The Last Lap

Final session before flying out to Montreal on Thursday just beginning to get a little bit excited
although that"s tempered by the amount of work I need to get through tomorrow.

Still swimming in the week before an event, now I haven't done that for a while although 13 weeks of work is way too little to be properly competitive.

Last session at Stanley this evening in the public Masters session. Fairly steady aerobic set and coped pretty well with the tight turn round holding 3:05-3:07's and 92's for the 100s. The problem is I know I should really be doing some horribly hard sprinty stuff.

Interestingly my bid to frighten the opposition in the 200 Breaststroke by entering a time which would be a British senior record and have won me a bronze medal at the commonwealth games is still alive and kicking as despite an email to the meet organisers I'm still heading up my age group. oops!

500 warm up
4 x 200 @ 3:30
8 x 100 @ 1:45
1 mins RI
2 x 200 @ 3:30
4 x 100 @ 1:45
200 swim down
3100 metres

Hercules? don't bother, 2 hours of your life you won't get back.

We had a family trip to the flicks last night, and there was a heated debate about which movie we saw. Now heated debate is a bit of an overstatement, Bob said "I'd like to see Hercules" and TT and I said "OK".

We went for dinner first and on the way into the movie Bob handed me his tub of ice cream to look after while he nipped off to the loo. (I'm not normally so obliging, but it did give me a chance to taste Ben and Jerry's Smores ice cream.)

TT and I located our seats and I sat down and without thinking I dropped Bob's Ice Cream into the Drink Holder on the arm of the chair. I then looked into the holder and realised that the tub was about 4 inches below the level of the arm rest and it was virtually impossible to extricate from the hole.

Now you know when something's not really that funny but for some reason it just strikes you (and only you ) as absolutely hilarious? TT turned round to see me absolutely creased with tears rolling down my cheeks as I struggled unsuccessfully to remove the tub. Just incase you wanted to know, Bob, being an engineer, was able to remove the tub and enjoy what was left of his ice cream, which of course was enhanced by the thumb prints I'd left in it during my efforts.

TT and I both thought that there was an element of justice in this for inflicting on us the worst movie we'd ever seen.

So onto training today, this week I was Billy No Mates as I was the only Master who turned up, botheration no where to hide from EMSC 1.0 so I had to work pretty hard throughout the set. The hard stuff was encouraging and I'm clearly going in the right direction but not as quickly as I would like. A case of Binge Swimming chickens coming home to roost perhaps.

400 warm up @ 7:30 (should've been 7 mins but sneaked an extra 30 secs!)
200 hard @ 4 mins 2:58
2 x 200 @ 3:30 steady
2 x 100 hard @ 2 mins 1:25.9, 1:23.9
4 x 100 @ 1:45 steady
3 x 66 hard @ 1:30 59, 55, 53
6 x 66 @ 1:10 steady
6 x 33 @ 40 hard  29.1, 29.7, 28, 27, 26, 25 ish
700 pull swim down
3100 metres

No Coach "T" is for Taper not 30 minutes timed swim!!!!!

It's funny isn't it how sometimes you miss the most amazing things right in your own backyard.

I've worked in my office for almost 30 years and yesterday I was shamed by Teenage Triathlete into walking down to the local Morrisons to buy lunch.

Ordinarily I would simply wander along Middle Street to Greggs for my lunchtime sustenance. However on our return we walked up a back lane and about 75 metres from my office we came upon this little oasis of calm.

I was blown away and whiled away a glorious half hour eating my sandwiches there at lunchtime today. This snatched peace and tranquility was a far cry from the frenzy of the Saddo Session at Newcastle this evening.

EMSC 7.0 was in fine sadistic form and was heard to mutter "oh oh she won't like this" as I walked onto the poolside this evening. He has very obvious psychic qualities because he was darned right I did not like it not one little bit! Does he not understand the T word is taper not timed swim and certainly not thirty minute timed swim.

The only silver lining in this piece of excruciatingness was that we could swim it how we wanted and with whatever aids we wanted. I therefore selected pull with paddles and set off. I'm not really sure that this was particularly sensible in the week before the Worlds start, but I guess my swimming will naturally tail off next week anyway as I try to clear my desk before leaving so it probably will have worked itself out of my system.

12 x 50 @ 75 Progressive 1-4, 5-8, 9-12
30 mins timed swim pull with paddles 1950 metres
6 x 50 @ 75
50 swim down
3000 metres

7 days to Montreal and Binge's still swimming!

There were only three of us at the public Masters session this evening, I wonder how long they will continue to support this if the attendance doesn't improve?

I expect the Commonwealth Games, gorgeous sunshine and holiday time has interfered with the turn out. Like most swimming around here it shut's down for August.

Anyway I spent an interesting hour trying to hang on to Kelly in the next lane, who has a wicked sprint and is probably 20 years younger than me.

Had her by the end of the second round, but couldn't quite get her on the final 25! Bu**eration.

3 x 150 metres @ 30s RI
4 x 100 @ 2 mins 92's
4 x 75 @ 1:30 68's
4 x 50 @ 60  44's
4 x 25 @ 30 22's
3 x 100 @ 2:00 89's
3 x 75's @ 1.30 65's
3 x 50's @ 60  42's
3 x 25 @ 30  21
2 x 100 @ 2:00 86's
2 x 75 @ 1:30 64's
2 x 50 @ 60 41's
2 x 25 @ 30 21
1 x 100 @ 2:00 83
1 x 75 @ 1:30 62
1 x 50 @ 60  40
1 x 25 @ 30  19
150 swim down
3,100 metres

EMSC 1.0 demonstrates his lack of imagination and Queenie Reid is advised to **** off

It was a tough call this evening on the one hand there was training and on the other the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony. Mmmh

Well actually it wasn't tough at all I just went swimming! Once there
I got a bit narked with Queenie Reid  as she was encouraging me to swim the 100's flat out as breaststroke.

Is she MAD!!!!! on TWO MINUTES!!! when am I supposed to get any rest. Any way I advised her (politely of course) to eff off and went back to swimming freestyle.

I was also incredibly popular with my fellow swimmers this evening as I arrived a little late and EMSC 1.0 had promised the swimmers already in the water that it would be an hours work. Unfortunately he intended to repeat the session we had swam yesterday (unimaginative bu**er) and was snookered when I walked out onto the pool side.

The result was a variation on last night's theme but it took nearly 90 minutes!

266 warm up
10 x 66 @ 1:30
1 x 100 flat out @ 2:00
300 swim down as 100 swim, 100 kick, 100 swim
8 x 66 @ 1:25
1 x 100 flat out @ 2:00
300 swim down as 100 swim, 100 kick, 100 swim
6 x 66 @ 1:20
1 x 100 flat out @ 2:00
300 swim down as 100 swim, 100 kick, 100 swim
4 x 66 @ 1:75
1 x 100 flat out @ 2:00
300 swim down as 100 swim, 100 kick, 100 swim
100 swim down
3866 metres

Desperately trying to avoid the "T" word

So the editor of the comic (aka The Swimming Times) calls me up today to discuss the publication schedule and my deadline dates for next months print ramblings. 

The problem with next month is he goes to press in the middle of my week in Montreal, and despite a bit of wheedling and pleading the latest I could wring out of him was the Wednesday. I guess I'll be burning the midnight oil on a couple of occasions.

But I've still 9 days to go before I travel and rather miraculously I find myself still swimming! (careful there Binge or EMSC 1.0 or 5.0 or 7.0 might start to mention the T word)

Usually by now in the run up to a big meet I've given up  the training charade completely knowing that it's not going to make any bl**dy difference to how I swim.

I can't really say that I have improved or can demonstrate a change of pace, but I managed the first set this evening repeating on 1:40's although the rest was definitely diminishing as I struggled to finish the 50's with about 3 seconds rest.  

On a completely random note I found this picture of Kathy Tunnicliffe waiting to swim at last year's European Championships, while I was picking though the Lifelong Swimming site here and it just made me smile so I thought I'd give the Montreal Pics a rest this evening. Love the pink crocs Kathy!

5 x 100 @ 2 mins warm up

no 1 easy

no 2 75 easy 25 hard

no 3 50 easy 50 hard

no 4 25 easy 75 hard 

no 5 hard

200 @ 3:20

2 x 150 @ 2:30

4 x 100 @ 1 :40

8 x 50 @ 50 s

100 active rest swim down

1 x 150 @ 2:40

2 x 100 @ 1:45

4 x 50 @ 55

100 active rest swim down

100 @ 1:50

2 x 50 @ 60

100 active rest swim down

1 x 50 

200 swim down

3100 metres

Binge no mates!

Turned up for swimming this afternoon (yes really this afternoon as I am finally caught up with this blogging lark) and there was no one there.

Well apart from EMSC 1.0 and 1 other swimmer, Kate so we spent an hour swimming side by side.

The final set of 33's was a bit of a continuous swim, but I've covered over 15k this week and I'm now past half way on my mile a day challenge.

Last full weeks training before Montreal. Beginning to get a bit excited. Although a bit worried when I saw the entry list for the 200 Breaststroke. For some reason my 3:33 had morphed into a 2:23, quite simply the fastest women's time in the whole meet!

Oops I hope they fix it or I feel a supreme humiliation coming on!

200 swim
2 x 100 @ 15 s RI 100 pull/100 Kick
3 x 66 @ 15s RI 66 kick, 66 pull 66 swim
5 x 100 @ 2:00
3 x 66 @ 1:20
1 x 33 @ 40
3 x 100 @ 1:50
3 x 66 @ 1:15
3 x 33 @ 35
1 x 100 @ 1:40
3 x 66 @ 1:10
1 x 33 @ 30
300 swim down
2700