(Yet Another) Road Trip Day 4 (Monday) Binge swaps Ab Attack for 2nd Swim Session

The holiday mood really began to take hold as I only made it to the pool for a morning dip today (Monday) although it was a reasonable session and I covered a fairly respectable distance.

As punishment I was forced to go to yet another ab attack session parts of which were undoable and hurt quite a lot.

This evening we made a bid for freedom and taxied into La Santa for dinner as we wandered back they were closing up the pools for the evening. It was a pretty impressive sight two side by side 50 metre pools, that's a lot of water.

800 warm up free, down drill
5 x 200 @ 3:50 progressive from 3:37-3:20
20 x 50 @ 60 pull with paddles
4 x 100 @ 2:15 25 fly, 75 steady
4 x 50 kick
200 swim down
3600 metres

(Yet Another) Road Trip Day 3 6k and Sunbed day

Yesterday evening's Aerobic session at the Volcano, under a blistering sun completely killed me and I found myself seeking a shady area for the stretch and relax class.

Now a "stretch and relax" class in the shade just doesn't have the same attraction as a "stretch and relax" class in the sun and I resolved that today would be a keep my face out of the sun day.

Of course I still had to swim and what a brilliant excuse not to have to swim backstroke!

The wind in the new pool was truly blowing a hooly! In the main set wearing a pair of paddles pinched from sports booking it was like having sails as you went up the pool but oh dear coming back into that head wind! and the chop.

I therefore resolved that in between sessions all I was going to do today was to recharge on a sunbed.

Teenage Triathlete went off to do an unfeasible amount of classes which started with Body Combat or something equally as tortuous, ( I'd bailed after 20 minutes in this class on Friday) and ended with an egg throwing competition. (was it a chucky egg?)

Although it did involve her having to catch it as well,  things were all white until the distance 16 metres when her team mate bowled a complete yorker (or should that be yoker) with the eggspected results.

After a few hours on the sun bed catching up with the blogging, I made it to the pool for a very leisurely dip. Not very much effort there and a fair bit of garbage yardage, but my 6k today salvaged a green week.

AM Session
1300 warm up
100 free
50 free, 50 back
50 free, 50 breast
100 free
50 single arm left 50 single arm right
100 catch up
100 free
100 catch up
50 single arm left 50 single arm right
100 free
50 free, 50 breast
50 free, 50 back
100 free
5 x 400 @ 7:30 pull with paddles
4 x 50 fly drill with fins @ 75
4 x 50 free kick with fins @ 75
4 x 50 free DPS @ 70 s

300 swim down
4200 metres

PM Session
800 mixed drills warm up
400 breast stroke kick
8 x 50's breaststroke drill
8 x 50's free drills
200 swim down
2200 metres

(Yet Another) Road Trip Day 2 - Binge in Exercise Class Shocker!

Beware Binge Aerobiccing! 

Saturday 24th August 2014 Teenage Triathlete had been gleefully planning my ultimate humiliation for the last week, and yesterday and today put her little wheeze into action!

By insisting that I attend more exercise sessions in the last two days then I've done in a lifetime. This included 2 "ab attack" sessions, I can tell you now that there is no chance my ab's are going to attack anyone because they are completely non existent!

Also I discovered during aerobics (for beginners of course) that the only place my arms and legs will work in a collaborative fashion is in a pool! and even then it's only sporadically. I've done 2 Yoga classes, the aforementioned ab attacks, 2 Stretch classes, Pilates and Aerobics! I drew the line at body toning and went for my second swim of the day.

I can tell you that I ache in places I didn't even know I still had! Sun bed beckons tomorrow but beginning to catch up on the yardage front! Also Tony Cherrington (who is currently somewhere in the English Channel as part of an over 70 years relay) you were right, the wind tunnel in the new pool makes the second 50 brutal.

AM session
800 Warm up 400 swim 300 drill 100 swim
12 x 50 @ 90  breaststroke kick
16 x 50 @ 70 DPS breathing every 6 reduced stroke count from 39 – 36
200 swim down
8 x 50 @ 60 25 hard, 25 easy
200 swim down
3000 metres

PM session

6 x 100 @ 2 mins
3 x 200 pull with paddles @ 4 mins
400 mixed kick with fins
100 swim down

1700

(Yet another!) Road Trip Day 1 (Friday 22nd August) Club La Santa

Missing you Mum- Not!

You may have noticed there's been a rather typical Binge Swimming hiatus for the last 12 days as a jet lagged Binge struggled to cope with reality. The daily grind only lasted a short time as annual holidays called. 

So I was off on my travels again and my achievement yesterday was covering the 150 metres or so from the Ladies’ loos in the departure lounge at Newcastle airport to gate 22 in about 15 seconds flat; especially as I had to dodge and weave through the rest of the strolling and straggling passengers making their way to Gates 20 and 21. 

I know you are curious to learn the reason behind for this rather unbinge like haste? Well there I was sitting on the loo minding my own business when a tannoy announcement filters into my consciousness, “this is the final and urgent call for Passenger Dobbie travelling on flight LS545” oops…

Had I missed this I would have really been in the doghouse with Bob and Teenage Triathlete (especially as I was bringing out more cash) who were already on holiday. I must’ve passed through a temporal anomaly somewhere in the duty free shop because I hadn’t even seen the instruction to "Go to the Gate!" 

Thankfully I did make the flight, pretty much jumping through the plane door as it slammed shut and then having to look suitably sheepish and apologetic as I made my way to my seat with 279 pairs of eyes looking at me and thinking there's the silly cow who's held us up.

Anyway a relatively crash free flight! and reunited with Club La Santa, oh and Bob and Teenage Triathlete. First swim today (Friday) didn't want to overdo it after my recent break! 

800 warm up

7 x 100 pull @ 1:50

1500 metres

Road Trip Day 10 - Saturday August 9th- The end of the adventure

Whilst the World Championships didn't end officially until the Sunday, sadly my trip came to an end at 2pm on Saturday as I left the pool and headed for the airport.

I was able to catch some of the action down at the open water swim which was fabulous, glorious sunshine, perfect course fantastic day.

I know this was exactly the sort of day, and the very spot when 20 years ago, I was inspired by the open water event so much so I thought I needed to enter it at the next World Championships. Of course this was where reality set in, as the next time turned out to be a very cold and rainy morning at Holme Pierrepoint!

I was also able to watch the final pool events and cheer on Crystal who was thwarted in her attempt to hunt down Anne Bourne by a mere 2 hundredths of a second, a fantastic tussle for the bronze medal place by the two Brits.

I managed to grab a swim in a very civilised warm up pool, changed and set off to finish my packing and catch the shuttle to the airport.

So what's next for Binge, well I've currently been abandoned by Bob and Teenage Triathlete who have jetted out as an advance party to Lanzarote.

I'll join them next week, in a vain event to keep up this training lark and also to try and put my mile a day challenge back on track. In the meantime I'm having a civilised evening with the house to myself.. I could get used to this.

I'm planning on a training raid at Newcastle's Final Friday Saddo session tomorrow.

600 steady warm up

Road Trip Day 9 - August 8th- Apologies to Gobbie

Woke up at silly o clock this morning for my one early swim of the week, and Crystal was also awake and on Facebook, (well what else do you do first thing in the morning?) when she happened to mention that someone had posted that Gobbie's mistress has a latex allergy.

Have you ever had one of those light bulb moments you know when the penny finally drops and everything becomes well Crystal clear. 

You see I have spent a considerable amount of time in the last two days considering what earthly use a nappy pin could be, unless we all run a bit short on the Tenna ladies front.

But there it was the explanation....Like a bolt out of the blue I realised it wasn't a Nappy Pin it was an Epipen. Oh profuse apologies for taking the mick Gobbie I finally understand why you were on the pool side with your owner and I take back all the slightly snidey remarks I made.

Anyway last swim of the World Championships for Binge and I made a complete Horlics of it. I spent the whole 200 arguing with myself to go faster and then telling myself not to be so stupid cos it would hurt! My head won in the end and although I went from 20th to 12th I wasn't particularly happy.

I spent the rest of the day just generally lounging around, watching the rest of the breaststroke swims and chatting and drinking and sitting in the sun. I did manage a swim in the open water course in the rowing basin which was a very pleasant way to spend the afternoon. 

There was lots of action in the pool with the 200 fly providing 4 GB gold medals for Nicola Latty, Judy Wilson, Pat Jackson and David Cummings not to mention Di Ford's third title of the week in the 200 breast, or Helen Gorman's silver and European Record

Just a bit sad that I'm off home tomorrow.

600 warm up

200 breast 3:30

500 open water

Road Trip Day 8 Thursday 7th August - Guardians of the Gloucester Video

It was relay day today at the World Championships so I wasn't swimming; but having been awoken by a PPI automated call at 7:45 I thought I would trundle down to the pool to support Crystal and her Cronies.

I was trusted by them to take the official video of what Colin Stephenson had assured me all the previous evening was "a gold medal winning team". I had to admire his confidence though as they were seeded 4th.

As their heat approached, team mate Brian and I were banished to the bleachers to record their valiant struggle. We were quite happily chatting away when Brian realised that Crystal was in the water! I managed to operate the video camera when she was half way down her 50, oops, but I did capture the rest of the heat which included a stunning performance from them all to finish second.

The level of support to my current roomy did not extend to going to watch her presentation as I chose instead to go and see Guardians of the Galaxy in 3D at an Imax... brilliant way to while away an hour or so.

I did drop into the warm up pool for a leisurely 600 metres though, so not a total waste!

Only the 200 breaststroke left for tomorrow and I can't say I'm looking forward to it, even though my potential British record entry time of  2:23 has been changed to a more manageable 3:33.