Approaching Deadline = Short Post

A comparatively short post today as I've got to turn in 1000 words for the Comic first thing tomorrow morning, it's a bit like having to hand in a piece of homework.

Haven't quite worked out what I'm going to talk about but doubtless I'll think of something.

A bit more relaxed session this evening, Proudy and I were clearly on the same wavelength as I was thinking 5 x 400's with some mixed drills, and breath and stroke counting and he devised this little main set. Toosmartwatch tells me it was "steady state work"

The problem with these print outs is they don't lie and I can see where I missed 50m I suspected that I hadn't finished the full 200 and I added an extra 50 onto the swim down to compensate, conscientious or what?

Warm Up
600 up free down alt back/brst
4 x 100 @ 1:50
2 x 200 pull @ 3:40
1 x 400 pull with paddles @ 7.50
2 x 200 pull @ 3:40
4 x 100 @ 1:50
8 x 50 kick @ 80s
6 x 4 x 1 IM @ 2:00
450 swim down
4000m total

Unfortunate Post & Winter Berry Brownie

Bob and I both arrived in from our different sessions this evening around 9:45pm. As a peace offering to the abandoned Teenage Triathlete, Bob brought Ice Cream. Now tell me how can raspberries, and blackberries which I usually think of as "summer fruits"  suddenly become "winter berry brownie"?

I expect Ben and Jerry might know the answer, now I'm normally a chocolate ice cream type of girl, but despite its somewhat perplexing etymology I can confirm that "Winter Berry Brownie" tasted great and might just become my recovery food throughout this month.

The other thing that cheered me up this evening was that one of Bob's swimmers posted a status on Facebook "First slash in the pool tonight" which as you can imagine invited a number of responses and made me quite relieved I hadn't been swimming in his session. (relief is probably the wrong word in this context as is any reference to missing a P)

Consett was really busy this evening and I was hanging off the back of lane 2 in a sort of no man's land and suffering from a severe lack of rest as this print out shows. (Having finally remembered to put toosmartwatch in my kit bag)

133 free
66 pull
133 free
66 kick
66 free
200 free @ 3.30
4 x 100 free @ 2 mins
200 free @ 3.30
6 x 66 @ 80 secs
200 free @ 3.30
2 x 100 @ 2 mins
3 x 66 @ 80s
200 free @ 3.30
3 x 66 @ 80s
6 x 33 @ 40s
200 free
66 free
133 kick
66 free
133 pull
66 free
100 swim down
3700 metres

Day 3 of Fitness Challenge and wot not many 100's

I was shamed into buying a new training cossie yesterday and took it for a road test at Consett this afternoon. So I faced an Evil Mutant Swim Coach 1.0 session without the benefit of a bodysuit. I was hanging on for grim death and more than happy to let the guys behind go past me as I died.

As you can see from the session EMSC 1.0 has obviously entered an imaginative phase with his programming, although given the impossible turn around times (the 1 and 2 lengths were continuous swims) he was obviously keen to live up to his name.

Warm Up
200 free @ 3.30
1 x 33 @ 40
133 free @ 2.20
2 x 33 @ 40
66 free @ 1.10
3 x 33 @ 40
4 x 200 @ 3.30
3 x 2 x 100 @ 1.40
2 x 3 x 66 @ 65 s
6 x 33 @ 30 s
400 swim down
3000m

Fitness Frog Fiesta Flounders with Fly

First Saturday session since last June struggled out of bed at 7:30 and chauferred Bob to the session in my new car (a bit of an impulse purchase last week when I managed to jam the door key in the lock of my old one.)

I guess I am a bit of a car salesman's dream as my tactics are simply to wander into my closest Ford garage and say I need a new car, The whole transaction took about 19 minutes which included my accepting I could have any colour provided it was ....Hot Magenta! Not sure what Henry Ford would make of that but a dark pink car is sort of growing on me.

Back to the session though we had the whole pool to ourselves as the kids were off swimming somewhere. Fairy Snow Baby had obviously given the session some thought and I wasn't complaining when he announced his plan was pull with paddles.

I had the luxury of a lane all to myself and spent the session trying to keep up with Beckleberry dad in the next lane, who was ably demonstrating the benefits of swimming consistently.

It all went pretty swimmingly until the 8 x 50's fly. Memories of the debacle of the 100 fly at the Nationals at October came flooding back here. I was left musing how swimming 3 strokes I could just about get to halfway, but by the time I'd struggled through 12 strokes I found myself in a sort of no man's land of about a metre off the wall and having completely lost all momentum and floundering trying to make the turn. Not fun I can tell you!

800 Warm up 400 free, 200 IM*, 200 choice (alt free, back, free, breast)
7 x 150 pull with paddles @ 2.45
8 x 75 @ 1:30 technique?
8 x 50's kick @ 1.30 (unplugged no kickboards)
8 x 50's @ 70 secs increasing fly 3 strokes, 6 strokes, 9 strokes, 12 strokes and repeat
450 swim down
3700 metres

*wimped out the fly

Flu Fettles Fledgling Binge Comeback, but February Fitness Challenge (here we go again)

Everything was going so beautifully at the beginning of January; I was just beginning to settle into a swimming routine and hitting the mile a day target when I was absolutely knocked for six by a proper dose of flu which confined me to bed for three days.

I've been pretty ropey and wobbly ever since, but on waking up this morning I realised it's now February, bringing the February Fitness Challenge and my attempt to swim for 28 consecutive days. I nearly missed it because I left my swimming gear at home and I became embroiled in a protracted, pathetic but ultimately blood pressure elevating hearing over lunchtime.

Featuring a numpty judge who hadn't read the papers (to be fair the latest welfare report hadn't made it onto the court file) and clearly had a lunch date planned as he kept studiously looking at the clock as I was addressing him. He finally wanted to know why the case was being heard in Newcastle and not Durham "well Judge because it was incorrectly issued by my esteemed colleague last August, and the learned Judge at the time (oh that would be you!) decided to hang onto it rather than transfer it out."

On returning to the office fizzing and foaming I decided that a swim ( under the guise of a late lunch) was needed to calm down. I wasn't really up for it and therefore was thinking about settling for a Tesco set and wondering if I could get away with 500 metres. However an empty pool, well ok one other swimmer for company to start with, and then a big bloke appeared next to me so I had to keep beating him didn't I? This meant that before I knew it I had worked my way through a fairly gentle 2k which was a pretty good Friday distance.

Ah well 1 down only 27 to go.

Warm up 600 alternate up free, down ba, brst and free
2 x 200 pull @ 4 mins
3 x 133 pull @ 2.45
4 x 100 pull @ 2 mins
200 swim down
2000m

A Synchro Dad Session

I went three for three this evening making my third consecutive training session. As I strode onto the pool side the guys: Proudie, Fairy Snow Baby, Matt the Cash and Synchro Dad (identities can be ascertained here) were pratting about, chatting and trying to formulate a plan.

We have Synchro Dad to thank for this straightforward little number. After the set of 6 x 150's Synchro Dad announced the next set of 8 x 150's and I did point out that we'd just swum a set of 6 lengths but to no avail. I was reassured by the boy's lane that there was a "theme" going on.

I was joined by Mrs Fairy Snow Baby and gracefully conceded the front spot to her and "New Guy" who of course isn't new any more.

A fairly steady 2.6k which my body desperately needed after last night's exertions it did give me a chance to catch up with Marie Helene one of the ante natal swimmers and discuss the sensation of trying to tumble turn when you have an anything but streamlined bump counteracting the natural buoyancy in your bum.

400 warm up alternating 100 free, 100 back
6 x 150 @ 3.15 50 pull, 50 kick 50 swim
8 x 150 @ 3.00 50 swim, 50 IM order, 50 swim
4 x 25 @ 35s
2,600 metres

Thrash Bash & Crash...out

EMSC 1.0 really gave us a pasting this evening as you can see from this print out and I was recording some serious "red time" and now feel like it's dead time.

My 100's were around the 1.35 - 1.38 mark with the fastest being 1.33 and falling away to 1.40 on the last set.

Queenie Reed had the temerity to ask me if I'd been on holiday cos "I look a bit red!" hmmm.

400 100 free, 66 brst 33 back
400 66 swim, 66 pull
200 66 steady, 33 hard
200 steady 80% @ 3.30
4 x 100 hard 90% @ 2.00
1 x 100 easy @ 70% 2.00
200 steady 80% @ 3.30
4 x 100 hard 90% @ 2.00
1 x 100 easy @ 70% 2.00
200 steady 80% @ 3.30*
4 x 100 hard 90% @ 2.00
1 x 100 easy @ 70% 2.00
200 steady 80% @ 3.30*
4 x 100 hard 90% @ 2.00
1 x 100 easy @ 70% 2.0
3800

*didn't quite complete either of these as I was really hanging off the back so I turned in the middle of the pool on the penultimate length of the 200 to make sure I at least managed 10 seconds rest.