Mile club member

It's Wednesday morning and another 6:00am swim with Barb and KK on the agenda. There was a tremendous Monsoon storm last night which filled the pool with leaves and debris, so this mornings swim included many water obstacles. The lifeguards did the best they could to clear out some of the stuff in the pool, but there is only so much they could do.

Just like yesterday, the water temperature is perfect. Jumped in... and away we go.

300 warm-up
4x150(600) swim
5x50(250) swim
200 flutter kick
200 butterfly kick
50 back
200 swim

That's 1800 for those of you counting at home. So, once again... second day in a row with yardage of 1 mile+. Another good workout.

About 2/3 of the way through my workout, Dean (NC)comes strolling into the pool. Dean is a fellow soccer coach and a fitness enthusiast. Dean usually spends most of his time cycling and running, but a recent ankle injury has reinvigorated his interest in swimming. So, whenever I can, I give him a hard time about getting in the pool.

When I left the pool today, instead of heading to work, I headed to a doctor's appointment. 7:45am on Wyatt (across the street from TMC). Well, it turns out that KK's office is in the same area. So, after I finished up with my appointment, I stopped by and got the grand tour. Said hello to her and her lovely co-workers. Finally, I was off to work.

Another great day in the Old Pueblo underway.

When is a mile not really a mile?

6:00am at Udall. And when I say 6:00am, on Tuesday's what I really mean is 5:45am. Because if you don't get to Udall at least 10 to 15 minutes early on Tuesdays, you will not get a lane (or... half a lane actually). Tuesday morning's seem to be the only day with this issue. But, if you want to swim. Be there early and get in line. Wait for the pool to open.

So, I was on time (i.e. early) and waiting in line. KK was in line with me. Barb showed up a few minutes later (still early) and got in line about two people behind us.
Both Barb and KK are great in the pool. Impossible for me to keep up.

Today I manged to eek out:
200 warm-up
800 swim
200 flutter kick
200 butterfly kick
100 back kick
200 swim

Which is a lot for me. Barb and KK did way more, but I am not disappointed with my effort. 1700 yards total (1 mile).

So, this is were a swimming explanation might be helpful. For those mathematicians among us, you might be looking at that number and saying, "1760 yards equals one mile, so you are 60 yards short my friend". And technically, you would be correct. But, it turns out that swimmers consider 1650 yards to be equal to one mile for swimming purposes. Therefore, I completed a one-mile swim this morning. Even a little over. Either way, I'll take it. Good distance for me.

Udall swim

Took cyd with me again...

1 x 800 swim
1 x 400 kick
1 x 400 pull
1 x 100 swim
total yardage = 1700 yards

Saw Laura and Bob at the pool again after seeing Laura and her daughter at Sabino registration yesterday. Barb was also at the pool.

School registration

Took my daughter to Sabino to register for her Sophomore year.
signed her up for swimming.

Saw Laura from Udall. She was there registering her daughter who is also a sophomore.

Off to San Diego

OnCall right now. Got paged at 2 o'clock a.m. for a problem with the Telalert server. By the time I finished that it was 5 o'clock and there was no point in trying to go back to bed. So, instead, I just finish cleaning the house and make sure I am ready to leave for San Diego later this morning.
morning swim at Udall. Saw Barb at the pool. Only a few minutes to chat, but she tells me I need to eat breakfast at Kono's while I am in San Diego. Never been... will have to check it out.

When I get to Udall at about 6:15a, every lane is full (2 per lane). The Masters team even has a couple of lanes with 3 in circle swim. Barb introduces me to her friends (Laura and Bob) on the Masters team. I think Laura is the "leader" of the team.

Not a great workout. I have to start in the deep end, waiting for a lane to open up. Finally get a lane and just not real into it today. End up doing about 500 yards and calling it quits. It's getting late and I need to get home and finish packing. Prepare the video camera and make sure I have everything for San Diego. My flight leaves at 10:25a, so I would like to be ready to leave my house by 8:30a.

questionable lightning call

running errands, getting everything together for my trip
Sunday night swim at Udall

about 6:40p the lifeguards decided lightening was "too close" and closed the pool for the night.

No lightning in sight. Just LGs wanting to go home a little early, I am pretty sure. a guy in the lane over from me complained. Said, they do this "all the time".

Just in time

When I got up this morning I wasn't sure if I was going to ride my bike to Udall for my Wednesday morning swim. But after considering it for a few moments, I realized that the difference between driving and riding is only two or three minutes. And, that I feel better when I ride. So... issue solved. Fifteen minutes later I was on my bike and on my way to Udall.

This mornings ride to the pool was a good one, if uneventful. Hit a couple of red-lights, so total ride time was 16 minutes, a bit longer than usual. But, once again, just after six o'clock I was in the water.

600 yrds - WarmUp
6x100 yrds - Swim
200 yrds - Kick
200 yrds - Pull

Total Yardage = 1600 yards

Didn't see Barb this morning. Perhaps she did not make it out of bed.

Just like I promised, I ended my swim a couple of minutes earlier than last time, so that I can try and make it home in time for the school run.

On the ride back I tried to keep a constant pace. Focusing on keeping a relatively high and consistent cadence. Also, concentrating on using the entire pedal stroke for each leg rather than just the down-stroke.

My wife and daughter are already in the car as I pull into the driveway. I made it home just in time to take my daughter to school. Workout complete! Spirits are high! Today promises to be a great day.

Breakfast Scramble

It was Monday morning and I was up... ready to go. But, I still felt a little tired. Most likely, from our long ride yesterday. Followed by the T-ball end-of-season party and the kids vs. parents baseball game we played. Not that I worked real hard during the game, but standing out in the hot sun (and yes it was hot) takes it's toll.

No worries though. I am ready for today's workout. Just like on Friday, I decided to ride to Udall for my Monday morning swim. Realizing that I had a couple of extra minutes to spare, I headed North on Catalina Hwy to Prince, before I turned around and began my journey to the pool.

I arrived at Udall right at six o'clock. Barb was already there. After I gear down to my Quintana Roo Tri shorts (love the QR's) and a quick rinse shower (because I am a good pool citizen), I was in the water.

650 yrds - WarmUp
6 x 100s - Swim (easy, hard, easy, hard) on 10 seconds rest
250 yrds - Kick
150 yrds - Pull
50 yrds - Swim

Total Yardage = 1700 yrds

At 6:55a I had to wrap up my swim. I was trying to get home by 7:15a so I could take my eldest to school. I had a good ride home and could really feel the slight incline of Catalina Hwy as I climbed to where it crests right before my street. Unfortunately, I didn't make it home in time. As I was pulling in, her mom was pulling out, on the school run. I will need to do a little bit better job of budgeting my time next time around.

Workout complete. Time to eat. Today's breakfast consisted of a fresh spinach (an SFM pickup) & ground beef two egg scramble. With just a little Monterey Jack cheese. Good Stuff!

The first of the season...

For the last three weeks I have been threatening to complete my first ride & swim of the year. Well, the wait is over, because that is exactly what I did today.

When I got up this morning, the wind was blowing. Which means that riding conditions are less than ideal. However, I had decided that I would ride to Udall today for my morning swim and a little wind (or a lot of wind) was not going to deter me.

It had been a while since I had ridden my bike the four miles to Udall, so I didn't recall how long it would take me. I gave myself 25 minutes, which it turned out was way too long. After arriving at Udall more than ten minutes earlier than I planned, I ended up riding around the neighborhood behind the park, while I waited for six o'clock.

As I entered the pool area, I decided that today's swim would be all about distance. So, it was into the water and straight to the task at hand.

2000 yrds - WarmUp/Swim
100 yrds - Kick

Total Yardage = 2100 yrds

So, no ladders. No intervals. No negative splits. All I did was get in and swim 2000 yrds. Like I said, distance day. Simple and sweet.

On the ride home, the wind was even more troublesome then it had been earlier. Especially coming up Catalina Highway. But, 18 minutes after I left Udall, I rolled into my driveway (the trip over took 12 minutes).

All told, I rode for 9.5 miles for a total of 46 minutes. Swam 2100 yrds in 50 minutes. And started my Friday in grand fashion.

Going Further?

Barb, of BCJ fame, has suggested that I work to increase my distance. The keen observer would notice that my swim has reached 1 mile (1600 yrds) in each of the last three sessions. So, increase my distance is exactly what I am attempting to do.

Today's "set" consisted of 75 yrd swim, followed by 50 yrd swim (10 seconds rest).
The 75 is: 25yrds Easy, 25yrds Moderate, 25yrds Fast
The 50 is: 25yrds Easy, 25yrds Fast

Workout
800 yrds - WarmUp
75/50's
.. 4 sets (that's 500yrds)
200 yrds - Kick
300 yrds - Pull

Total Yardage = 1800 yrds

So, there you have it. I increased my yardage by 200 yards today. However, I may be reaching an asymptote in my training. I tend to allot 50 minutes for my swim workout. Not sure that I will ever be able to swim more than 1800 yards in 50 minutes. I guess we will just wait and see how it all plays out.

No Fins, No Paddles, No Problem

Yesterday was a long day. It started with the Mt Lemmon climb. But, after that, I spent the whole day doing yard work and cleaning house in preparation for mom and the family coming over for a Mother's Day dinner.

With all that activity, I was tired and got to bed early... before 10p. Even still, I was kind of tired this morning. None-the-less, by 5:30a I was up and ready for my Udall morning swim.

500 yrds - WarmUp
Swim
.. 1 x 200 yrds
.. 2 x 100 yrds
.. 4 x 50 yrds
.. 2 x 100 yrds
100 yrds - Kick (no fins)
200 yrds - Pull (no paddles)

Total Yardage = 1600 yrds

As you may have noticed, I didn't have my fins or my paddles. Didn't have my goggles either, had to borrow a pair. This is because I forgot my swim bag at home. In any case, I pressed on and got through my Mile swim.

Just another mile

Friday is morning swim day. Was feeling a little tired this morning, but once I am up and in the pool, I always feel better. Today was no different. Still have to consider a swim a great way to start the day.

400 yrd - WarmUp
Swim (10 seconds rest)
.. 1 x 200 yrds
.. 4 x 100 yrds
.. 4 x 50 yrds
200 yrds - Kick
200 yrds - Pull

Total Yardage = 1600 yrds

1 pool. 45 minutes. 1 mile. Good Stuff!

Wednesday mile

Last night was kind of a late night for me. I didn't get to bed until midnight. But, as usual, I was up by 5:30a to prep for my morning swim.

Still half asleep I guess, because about a mile from my house I realized that I forgot my swim bag and towel. Had to turn around... can't swim without my gear.

Regardless of my absent minded start, I was at Udall and in the water just after 6:00a. The goal today was to swim a mile.

Workout:
450 yrds - WarmUp
Ladder: (10 seconds rest)
... 25 yrds, 50 yrds, 75 yrds, 100 yrds
... 100 yrds, 75 yrds, 50 yrds, 25 yrds
250 yrds - Kick
300 yrds - Pull
100 yrds - Swim

Total Yardage = 1600 yrds

I got my mile done and felt really good doing it. Today was a very good swim for me.