She Works Hard for the Money

Date: Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Time: 5:45 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
152 days to Olympic Trials

1200 warmup

Three rounds:
15 meters fast from push/35 meters easy x3 on 3:00
25 fast from push/50 easy x2 on 3:00
50 fast/100 easy on 3:00
Round 1 50 back (30.3)
Round 2 50 breast (34.2)
Round 3 50 free (27.6)

150 easy

6x50 on 1:20
25 breast from dive/25 easy
(average 13.8)

200 easy

Total: 3,200 meters (75 minutes)

I'm glad the pool was long course. It enabled me to work on things like stroke rate and consistency on my fast 50s without thinking about turns. I was also glad to work on starts, because I need to be more powerful and explosive on my start, and continue to focus on the changes I need to make to it. That includes gliding longer after the entry, having a stronger snap on the pulldown and starting the first stroke sooner. I feel like I'm getting the hang of it. I didn't ask Mark to time me to 15 meters, but it is something I need to do before the sectional meet in March.

All in all, a good day at the pool. I was happy with my backstroke and freestyle times on the fast 50s, but know I needed to be faster on the breaststroke. My stroke rate didn't feel fast, but I didn't want to force it and feel like I'm going faster, only to be going slower because I am not taking advantage of each part of the stroke. I think by mid-February, I will feel more like a sprinter, at least in terms of putting some snap into my stroke.

I suppose I should clarify that last sentence. I always feel like a sprinter, but only mentally. In the middle of training (and especially at 6 a.m.) it's difficult to get your body to accept the fact that you want to swim fast. But if you can do it before sunrise, you can do it anytime!