Date: Friday, April 13, 2012
Time: 5:50 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
73 days to Olympic Trials
4x200 on 3:45 (100 kick/100 swim)
500 flutter kick with snorkel and small fins, descending effort by 100s
6x50 on 1:15
odd: 25 underwater dolphin kick with small fins/25 back kick easy
even: 25 breast pull/25 back kick easy
6x50 on 1:00
1-3: freestyle drill with small fins and snorkel
4-6: freestyle swim aerobic (:37)
4x150 on 3:00
1-3 50 breast fast from push/100 easy (averaged 34.8)
4: easy
Three minute break
50 breast fast from dive (31.2)/100 easy on 3:00
50 breast fast from push (34.2)/100 easy
250 easy
Total: 2,950 meters (75 minutes)
At the gym (4:45 p.m.)
Eight minutes on elliptical machine
Shoulder warm-up exercises
Incline bench press (15@95, 12@125, 10@145)
Seated row (15@80, 12@100, 10@120)
Leg extensions (15@100, 12@130, 10@150)
Ten minutes abdominals and stretching
I swam five days in a row this week. That's a long stretch without a day off. I do not normally do that. Add in the fact that I did two workouts with the kids at Phoenix Swim Club and I called this my Hell Week, that time of the season, when you are working your hardest, and it takes every ounce of energy to get through the last workouts. Every workout was tough in their own regard, especially that Wednesday workout, which was 80 minutes of sprinting with almost no easy swimming!
I didn't feel too great in the first three 50s breast in today's workout. The water was warm, and my arms were not pulling water well. I could feel like I wasn't pulling wide enough on my outsweep, yet my shoulder muscles were too tired to do it correctly. That's no excuse, because in workout is the time when you have to swim correctly while you're tired, so you can replicate it in a meet. As much as I would like to blame the warm water, I simply wasn't in a sprinting mood today. It showed through the entire workout.
I did get myself motivated for the two 50s at the end. I was really hoping for a sub-31 second 50 from a dive today, but it wasn't a horrible swim. The 50 from a push was surprising. I was trying to stretch out my stroke and not spin my wheels, and the result was a pretty fast 50.
This might not be my hardest week of training before Trials, but it will be the last time I do five workouts in a row. I don't think my body has the staying power to last an entire week of training. I need my Mondays and Saturdays off! Now that I'm back on track in the pool, my workout schedule will return to normal.
I didn't feel like going to the gym. I'd had a stressful day at work trying to get 101 things done, and all I wanted to do was crash on my couch at home before I had to drive to Tucson tonight. But, I believed a good workout would take the stress out of my brain and relax me a little bit through endorphin release. For the most part, that was true, but the desire to go home was often very strong.
I had to be gentle with my left shoulder today. I have been feeling small twinges in my shoulder tendon, and I don't want to take any steps backward. I am getting back on a regimen of ice to help the soreness, mixed in with my electronic stimulation to keep the weaker muscles active.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Thursday, April 12, 2012
I Like It Like That
Date: Thursday, April 12, 2012
Time: 4:40 p.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Short Course Meters/Long Course Meters
74 days to Olympic Trials
Today's workout with the kids at Phoenix Swim Club was a mixed bag. Usually, the main focus is on breaststroke, but the first half had an IM focus, with some emphasis on breaststroke. Specifically, we worked on making the pullout strong, forceful and legal. The key, I've found int he past three months, is to not et the hands stop their motion too much when you separate them to start the pullout and do the dolphin kick. You want to have a quick snap as soon as the hands separate and keep moving the arms through the pull. It's not easy, because you tend to want to stop the hands while doing the dolphin kick.
The second half of workout was essentially a distance freestyle workout, with stroke 50s thrown in for recovery. Here's how it went:
Long course
Two rounds:
3x50 back on 1:00 (pull, kick, swim)
3x100 free on 1:40 holding threshold pace (averaged 1:10)
3x50 breast on 1:00 (pull, kick, swim)
2x100 on 1:40 holding threshold pace plus 3 seconds (75 free/25 back) (averaged 1:11)
3x50 free on 1:00 (pull, kick, swim)
1x100 on 1:40 holding threshold pace plus 4 (75 free25 breast) (averaged 1:12)
I was very pleased with the way I swam the set. I have done threshold sets like this before with this group, and I am not entirely sure what my threshold pace is, since we don't do sets of that nature often in Masters. But, I remembered that set I did with Tucson Masters last Friday, and thought I should be able to hold 1:11 and not fall apart too much. My heart rate was high (28 beats for 10 seconds) but my stroke felt "comfortable," meaning I wasn't floundering at the end. This was a great breakthrough in terms of my endurance, which can often suffer when I am in the sprint phase of the season. I tend to forget to keep my endurance in check, and I was glad to have today's set to remind me of what I'm doing.
It was much better than what was offered in today's Master's workout. They had a 1500 for time! No thank you.
Time: 4:40 p.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Short Course Meters/Long Course Meters
74 days to Olympic Trials
Today's workout with the kids at Phoenix Swim Club was a mixed bag. Usually, the main focus is on breaststroke, but the first half had an IM focus, with some emphasis on breaststroke. Specifically, we worked on making the pullout strong, forceful and legal. The key, I've found int he past three months, is to not et the hands stop their motion too much when you separate them to start the pullout and do the dolphin kick. You want to have a quick snap as soon as the hands separate and keep moving the arms through the pull. It's not easy, because you tend to want to stop the hands while doing the dolphin kick.
The second half of workout was essentially a distance freestyle workout, with stroke 50s thrown in for recovery. Here's how it went:
Long course
Two rounds:
3x50 back on 1:00 (pull, kick, swim)
3x100 free on 1:40 holding threshold pace (averaged 1:10)
3x50 breast on 1:00 (pull, kick, swim)
2x100 on 1:40 holding threshold pace plus 3 seconds (75 free/25 back) (averaged 1:11)
3x50 free on 1:00 (pull, kick, swim)
1x100 on 1:40 holding threshold pace plus 4 (75 free25 breast) (averaged 1:12)
I was very pleased with the way I swam the set. I have done threshold sets like this before with this group, and I am not entirely sure what my threshold pace is, since we don't do sets of that nature often in Masters. But, I remembered that set I did with Tucson Masters last Friday, and thought I should be able to hold 1:11 and not fall apart too much. My heart rate was high (28 beats for 10 seconds) but my stroke felt "comfortable," meaning I wasn't floundering at the end. This was a great breakthrough in terms of my endurance, which can often suffer when I am in the sprint phase of the season. I tend to forget to keep my endurance in check, and I was glad to have today's set to remind me of what I'm doing.
It was much better than what was offered in today's Master's workout. They had a 1500 for time! No thank you.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Your Little Body's Slowly Breaking Down
Date: Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Time: 4:45 p.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
75 days to Olympic Trials
I will not writing very much tonight. My fingers are too tired to express many of the thoughts in my head tonight. My entire body will be in knots tomorrow. Part of that is exacerbated by the fact that I stayed at the pool for an hour after workout to talk with Coley Stickels, instead of going home to replenish my fuel stores that were completely empty. Ideally, you want to have something almost right after swimming (chocolate milk has become the trend), and a good meal within the hour after swimming. It's now two hours after workout ended, and I'm now about to have some real food.
Today's workout with the kids at Phoenix Swim Club was tough, one of the toughest lactate workouts I've done in many, many years. It was 80 minutes of sprinting, from start to finish. I am not kidding. Even the first "warm-up" set of a 400 had 100 meters of sprinting in it! And after that, it was fast swimming on everything. Most of it was just to make the interval, but the "main" lactate set was the killer. I tried to have good stroke rates on everything, but I felt like my arms were moving at 200 speed.
Coley said afterwards that he had to adjust the workout a little, because the pool was supposed to be short course yards, and we started about 15 minutes late. But I don't think he adjusted it enough! Doing 50s on 50 seconds long course is tough, and even tougher when you're trying to swim 35 meters without breathing.
I'm not usually a glutton for punishment, but I'm going to swim with the kids tomorrow. I've never done two of Coley's workouts in a row, but now's the time to get my muscles broken down and train them to know how to get to that high lactate production level, and still swim efficiently. The key, though -- and this is why today was so hard -- is getting plenty of rest in between each lactate set. We only got about three minutes rest, which is barely enough for people my age to catch their breath and go again. But I am happy I did the workout.
OK, my fingers were able to get out all my thoughts. I hope there's enough energy in me to eat a plate of pork chops and broccoli, and to turn on the TV to watch a new episode of "Modern Family."
Time: 4:45 p.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
75 days to Olympic Trials
I will not writing very much tonight. My fingers are too tired to express many of the thoughts in my head tonight. My entire body will be in knots tomorrow. Part of that is exacerbated by the fact that I stayed at the pool for an hour after workout to talk with Coley Stickels, instead of going home to replenish my fuel stores that were completely empty. Ideally, you want to have something almost right after swimming (chocolate milk has become the trend), and a good meal within the hour after swimming. It's now two hours after workout ended, and I'm now about to have some real food.
Today's workout with the kids at Phoenix Swim Club was tough, one of the toughest lactate workouts I've done in many, many years. It was 80 minutes of sprinting, from start to finish. I am not kidding. Even the first "warm-up" set of a 400 had 100 meters of sprinting in it! And after that, it was fast swimming on everything. Most of it was just to make the interval, but the "main" lactate set was the killer. I tried to have good stroke rates on everything, but I felt like my arms were moving at 200 speed.
Coley said afterwards that he had to adjust the workout a little, because the pool was supposed to be short course yards, and we started about 15 minutes late. But I don't think he adjusted it enough! Doing 50s on 50 seconds long course is tough, and even tougher when you're trying to swim 35 meters without breathing.
I'm not usually a glutton for punishment, but I'm going to swim with the kids tomorrow. I've never done two of Coley's workouts in a row, but now's the time to get my muscles broken down and train them to know how to get to that high lactate production level, and still swim efficiently. The key, though -- and this is why today was so hard -- is getting plenty of rest in between each lactate set. We only got about three minutes rest, which is barely enough for people my age to catch their breath and go again. But I am happy I did the workout.
OK, my fingers were able to get out all my thoughts. I hope there's enough energy in me to eat a plate of pork chops and broccoli, and to turn on the TV to watch a new episode of "Modern Family."
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
If You Don't Know Me By Now
Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Time: 5:50 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
76 days to Olympic Trials
16x50 on 1:000 reverse IM order
Odd: 25 kick/25 swim
Even: 25 drill/25 swim
8x100 on 1:45
1-5: 50 back/50 breast (1:27)
2:00 break
6-8: 50 breast/50 free (1:22)
100 easy
6x50 on 1:15
1-4: 25 fast IM order/25 easy
5: 50 back fast from push (30.6)
6: 50 breast fast from push (34.1)
Two rounds:
1x100 easy on 2:00
4x50 on 1:00
Round 1 IM with fly from dive (30.2, 34.4, 37.2, 32.3=2:14.1)
round 2 free, diving No. 1 (29.9, 30.9, 30.9, 30.5=2:02.2)
300 easy
Total: 2,900 meters (75 minutes)
They are still putting tarps over the pool at night at Phoenix Swim Club, even though it's 65 degrees at night. I can't imagine the pool will get that cold if they leave the water exposed to the air. This morning, the water felt like it was pushing 82 degrees, and I found my heart rate to be too high on the second set, especially given the pace I was holding and the effort I was putting forth.
The workout as written called for a 400 stroke or IM, but I knew that was not happening, even though Mark Rankin suggested a 400 breaststroke for me. I'm surprised he thought I was going to do a 400 breast 11 weeks out from Trials. Doesn't he know the type of swimmer I am???!!?? Sometimes I feel guilty about not doing the workout he writes on the board, but today I had to make this exception, if I were to be able to exit the pool on my own power this morning.
For a few fleeting seconds, I thought it might be a good thing to do the 400 to keep a check on my breaststroke endurance, but not when the water was so warm. Instead, I chose to do the 6x50 on 1:15, and was happy to do it. I did bargain with Mark that I would do the last two 50s all fast, though my initial plan was to do 25 fast/25 easy for all six. I was happy with my push 50s on 1:15, especially since I was hurting for pretty much the entire 50 breast.
The broken 200 IM could have been better. I should be able to go faster than 2:14, but I didn't pace my backstroke correctly, and I had nothing on freestyle. I thought about doing backstroke on the second round, but I wanted to test my freestyle, and was glad I did. My lane mate, Gordon Beh, decided to swim next to me on the second round, and it helped push me on the last two 50s. As usual, though, Gordon is a "Sammy Save-Up," and he blasted a 28 on the last 50 after holding three 50s in the 30-point range.
My left shoulder felt better this morning, though still a little stiff on butterfly. Well, every part of me hurts on butterfly, so I didn't feel the pain too concentrated on one part of my body. I should have put some ice on my shoulder after swimming, but the facility had no ice bags, and I forgot to bring the bag I had laid out on my counter last night for such a thing.
Time: 5:50 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
76 days to Olympic Trials
16x50 on 1:000 reverse IM order
Odd: 25 kick/25 swim
Even: 25 drill/25 swim
8x100 on 1:45
1-5: 50 back/50 breast (1:27)
2:00 break
6-8: 50 breast/50 free (1:22)
100 easy
6x50 on 1:15
1-4: 25 fast IM order/25 easy
5: 50 back fast from push (30.6)
6: 50 breast fast from push (34.1)
Two rounds:
1x100 easy on 2:00
4x50 on 1:00
Round 1 IM with fly from dive (30.2, 34.4, 37.2, 32.3=2:14.1)
round 2 free, diving No. 1 (29.9, 30.9, 30.9, 30.5=2:02.2)
300 easy
Total: 2,900 meters (75 minutes)
They are still putting tarps over the pool at night at Phoenix Swim Club, even though it's 65 degrees at night. I can't imagine the pool will get that cold if they leave the water exposed to the air. This morning, the water felt like it was pushing 82 degrees, and I found my heart rate to be too high on the second set, especially given the pace I was holding and the effort I was putting forth.
The workout as written called for a 400 stroke or IM, but I knew that was not happening, even though Mark Rankin suggested a 400 breaststroke for me. I'm surprised he thought I was going to do a 400 breast 11 weeks out from Trials. Doesn't he know the type of swimmer I am???!!?? Sometimes I feel guilty about not doing the workout he writes on the board, but today I had to make this exception, if I were to be able to exit the pool on my own power this morning.
For a few fleeting seconds, I thought it might be a good thing to do the 400 to keep a check on my breaststroke endurance, but not when the water was so warm. Instead, I chose to do the 6x50 on 1:15, and was happy to do it. I did bargain with Mark that I would do the last two 50s all fast, though my initial plan was to do 25 fast/25 easy for all six. I was happy with my push 50s on 1:15, especially since I was hurting for pretty much the entire 50 breast.
The broken 200 IM could have been better. I should be able to go faster than 2:14, but I didn't pace my backstroke correctly, and I had nothing on freestyle. I thought about doing backstroke on the second round, but I wanted to test my freestyle, and was glad I did. My lane mate, Gordon Beh, decided to swim next to me on the second round, and it helped push me on the last two 50s. As usual, though, Gordon is a "Sammy Save-Up," and he blasted a 28 on the last 50 after holding three 50s in the 30-point range.
My left shoulder felt better this morning, though still a little stiff on butterfly. Well, every part of me hurts on butterfly, so I didn't feel the pain too concentrated on one part of my body. I should have put some ice on my shoulder after swimming, but the facility had no ice bags, and I forgot to bring the bag I had laid out on my counter last night for such a thing.
Monday, April 9, 2012
Raise It Up
Date: Monday, April 9, 2012
Time: 5:45 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
77 days to Olympic Trials
300 warmup
3x(3x100 on 2:00)
1. 25 swim/25 kick/25 free kick drill/25 swim
2. 50 back/50 free (50 back/50 breast on rounds two and three)
3. pull with buoy
10x150
odd: free aerobic on 2:20 (avg. 2:00)
even: 50 breast pull/50 breast kick/50 breast swim on 2:50 (avg. 2:25)
100 easy
8x25 on :35
odd: 15 fast kick underwater/10 easy
even: 10 easy/15 fast swim
3x(4x50 on 1:00)
1-3 easy
4 breast swim fast (34.6, 34.4, 34.6)
200 easy (with stretching)
Total: 3,800 meters (80 minutes)
During my pre-Easter feast nap yesterday, I slept in a weird position, and it affected my left shoulder, which is my "bad" shoulder. I felt stiff later that night, and took some ibuprofen to hopefully loosen the muscles. I did not have any more Ben-Gay, so it was the next viable option. (Ice, I realized as I was lying in bed that night, would have been another option.)
So, this morning, I felt a little stiffness in my shoulder as I did my dynamic stretching and my 300 warmup. It started to feel better after about 40 minutes in the pool, but I think my range of motion was affected. I wasn't able to extend fully on each freestyle stroke, but nothing that was alarming.
The main set as written was essentially 10x200 with little rest. I have 77 days to go to Olympic Trials, so this part of the season is not about distance freestyle. I did 150s, because I knew I needed to work on long course endurance -- and breaststroke. The water wasn't 83 degrees, like it was on Saturday in Tucson, but it was still a bit warm ... maybe 81.5. The weather is getting much warmer in Phoenix (93 degrees for a high today), so I'm hoping the water heater is off and the aerators are getting primed for duty!
I was somewhat happy with my fast 50s today. I wasn't feeling power in my pull or kick, but the stroke felt clean, i.e. no unnecessary movements or body angles. After that long 1500 set, I wasn't really up for sprinting, even though I had done some short sprint bursts. Time-wise, it's not very fast, but as I said, I wasn't feeling much like a sprinter today. Tomorrow I hope to do more power stuff, though maybe shorter than 50 meters. I need to start feeling explosive in the water!
I decided to do my dryland with JR Rosania today instead of Wednesday, because I wanted to do the Wednesday lactate workout with Phoenix Swim Club ... and because my schedule allowed me to make the change. The past two weeks have been tough on the muscles. We're working on explosive power, and to do that, JR is increasing the weight on some of my exercises, particularly the dreaded leg extensions!
The other exercise that totally obliterates me is the breaststroke pull exercise. Holding on to two stretch cords, I simulate the outsweep of the breaststroke pull. Each week I have been increasing the repetitions, with the goal of doing three sets of 50 before May. Why 50? That's the approximate number of strokes I take in a 100-meter breaststroke race, rounded up from my actual target of 44 (21 first 50, 23 second 50)
By the end of the workout, I could barely lift my arms over my head, but all in all, a good day of exercise. I feel like I am back in the swing of things after three weeks of upheaval. Tonight, I put a big bag of ice on my left shoulder for about 30 minutes. It feels better, but still a little stiff.
Time: 5:45 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
77 days to Olympic Trials
300 warmup
3x(3x100 on 2:00)
1. 25 swim/25 kick/25 free kick drill/25 swim
2. 50 back/50 free (50 back/50 breast on rounds two and three)
3. pull with buoy
10x150
odd: free aerobic on 2:20 (avg. 2:00)
even: 50 breast pull/50 breast kick/50 breast swim on 2:50 (avg. 2:25)
100 easy
8x25 on :35
odd: 15 fast kick underwater/10 easy
even: 10 easy/15 fast swim
3x(4x50 on 1:00)
1-3 easy
4 breast swim fast (34.6, 34.4, 34.6)
200 easy (with stretching)
Total: 3,800 meters (80 minutes)
During my pre-Easter feast nap yesterday, I slept in a weird position, and it affected my left shoulder, which is my "bad" shoulder. I felt stiff later that night, and took some ibuprofen to hopefully loosen the muscles. I did not have any more Ben-Gay, so it was the next viable option. (Ice, I realized as I was lying in bed that night, would have been another option.)
So, this morning, I felt a little stiffness in my shoulder as I did my dynamic stretching and my 300 warmup. It started to feel better after about 40 minutes in the pool, but I think my range of motion was affected. I wasn't able to extend fully on each freestyle stroke, but nothing that was alarming.
The main set as written was essentially 10x200 with little rest. I have 77 days to go to Olympic Trials, so this part of the season is not about distance freestyle. I did 150s, because I knew I needed to work on long course endurance -- and breaststroke. The water wasn't 83 degrees, like it was on Saturday in Tucson, but it was still a bit warm ... maybe 81.5. The weather is getting much warmer in Phoenix (93 degrees for a high today), so I'm hoping the water heater is off and the aerators are getting primed for duty!
I was somewhat happy with my fast 50s today. I wasn't feeling power in my pull or kick, but the stroke felt clean, i.e. no unnecessary movements or body angles. After that long 1500 set, I wasn't really up for sprinting, even though I had done some short sprint bursts. Time-wise, it's not very fast, but as I said, I wasn't feeling much like a sprinter today. Tomorrow I hope to do more power stuff, though maybe shorter than 50 meters. I need to start feeling explosive in the water!
I decided to do my dryland with JR Rosania today instead of Wednesday, because I wanted to do the Wednesday lactate workout with Phoenix Swim Club ... and because my schedule allowed me to make the change. The past two weeks have been tough on the muscles. We're working on explosive power, and to do that, JR is increasing the weight on some of my exercises, particularly the dreaded leg extensions!
The other exercise that totally obliterates me is the breaststroke pull exercise. Holding on to two stretch cords, I simulate the outsweep of the breaststroke pull. Each week I have been increasing the repetitions, with the goal of doing three sets of 50 before May. Why 50? That's the approximate number of strokes I take in a 100-meter breaststroke race, rounded up from my actual target of 44 (21 first 50, 23 second 50)
By the end of the workout, I could barely lift my arms over my head, but all in all, a good day of exercise. I feel like I am back in the swing of things after three weeks of upheaval. Tonight, I put a big bag of ice on my left shoulder for about 30 minutes. It feels better, but still a little stiff.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
The Heat Is On
Date: Saturday, April 7, 2012
Time: 9 a.m.
Location: Tucson, AZ
Short Course Meters
79 days to Olympic Trials
600 warmup
3x150 back on 2:20 (avg. 1:56)
50 easy on 1:00
3x100 IM on 1:40 (avg. 1:15)
100 easy
3x50 breast on 1:00 (avg. :37)
150 easy
50 easy swim on 1:10
2x100 on 2:00 (25 underwater flutter kick fast/25 easy)
100 easy swim on 2:00
2x50 on 1:10 (25 breast fast/25 easy)
100 easy swim
2x50 breast swim fast on 1:10 (33.1, 33.9)
4x75 on 1:20 -- 25 back/25 breast/25 free
1-3 aerobic
4 fast (:46)
Four starts
100 easy
Total: 2,950 meters (65 minutes)
With the water temperature at 83 degrees in the diving well at the University of Arizona's Hillenbrand Aquatic Center, there was no way to do any major sprinting set. That said, I made sure to keep my heart rate down throughout the workout, as it tends to get quite high when trying to exert myself in warm water. I swam with a slower group this morning, because I did not want to do another freestyle workout. The intervals in my group were about five seconds slower per 100, which was just fine. I probably could have done the same set with the faster group, but with the water being warm, I wanted to have a little more rest, to allow my body time to "cool off."
The best thing about today was being able to work on starts, using the facility's starting blocks that have the new fins attached to them. These are the types of starting blocks that will be used at Olympic Trials, and this is the only place I'm able to get used to them. The difference between these and regular starting blocks is that the new ones give you a better angle of trajectory, and allow you to have more power in your back foot when you push off the block. During my starts today, I got about 12 to 13 meters on my start, though I did glide a little longer than usual before starting my pull. The main thing was working on what I do in the air, and work on flexing my ankles better before entry. It's a lot to think about, but the more I work on it now, the less I will have to concentrate on it in Omaha.
Time: 9 a.m.
Location: Tucson, AZ
Short Course Meters
79 days to Olympic Trials
600 warmup
3x150 back on 2:20 (avg. 1:56)
50 easy on 1:00
3x100 IM on 1:40 (avg. 1:15)
100 easy
3x50 breast on 1:00 (avg. :37)
150 easy
50 easy swim on 1:10
2x100 on 2:00 (25 underwater flutter kick fast/25 easy)
100 easy swim on 2:00
2x50 on 1:10 (25 breast fast/25 easy)
100 easy swim
2x50 breast swim fast on 1:10 (33.1, 33.9)
4x75 on 1:20 -- 25 back/25 breast/25 free
1-3 aerobic
4 fast (:46)
Four starts
100 easy
Total: 2,950 meters (65 minutes)
With the water temperature at 83 degrees in the diving well at the University of Arizona's Hillenbrand Aquatic Center, there was no way to do any major sprinting set. That said, I made sure to keep my heart rate down throughout the workout, as it tends to get quite high when trying to exert myself in warm water. I swam with a slower group this morning, because I did not want to do another freestyle workout. The intervals in my group were about five seconds slower per 100, which was just fine. I probably could have done the same set with the faster group, but with the water being warm, I wanted to have a little more rest, to allow my body time to "cool off."
The best thing about today was being able to work on starts, using the facility's starting blocks that have the new fins attached to them. These are the types of starting blocks that will be used at Olympic Trials, and this is the only place I'm able to get used to them. The difference between these and regular starting blocks is that the new ones give you a better angle of trajectory, and allow you to have more power in your back foot when you push off the block. During my starts today, I got about 12 to 13 meters on my start, though I did glide a little longer than usual before starting my pull. The main thing was working on what I do in the air, and work on flexing my ankles better before entry. It's a lot to think about, but the more I work on it now, the less I will have to concentrate on it in Omaha.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Afternoon Delight
Date: Friday, April 6, 2012
Time: 12:10 p.m.
Location: Tucson, AZ
Long Course Meters
80 days to Olympic Trials
200 warmup
400 free on 6:00 (5:30)
4x100 free on 1:30 (averaged 1:11)
300 free on 4:30 (4:10)
3x100 free on 1:30 (averaged 1:11)
200 free on 3:00
2x100 free on 1:30 (averaged 1:10)
3x200 :15 rest -- 100 back/100 free
3x100 on 1:45 -- 50 breast kick drill/50 free overkick
200 easy
Total: 3,100 meters (60 minutes)
Friday at Tucson Ford Masters is always distance day. I knew this going in, but it did not make the workout any easier. The main set was quite tough, and I was extremely surprised that my aerobic endurance got me through the set with little difficulty.
I will admit that I took a little break during the 300 to prepare for the 3x100s. I did only 250 meters by turning around at the halfway point after 225 meters. I wanted a little more rest to get my heart rate down before preparing for the 100s. If I hadn't, I might not have been able to hold 1:11 on the second round.
Through the set, I was doing my best to keep up with a great distance swimmer, Jeff Utsch, who was in the lane next to me. I should have known better to keep pace with a guy who swam distance free at Arizona and has been a top Masters swimmer for many years. But, again, I was glad my body kept going through the set, and that I was able to hold such fast times on the repeats. I had originally planned to average 1:15. You don't think that's much of a difference, but it is. Those four seconds mean a lot, especially on the final two 100s. It wasn't just Jeff and I that were swimming so fast on that set. Everyone else seemed to step up and do very well, and I was glad to be a part of it.
The best thing to come out of that set is not only some endurance training, but some good freestyle work, particularly for my 200 IM. I tend to falter badly on my freestyle on the 200 IM, and workouts like this really help with that. Yes, my primary focus for the next 80 days is my 100 breast, but I am not forgetting that I'm swimming at the US Masters nationals the following week, and I'll need to keep in touch with my other strokes in the interim.
Time: 12:10 p.m.
Location: Tucson, AZ
Long Course Meters
80 days to Olympic Trials
200 warmup
400 free on 6:00 (5:30)
4x100 free on 1:30 (averaged 1:11)
300 free on 4:30 (4:10)
3x100 free on 1:30 (averaged 1:11)
200 free on 3:00
2x100 free on 1:30 (averaged 1:10)
3x200 :15 rest -- 100 back/100 free
3x100 on 1:45 -- 50 breast kick drill/50 free overkick
200 easy
Total: 3,100 meters (60 minutes)
Friday at Tucson Ford Masters is always distance day. I knew this going in, but it did not make the workout any easier. The main set was quite tough, and I was extremely surprised that my aerobic endurance got me through the set with little difficulty.
I will admit that I took a little break during the 300 to prepare for the 3x100s. I did only 250 meters by turning around at the halfway point after 225 meters. I wanted a little more rest to get my heart rate down before preparing for the 100s. If I hadn't, I might not have been able to hold 1:11 on the second round.
Through the set, I was doing my best to keep up with a great distance swimmer, Jeff Utsch, who was in the lane next to me. I should have known better to keep pace with a guy who swam distance free at Arizona and has been a top Masters swimmer for many years. But, again, I was glad my body kept going through the set, and that I was able to hold such fast times on the repeats. I had originally planned to average 1:15. You don't think that's much of a difference, but it is. Those four seconds mean a lot, especially on the final two 100s. It wasn't just Jeff and I that were swimming so fast on that set. Everyone else seemed to step up and do very well, and I was glad to be a part of it.
The best thing to come out of that set is not only some endurance training, but some good freestyle work, particularly for my 200 IM. I tend to falter badly on my freestyle on the 200 IM, and workouts like this really help with that. Yes, my primary focus for the next 80 days is my 100 breast, but I am not forgetting that I'm swimming at the US Masters nationals the following week, and I'll need to keep in touch with my other strokes in the interim.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
The Eyes of a Child
Date: Thursday, April 5, 2012
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
81 days to Olympic Trials
Today was probably the hardest 3,300 meters I've done in months. I knew the workout with the gold group at Phoenix Swim Club would be tough, given my forced time off last week, but I did not expect us to do anything close to the final 1,500 meters:
2x100 pull on 1:25 (50 back/40 breast/10 free)
1x50 dolphin kick on back on 1:00
2x100 swim on 1:25 as above
1x50 dolphin kick on back on 1:00
2x100 swim with short fins on 1:25 as above
1x50 dolphin kick on back on 1:00
One minute rest, then repeat set with the following change:
2x100 on 1:25 (50 back/40 breast/10 free)
When you're a teenager, you can do sets like this and not be affected by it. When you're in your late 30s, you can probably get through the set, but you'll be hanging on the edge of the pool deck for a couple of minutes, wondering how the kids around you have the energy to laugh at a joke just told.
The worst part of the set was that it combined three of the things I am horrible at in the pool: pulling, dolphin kick and swimming with fins. For that reason, I went to the back of the lane, in case I found myself unable to make the interval. I was able to make the interval each time, but in some cases I was only able to "touch and go." It turned out to be pretty much a straight 750 meters. My heart rate at the end of each round wasn't as high as I thought (about 170), which made me feel good about how I did on the set.
The key of surviving a set like this and not get wrapped up in making the interval is concentrating on technique. For me, I worked on kicking more on backstroke and keeping my body line more parallel than normal. For breaststroke, I tried to think about my hand speed on the recovery and holding a good body line. It helped somewhat, but I still worried about making the interval and not looking like an old man in front of the kids.
My upper back was extremely sore today. Yesterday's workout with JR Rosania made swimming breaststroke difficult today, since many of the exercises focused on building breaststroke-specific muscles. I didn't expect to be back to normal today, but today was a good step back to normal. By Monday, I should be ready to get back into race-ready training, and I can't wait to do lots of sprint training!
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
81 days to Olympic Trials
Today was probably the hardest 3,300 meters I've done in months. I knew the workout with the gold group at Phoenix Swim Club would be tough, given my forced time off last week, but I did not expect us to do anything close to the final 1,500 meters:
2x100 pull on 1:25 (50 back/40 breast/10 free)
1x50 dolphin kick on back on 1:00
2x100 swim on 1:25 as above
1x50 dolphin kick on back on 1:00
2x100 swim with short fins on 1:25 as above
1x50 dolphin kick on back on 1:00
One minute rest, then repeat set with the following change:
2x100 on 1:25 (50 back/40 breast/10 free)
When you're a teenager, you can do sets like this and not be affected by it. When you're in your late 30s, you can probably get through the set, but you'll be hanging on the edge of the pool deck for a couple of minutes, wondering how the kids around you have the energy to laugh at a joke just told.
The worst part of the set was that it combined three of the things I am horrible at in the pool: pulling, dolphin kick and swimming with fins. For that reason, I went to the back of the lane, in case I found myself unable to make the interval. I was able to make the interval each time, but in some cases I was only able to "touch and go." It turned out to be pretty much a straight 750 meters. My heart rate at the end of each round wasn't as high as I thought (about 170), which made me feel good about how I did on the set.
The key of surviving a set like this and not get wrapped up in making the interval is concentrating on technique. For me, I worked on kicking more on backstroke and keeping my body line more parallel than normal. For breaststroke, I tried to think about my hand speed on the recovery and holding a good body line. It helped somewhat, but I still worried about making the interval and not looking like an old man in front of the kids.
My upper back was extremely sore today. Yesterday's workout with JR Rosania made swimming breaststroke difficult today, since many of the exercises focused on building breaststroke-specific muscles. I didn't expect to be back to normal today, but today was a good step back to normal. By Monday, I should be ready to get back into race-ready training, and I can't wait to do lots of sprint training!
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
I'm Tired
Date: Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Time: 5:45 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
82 days to Olympic Trials
300 warmup
16x50 on 1:00
1-4 free breathing every 5
5-8 back
9-12 breast
13-16 free breathing every 4
9x200 on 4:30
1-4: 25 kick with small fins/25 kick easy (got about 1 minute rest between repeats)
5: 25 breast kick underwater fast/25 swim easy (about 40 seconds rest)
6-9: 50 swim fast/50 swim easy
#6 & #8: free averaging :31
#7: back averaging :33
# 8: breast averaging :35
200 free easy, breathing every 4
200 easy: 25 scull/25 swim
Total: 3,300 meters (75 minutes)
I was awakened at 2:30 a.m. by a couple bickering loudly outside my window. There was no way to sleep through it. They were so loud, it was easy to understand every word they were saying, some of which I would prefer not to repeat here. The argument lasted about 10 minutes. The man got in his car and drove away. The woman kept yelling after him, using words I will not print here.
After the verbal storm, I tried to go back to sleep. It was no use. My brain was awake, processing the day that was and the day that was about to be. The harder I tried to sleep, the more difficult it was. The last time I saw the clock was 3:45, about 75 minutes before my alarm was set to go off. I woke up feeling groggy, but I usually feel that way. I was OK during workout, but by 1 p.m. I was dragging, mentally and physically.
Today's workout didn't help me physically. It was tough. The main set originally was 10 rounds of a 100 fast, then a 100 easy on a 4:30 interval. Not my cup of tea, especially this time of the season. Mark Rankin decided to take a vacation, and left a simple workout for our coach, Mary Jo Pursley. No fault to her, but it was a very mind-numbing workout. Even if Mark had been there, I would have dome something different. The way I did the set was more conducive to a sprinter, and though I wasn't yet ready to be a full-on sprinter in my second workout after six days off from swimming, I did pretty well. I wasn't thrilled with my times on the 50s swim, but I gave it a good effort.
Tonight's dryland session with JR Rosania was one of the toughest ever. Definitely one of the toughest I've done in a couple of months. Oddly, the dreaded leg extensions were not the hardest thing on the menu today. The breaststroke stretch cord pull was definitely difficult! We've been building up the repetitions of the exercise every week, starting at 20 reps of just doing the breaststroke outsweep. Now, I'm at 40 reps for three sets, and I thought my arms were going to collapse on me after the third set. I'm writing this about an hour after doing the workout, and I'm still quite sore despite a decent cool down and stretching. I'm going to take a good amount of ibuprofen and put some Ben-Gay on my left shoulder, as a preventative measure.
I am so sleepy right now I could go to bed and not wake up until dawn. Luckily, I'm swimming with the kids at Phoenix Swim Club tomorrow, so I get to "sleep in" until 6:45!
Time: 5:45 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
82 days to Olympic Trials
300 warmup
16x50 on 1:00
1-4 free breathing every 5
5-8 back
9-12 breast
13-16 free breathing every 4
9x200 on 4:30
1-4: 25 kick with small fins/25 kick easy (got about 1 minute rest between repeats)
5: 25 breast kick underwater fast/25 swim easy (about 40 seconds rest)
6-9: 50 swim fast/50 swim easy
#6 & #8: free averaging :31
#7: back averaging :33
# 8: breast averaging :35
200 free easy, breathing every 4
200 easy: 25 scull/25 swim
Total: 3,300 meters (75 minutes)
I was awakened at 2:30 a.m. by a couple bickering loudly outside my window. There was no way to sleep through it. They were so loud, it was easy to understand every word they were saying, some of which I would prefer not to repeat here. The argument lasted about 10 minutes. The man got in his car and drove away. The woman kept yelling after him, using words I will not print here.
After the verbal storm, I tried to go back to sleep. It was no use. My brain was awake, processing the day that was and the day that was about to be. The harder I tried to sleep, the more difficult it was. The last time I saw the clock was 3:45, about 75 minutes before my alarm was set to go off. I woke up feeling groggy, but I usually feel that way. I was OK during workout, but by 1 p.m. I was dragging, mentally and physically.
Today's workout didn't help me physically. It was tough. The main set originally was 10 rounds of a 100 fast, then a 100 easy on a 4:30 interval. Not my cup of tea, especially this time of the season. Mark Rankin decided to take a vacation, and left a simple workout for our coach, Mary Jo Pursley. No fault to her, but it was a very mind-numbing workout. Even if Mark had been there, I would have dome something different. The way I did the set was more conducive to a sprinter, and though I wasn't yet ready to be a full-on sprinter in my second workout after six days off from swimming, I did pretty well. I wasn't thrilled with my times on the 50s swim, but I gave it a good effort.
Tonight's dryland session with JR Rosania was one of the toughest ever. Definitely one of the toughest I've done in a couple of months. Oddly, the dreaded leg extensions were not the hardest thing on the menu today. The breaststroke stretch cord pull was definitely difficult! We've been building up the repetitions of the exercise every week, starting at 20 reps of just doing the breaststroke outsweep. Now, I'm at 40 reps for three sets, and I thought my arms were going to collapse on me after the third set. I'm writing this about an hour after doing the workout, and I'm still quite sore despite a decent cool down and stretching. I'm going to take a good amount of ibuprofen and put some Ben-Gay on my left shoulder, as a preventative measure.
I am so sleepy right now I could go to bed and not wake up until dawn. Luckily, I'm swimming with the kids at Phoenix Swim Club tomorrow, so I get to "sleep in" until 6:45!
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
All Star
Date: Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Time: 5:40 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
83 days to Olympic Trials
400 warmup
4x200 on 3:30
25 back/25 free
4x(4x25 on :30) IM order
24x50 on :50
1-8 back (averaged :41)
9-16 50 IM (12.5 fly/12.5 back/12.5 breast/12.5 free) (averaged :41)
17-24 free (averaged :38)
400 breast kick easy with board, working on technique
4x100 back on 2:15, descend 1-4
(1:25, 1:20, 1:15, 1:11)
200 easy
Total: 3,800 meters (85 minutes)
I haven't swum since last Wednesday. When you are an adult with a full-time job, you have to work with what you have when you travel for business. I've been happy and fortunate that my travels in March before last week took me to meets that gave me the opportunity to do full workouts, but that was not the case last week. Despite my job taking me to the Far Western championships in Morgan Hill, California, I was not able to do a workout, because the way the meet is run, the pool is only open for about 30 minutes between sessions.
Sure, I could have jumped in and "splashed around" for 30 minutes just to stay in swimming shape, but I felt it would have been useless. It would have begun to feel like a taper workout, because I would have only been able to do a warm-up and a very brief set. If I would have been able to get in more than 2,000 yards in 30 minutes, it would have been a miracle. So, I decided not swimming was the best choice. I did get to the gym on Friday, thanks to my membership at 24 Hour Fitness that is good anywhere in the country! I did 30 minutes on the treadmill and another 30 minutes working primarily on upper body.
I did not expect to do much today in the water. I certainly was not expecting 3,800 meters, nor did I expect to be able to handle those 50s on :50. I thought my body would crash at the halfway point, but I was able to keep going through it, despite only nine seconds rest on the first 16 of them. My heart rate was about 160 after the set, which is aerobic for me. With this being my first workout after six days away, added to getting only six hours of sleep and the fact that it was long course (not easy to adjust to after a brief break), I was happy with how my body held up this morning.
I didn't put too high of a goal for myself in the last set of 100s. I did not feel much like a sprinter today, and my muscles did not want to move very fast. I said a 1:10 on the last 100 would be fine, and I was only one second slower. I couldn't hold my arm tempo for the entire 100, and my legs weren't kicking strong. By this time next week, things should be back to normal.
Earlier today, I was searching the United States Masters Swimming website for any news on what was going on in the Masters community. I remembered then that the list of people who made the USMS All-Star team is usually released in April. I went to that part of the site listing the All-Stars, and there was my name! For those who are not a part of the Masters swimming community, being an All-Star is a big accomplishment. It means you are ranked number one in the most events across all three swimming courses (short course yards, long course meters and short course meters) in a calendar year. For some people, it's not difficult to get this honor, as they completely dominate in their age groups. I've won this five previous times, and every year I was never sure I would get it until the list was released, because as a breaststroker, I do not swim as many events as a freestyler, who has many more racing options than I do. This year, I was in a close battle with Tyler Blessing, who won the All-Star for the 35-39 age group in 2010. Tyler was very fast in 2010, getting 12 #1 rankings to my seven. In 2011, I was worried that Tyler would put up a lot of long course and short course meters swims, but he did not do that, enabling me to get the honor this year.
The All-Star award is one of the highest honors a Masters swimmer can get. It rewards you for competing all year, and for being consistently fast all year. Obviously, 2011 was a big year for me in the pool, and this is just one honor that is proving all the hard work I put in was worth it. I'm not sure if I am going for the 2012 All-Star honor. I haven't done any short course yards racing, and with the yards season ending May 31, I have no plans to do so. It means I'll have to accumulate a lot of meters swims in the next eight months. I plan on taking a nice break after July, but we'll see how things shake out.
For now, I'm just glad to be back in Arizona, and back in the pool. My life is going to be very normal from now until Trials, and I'm very thankful for that. I do not plan to leave Arizona until I board the plane for Omaha, and I'll only swim in local meets before then. No need to travel to, say, the Santa Clara Grand Prix to "test things out," when I can just race the really fast Arizona swimmers in early May, and sleep in my own bed!
Time: 5:40 a.m.
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Long Course Meters
83 days to Olympic Trials
400 warmup
4x200 on 3:30
25 back/25 free
4x(4x25 on :30) IM order
24x50 on :50
1-8 back (averaged :41)
9-16 50 IM (12.5 fly/12.5 back/12.5 breast/12.5 free) (averaged :41)
17-24 free (averaged :38)
400 breast kick easy with board, working on technique
4x100 back on 2:15, descend 1-4
(1:25, 1:20, 1:15, 1:11)
200 easy
Total: 3,800 meters (85 minutes)
I haven't swum since last Wednesday. When you are an adult with a full-time job, you have to work with what you have when you travel for business. I've been happy and fortunate that my travels in March before last week took me to meets that gave me the opportunity to do full workouts, but that was not the case last week. Despite my job taking me to the Far Western championships in Morgan Hill, California, I was not able to do a workout, because the way the meet is run, the pool is only open for about 30 minutes between sessions.
Sure, I could have jumped in and "splashed around" for 30 minutes just to stay in swimming shape, but I felt it would have been useless. It would have begun to feel like a taper workout, because I would have only been able to do a warm-up and a very brief set. If I would have been able to get in more than 2,000 yards in 30 minutes, it would have been a miracle. So, I decided not swimming was the best choice. I did get to the gym on Friday, thanks to my membership at 24 Hour Fitness that is good anywhere in the country! I did 30 minutes on the treadmill and another 30 minutes working primarily on upper body.
I did not expect to do much today in the water. I certainly was not expecting 3,800 meters, nor did I expect to be able to handle those 50s on :50. I thought my body would crash at the halfway point, but I was able to keep going through it, despite only nine seconds rest on the first 16 of them. My heart rate was about 160 after the set, which is aerobic for me. With this being my first workout after six days away, added to getting only six hours of sleep and the fact that it was long course (not easy to adjust to after a brief break), I was happy with how my body held up this morning.
I didn't put too high of a goal for myself in the last set of 100s. I did not feel much like a sprinter today, and my muscles did not want to move very fast. I said a 1:10 on the last 100 would be fine, and I was only one second slower. I couldn't hold my arm tempo for the entire 100, and my legs weren't kicking strong. By this time next week, things should be back to normal.
Earlier today, I was searching the United States Masters Swimming website for any news on what was going on in the Masters community. I remembered then that the list of people who made the USMS All-Star team is usually released in April. I went to that part of the site listing the All-Stars, and there was my name! For those who are not a part of the Masters swimming community, being an All-Star is a big accomplishment. It means you are ranked number one in the most events across all three swimming courses (short course yards, long course meters and short course meters) in a calendar year. For some people, it's not difficult to get this honor, as they completely dominate in their age groups. I've won this five previous times, and every year I was never sure I would get it until the list was released, because as a breaststroker, I do not swim as many events as a freestyler, who has many more racing options than I do. This year, I was in a close battle with Tyler Blessing, who won the All-Star for the 35-39 age group in 2010. Tyler was very fast in 2010, getting 12 #1 rankings to my seven. In 2011, I was worried that Tyler would put up a lot of long course and short course meters swims, but he did not do that, enabling me to get the honor this year.
The All-Star award is one of the highest honors a Masters swimmer can get. It rewards you for competing all year, and for being consistently fast all year. Obviously, 2011 was a big year for me in the pool, and this is just one honor that is proving all the hard work I put in was worth it. I'm not sure if I am going for the 2012 All-Star honor. I haven't done any short course yards racing, and with the yards season ending May 31, I have no plans to do so. It means I'll have to accumulate a lot of meters swims in the next eight months. I plan on taking a nice break after July, but we'll see how things shake out.
For now, I'm just glad to be back in Arizona, and back in the pool. My life is going to be very normal from now until Trials, and I'm very thankful for that. I do not plan to leave Arizona until I board the plane for Omaha, and I'll only swim in local meets before then. No need to travel to, say, the Santa Clara Grand Prix to "test things out," when I can just race the really fast Arizona swimmers in early May, and sleep in my own bed!
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