hats: traffic cop, psychologist, mediator, cheerleader, and mind reader. We had five lanes going and they all needed something different. I honestly thought I would give out the workout and leisurely sit around and chat with the lifeguards and other swimmers. Not a chance, but it was awesome. I have a new found respect, not only for Coach Bill but for my teammates who I never get to talk with or see while in the pool. Great job everybody.

400 warm up

25's on :10r, 75/50's on :15r

3 x 25 drill

75 breast

3 x 25 drill 

75 back

3 x 25 drill

75 fly

2 x 25 drill

2x 50 breast

2 x 25 drill

2 x 50 back

2 x 25 drill

2 x 50 fly

3(4x100)

1-4 hold pace 1:30

5-8 stroke/free 1:45

9-12 DESCEND on 1:35

3 x 200 IM (choose interval 10-15 rest)

Six times thru:

50 sprint on :40/25 easy on :40

4 x 150 pull hypoxic on 2:20 (ran out of time)

100 easy

75 ascend by 25

2 x 50 easy on :60

Winning the Lottery

That looks far

They say that winning the lottery changes people, and as a recent lottery winner I hope that this is true, in a positive way. Yes, I am happy to announce that after three years of being on the losing end of the Great Chesapeake Bay Swim lottery, I FINALLY got in! Winning this lottery enables me to pay $250 for the privilege to swim the 4.4 miles across Chesapeake Bay in June, and I can't wait. I will also try to avoid the common mistakes that many lottery winners make, like quitting my job or spending all the money I didn't win on that fancy wetsuit. I have noticed, though, that since my big announcement (I heard it was carried on the local news here) I have been surprised at how completely respectful and silent my friends and acquaintances have been considering my big windfall. It's good to know they aren't hanging out with me because of this lottery victory. :)

300 warmup
10 x 50 on :50 count strokes
3 x 100 breast/free
3 x 100 back/breast
3 x 100 back/free
4 x 400 on 6:20 going:
1. last 100 stroke
2. third 100 stroke
3. second 100 stroke
4. first 100 stroke

Okay, 2014, Let's Do This!

My sister rolled her eyes every time I said this phrase, which annoyingly for her was almost daily during our family holiday gathering. It was usually said as I was heading out to the gym, or store, or Christmas Eve service. Typically it was said with enthusiasm because I was looking forward to my destination. This morning, though, my tone was more cautious than excited as I headed to the pool for my first masters workout in about six weeks. The holiday fun was over. I'm not one for resolutions, but getting back into a routine again is important. I've realized how interconnected my daily routines are - from fitness, to work, to my relationships. Get off kilter in one, the others are impacted. Coach Bill was kind to us today, and I appreciated that!

Long course:(no intervals - all on rest between :15 and :25)

200 swim

8 x 50 going drill/swim; stroke/swim

3 x 100 stroke

400 swim 

6 x 150 pull

4 x (4 x 50) going:

1-4 IM order on 1:05

5-8 Free descend on :60

9-12 IM order on :60

13-16 Free descend on :55

3 x 100 on 1:45, 1:55, 2:05

Best Kept Secret

There is a community pool in Key West that is an absolute gem. It's so good that I am not disclosing the name of it and the photo at the right was taken in Tahiti. Why? Because I want it to stay hidden. It is perfectly imperfect - no lane lines, 30 yards long, no clocks or pool toys. Today I had to rescue a lounge chair from the bottom of the pool, and during my brief swim I had to dodge a sea bird who needed a calm respite from the storms of this week. The lifeguards fed him fish. That doesn't happen at other pools and I love it. The best part is that you can't do a typical workout (I mean really - who knows their 60 yard times?) so the pressure is off - you just swim. And a bonus is that it is right on the ocean. If you are coming to Key West I will let you in on the secret.

Morning in Boston

Swimmers have an ongoing debate - is it tougher to a) get out of bed in the morning or b) jump into a cold pool? I typically lean on the side of it's harder to jump into a cold pool, but today I solidly stand with the get out of bed crowd. It's October in Boston, which means that there is baseball, and the Sox have kept us up pretty late. And let's face it these games are not your typical baseball games so the emotional energy combined with the sleep deprivation can be a bit harsh. When the alarm went off at 5-something this morning I began the inner struggle/dialogue we all know too well. And who has not fallen back to sleep and dreamed that you drove to the pool and got in? I have had that dream, and it becomes a nightmare if you actually think you swam. But I wrenched myself up and got to the pool, spurred on by the win from last night. We have potentially three more mornings like this. GO SOX!!!

10 x 50 swim/stroke :55/:60
8 x 75 going 25 free/25stroke/25free on :20r
300 pull hypoxic
300 kick/choice
3 x 200  on 3:00
50 easy
3 x 200 on 3:10
50 easy
3 x 200 on 3:20
50 easy

The goal of the set is to get faster as you go, as we had a lot of rest. 

The Human Garmin

Many of my friends train with a Garmin, tracking distance, pace, splits, mood, and whatever else the device does. I just started to use one for my running and it delightfully tells me how slow I am. It even "auto-paused" during a hill repeat yesterday because it detected that I stopped when I didn't. In any case, I'm pretty sure that nobody else has what we at MIT Masters have in the pool - the Human Garmin, also known as Joe Kurtz. You need to hold a consistent pace for an 800? Joe can do that. Need to descend 2 seconds each 100 in a 400? Better have Joe leading. And I think the HG is more accurate than the electronic device, and the battery doesn't run out during the workout. This trusty HG frustrates swimmers who want to blast out the set fast and tend to die at the end. An unscientific poll of my lanemates found that everyone loves to swim with the HG because he is so consistent. It's a good lesson for everyone on how to swim a workout and I'm just grateful that I get to reap the benefits at swim practice!

Today's workout

Warmup (I did zero because I slept in)
8 x 75 drill/swim :15r
Twice thru:
4 x 25 fly
100 kick
800 hold consistent pace
2 x 50 free :60
8 x 25 backstroke :30
400 hold pace on 6:00
400 descend by 100 on 6:00
2 x 50 free
8 x 25 breaststroke on :30

Spinner Fail

I am not at all surprised that the suit spinner in the ladies locker room is broken. For those of you not lucky enough to have a suit spinner in your locker room, it is a neat little device that drys your suit in 3 to 5 seconds. The key to that statement is 3 to 5 seconds. My locker is right by the spinner, so I see it all. Despite the dire warning signs on the lid [DO NOT PUT IN TWO SUITS! DO NOT PRESS DOWN FOR MORE THAN 10 SECONDS} I swear that some people bring their laundry into the locker room to take it for a spin instead of using the traditional clothes dryer. Or, more frequently, they press down on the spinner for it seems like 5 minutes until the motor is sputtering and waning. I can almost hear the little motor in the spinner saying "help (gasp) me (gasp) somebody (gasp)!" People even do this when there is a line for the spinner, oblivious to the fact that others want their 3 to 5 seconds. Truth be told, 3 seconds is perfect, and it doesn't ruin your suit. I guess I am a little obsessed about this as evidenced by an entire blog entry, but oh well.

On the bright side, I recently discovered the absolute best deal in town next door to the pool at LaVerdes Market: A cappuccino and an egg and cheese sandwich combo for $3! That is half the cost of Starbucks and tastes better! I'm also happy that the students have reasonably priced good food.

Thank you Jacki for the workout today...

300 warmup
8 x 50 going odds drill/swim evens stroke/free on :60
4 x 500 broken going:
200 pull on 3:00
150 swim on 2:10
100 free on 1:30 (odds) and 1:45 IM (evens)
50 on :60
6 x 75 sprint or stroke first 25, 50 easy on 1:15
5 x 50 on :55 going: descend 1-3, easy 4, sprint 5
100 cool down