I am proud to say I made it to the pool this morning and had a really good workout! Why am I proud? True, I would have gotten to the pool, but my muscles were tired from yesterday so I could have slacked off, but instead I chose not to.
Not only did I not slack off, but I did 2100 m of endurance today. The majority of that was freestyle, with a few drills thrown in here and there. Oh, and let us not forget 200 m of kicking at the end.
I like to say I'm a lazy triathlete who doesn't kick because I can wear a wetsuit. However, that's not really why I don't kick. I don't kick because I actually forget to. I'm so focused on what my head and arms are doing that every once in a while I think 'Oh! Gotta kick!' and do a few flutter kicks, then go back to forgetting.
Because I had so much freestyle to do I decided to spend some of the time focused on my arms and the rest on my kick. I have no idea if I went faster or slower with this, but I did feel a little more balanced. I also managed to get my workout down in under an hour, which is pretty cool.
It is possible I did more than 2100 m. I have a bad habit of losing count in my laps, and if I do I do the extra to make sure I'm not cheating.
I was hoping to do a run this afternoon, but the pool loosened up my blister skin so now all that's left is just a patch of raw, new, exposed skin. I can sum it up in one word - OW! There will be no wearing of shoes with backs on them for a while. My swim buddy, Andrew, got a good giggle at watching me try to walk in sneakers this morning. Hopefully, by tomorrow I can stand having a patch on it and getting on the bike as the last time it didn't seem to rub or press on it when I pedaled. I really hope this heals soon. I promise I won't go skiing again till it does!
Instead of running tonight, I pulled out a P90X DVD and did the stretching routine. I could feel some tight muscles from the ski, and from swimming this morning, so figured this would be a great alternative. I can't believe I pulled off 50 minutes of stretching!
My idea of stretching is spreading my legs, leaning forward, coming back up, grabbing the top of one foot, pulling my foot to butt, then the next leg, stretch the calf, stretch the other calf and that's it. That quickly too.
The stretches they have are great and do hit all areas. Not to mention you actually hold them long enough to get the stretch in. My only issue with this workout was my beloved cat who wanted to join in...
A note to my feline, Mr. Cringely: When I am doing downward dog, please do not head butt my boobs. It's distracting, not to mention a wee bit ticklish. And giggling is not allowed in stretching. Also, I'd prefer if you didn't walk on and then stand on my hands. I need to move them from time to time and having to flick you off them makes me feel bad. Perhaps you could find another place to lie down, and stay there. Rather than every time I'm hovering above the ground, placing yourself under my body. Then again, this is better than the boob head butt. Lastly, if you are going to stand in front of me while my head is near the floor, I'd prefer if you were facing me, rather than facing away from me. No one wants to see your little onion that close up. I promise. Thank you and I love you little buddy.
Peace out my friends!
If I could get a person to talk me through stretches everyday I would probably do them. I tell myself I"ll do them before I go to bed but I keep falling asleep!
ReplyDeletegood on ya!
OMG -- The little onion!! LMAO!!!!!
ReplyDeletePeanut goes underneath me in downward dog too -- and Toby actually does downward dog when I stretch too. Heh-heh-heh!
Way to go on remembering to kick! :) :)
Moeder says give Cringely some catnip on an old towel near and maybe you can do your workout in peace.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see I'm not the only one who doesn't stretch enough. Now I don't feel quite so guilty. Take care of the raw skin!
ReplyDeleteAhh yes counting laps...I use pennies to keep track. No one has swiped them yet lol!
ReplyDeleteI'm baffled. How do you use pennies to count laps? I understand if you stop every lap and stand up. I use my flip flops like the hands of a clock to track laps when I'm doing intervals. But during my lengths, I grab the edge and go; I don't even look at the edge, my head is already turning to look back at the lane.
ReplyDeleteOr do you put the pennies on the floor of the pool, and move one each flip turn? That seems more co-ordinated than I'll likely ever be.
Plus there's a trick to counting laps with your stop watch that works like a charm.
love the idea of catnip to distract the cats.... counting laps - it 's like doin gmath (SIMPLE MATH) while I am running - I simply can't.I think I am just "special" ...there are little things you can wear on your thumb to count the laps for you though....
ReplyDeleteWell first of all I have my workout written up already ( Less things to remember) Then I have a penny for each set ( 6x250m...I would have 6 pennies)then during the rest time I slide them over.If I am doing more lengths,,more pennies,,,works for me . Keep in mind though swimming out here in Banff/Canmore,,,the pools are not as busy,,,,max people ever is maybe 3/4, pending on time of day. Greg tells me you can use your watch & use the time method...just doesn't work for me.
ReplyDeleteWow, this post was hilarious. So many comments: A) I love your cat's name B) Little onion? that is pure genius C) Way to get that swim workout done! D)I use the lane line thingies to count (think swimming abacus) E) Where do you ski? If you even say Banff I will be so so so jealous.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog. I have never been so excited about the future of our country before!
I look forward to reading more here.
Oh my gosh, I just peed my pants. I love your letter to your cat, and I can totally relate! The best part is the butt facing you...so not cool. Ha!
ReplyDeleteNice job on the swim workout, and getting it in in less than 1:00. You are a stud for erroring on the long side if you forget what lap you are on. Good luck with the blister. I hope your blister skin isn't floating around in the pool somewhere, though it probably is. Yummy.
Kicking is over rated. ;-)
Oh, P.S.
ReplyDeleteWhat are these video I keep hearing about? Are they really good? I'm curious...
P.S.S. I use 500s to count my laps (if I'm doing a long swim). So once I do a 500, I start over again. And if you forget how many 500s you've done, you can use the clock b/c missing one makes a big difference in time. Now counting a 500...that's a whole other game in my head.
Nice job banging out the swim!! Way to go!
ReplyDeleteAnd I need to work on kicking more too....
Kicking is definitely over-rated.
ReplyDelete