7 Days!

I can't believe that it has been 7 days, since my last post! I am managing to get my drills worked in. I have tried a few laps of fly, but I have a long, long, long way to go. I'm just trying to make sure that I've got my timing right. I hate unlearning something and relearning it the correct way, so I'm trying to be really careful and go slowly.

This week's weather has been a bit more hospitable than last week's. We've been lucky enough to get some rain showers, and the outdoor pool water has cooled down to 88 degrees! This morning's swim was the most pleasant that I've had in the outdoor pool in a while! I had forgotten how good it felt to glide through cool water.

Had a nice chat with one of the guards comparing waterproof mp3 players. He found a waterproof pouch for your regular iPod and waterproof earplugs for about $50.00. He's going to shoot me the link, when he gets a chance. I could live with that for $50.00. I have a 2G iPod that my husband and I just pass back and forth, so it wouldn't be a great loss, if the case leaked. My real wish is for these: http://www.amazon.com/FINIS-SwiMP3-Waterproof-MP3-Player/dp/B001GQ2BI6, since they use the bone conduction and not headphones. I heard the sound is a little better than headphones. OR, I'd like to have these:http://www.h2oaudio.com/store/waterproof-cases/interval-waterproof-headphone-system.html

Has anyone tried a waterproof mp3 player? If so, which one do you prefer?

Happy As A "Steamed" Clam

Today is officially the hottest day of the year, according to the weather records (98 degrees with a heat index of 104). I made the terrible decision to swim after work yesterday, and I nearly overheated. I stuck to my plan to go early this morning. I was in the pool by 10:30. Luckily the water was a bit cooler, and the guards were adding fresh, cool water, when I got there. I decided to work on drills today. No speed work at all. The water is just too warm for that. I did a lot of paddle work today. I intentionally left my zoomers in my bag, so I wouldn't be tempted. Did my best to really work on this drill today:
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=832106714345

Tomorrow, I'm really going to concentrate on my fly. It should be easier, since I'll be swimming at the indoor pool in my hometown. The water should be just right...much cooler! I'm going to start with this drill. It's one of my favorites, and it really loosens up any stiffness in my back.





I'm going to work on the 3-3-3 drill. Since I'm still strengthening my dophin kick, I'm going to use my fins for some extra propulsion.

Butterfly - 3-3-3 from Glenn Mills on Vimeo.

I'm just going to call my day tomorrow, The Sunday Fly!!!

Girls Pool Day Shots

LaKeithea, Cheryl, and Amber.


Cheryl and Amber.


LaKeithea and Amber.

Work and Play

Had a great, long day at the pool. I got there around 1 p.m. I got in a 2000 meter workout. My flipturns are really coming along now. For some reason, last week I got a new case of wall fear. I started having trouble judging my distance. I'm happy to report that I've gotten over that.

After the workout, I went to the outdoor pool. Two friends, Amber and LaKeithea, met me there. We hung out until nearly 6 tonight. We had a GREAT afternoon just hanging at the pool. It's such a treat to just have an afternoon at the pool with friends. I'm usually at the pool to workout and practice. I hope to have a girl pool day again soon!

Girls Day at the pool!

Hard Boiled

When I left for the pool yesterday, the heat index was 108! It was a balmy swim, to say the least. Luckily we've had some rain, and the guards have been adding cool water, so the water isn't unbearable. A few weeks ago, the outdoor pool water had reached around 92 and 93 degrees. Those were some of the slowest workouts I've ever done! I know it's not good for you, but I just can't resist the outdoor pool. It shuts down in about 3 weeks, so I'm taking advantage of it, while I can. I managed to get 2,000 yds in, and called it a day. I didn't want to overheat. The humidity has been so bad that it takes me an hour to feel dry, after I've gotten out of the pool and cleaned up.

The weather doesn't look promising today. There's already a thick layer of clouds with the threat of rain and storms. If I swim at all today, it will probably be in the indoor pool.

Quick Trip, Including Swimming!

My husband and I took a quick, overnight getaway to Atlanta last night. We went to see a concert by one of our favorite bands, The Scorpions. One of the best parts of the trip was getting to relax at the hotel, before the concert. They had a fairly decent sized pool, for a hotel. It wasn't big enough to do full laps, but I was able to practice strokes. I even attempted the butterfly stroke, just to see what I had to work with. I definitely need help at the start, but once I get going, at least I have something to work with. Here's some quick snapshots of pool time.

Cross Training Day

I've practically had to sit on my hands all day today. I've been trying to NOT go to the pool today, because I REALLY need to cross train. I NEED to go running tonight. My problem is that I LOVE the pool so much, I have a hard time staying out of it to cross train. I always sign up for 5Ks to keep myself in check. My next 5k The Fenton Payne & Fred is in a month, so I need to step it up! This is the 3rd year that I've done this race. I'm hoping for my time to break under 30 minutes this year. I've come SOOO close. I'm not extrememly fast, but I still enjoy it. I plan to finish up afterwards by a session of yoga to stretch out. That is...if I can stay out of the pool!

A MUST Read

Earlier today, I came across an interesting link over on Facebook. The title of the article was, "Drowning Doesn't Look Like Drowning". Since I read just about everything concerning swimming and water, I clicked to have a look. This article was a sobering shock for me. Some of the information I knew, and some I didn't. Either way, it was good to be reminded and also to have new information. If you swim anywhere, you should read and be aware of this article: Drowning Doesn't Look Like Drowning.

Awesome Race!!

Still Storming

No swimming again today. I guess that it's just as well, though. I was extremely tired all day today, so it was nice to take a little break. I did spend most of the afternoon watching the LA Grand Prix on Swimnetwork. It was a full afternoon of prelims. I just heard that Kate Ziegler won the 800m Free and broke the meet record. She went in 8:25! So super fast! Some of the finals are tonight. Just log into Swimnetwork to watch the live feed!

I can't wait to get back in the pool tomorrow. I sure hope the weather is nice!

Storm, Storm, Go Away!

I got stormed out of the second half of my workout today. I knew it was coming, but I still tried. I didn't even attempt to make it out to the outdoor pool. My gamble paid off. I did manage to get about 1500 meters in. I worked really hard on my breast stroke today. I did a lot of Breastroke Separation Drills. They really do teach you how to "ride the glide" effectively. Check it out:



My short swim today was just like a teaser! Now, I can't wait to get back into the pool tomorrow!

Support Swim Blogs United!

I'm proud to announce that I'm a member of a very unique bloggers', network. It's called Swim Blogs United. The purpose of this group is to support and help save college swimming programs. Many colleges, due to funding cuts, have closed their swimming athletic programs. Often times when the budget ax falls on college and university athletic departments, swimming programs are the first cut. Swimming programs often do not produce the revenue that football or basketball teams generate, so they are easy targets on the line by line budgets. These programs are vital to producing champion athletes. Almost every Olympic swimmer participated in a college swimming program.

As the President of the Middle Tennessee State University Masters Swim Club, one of our long time goals is to, hopefully, provide support for a collegiate swim team on our campus. Some of the ways we plan on doing this is by providing scoreboards, touch pads, timing equipment, and a location to a collegiate team. By signing up my blog as a member of Swim Blogs United, I can do my part to personally help this cause. You can also do your part. Join the Go For 5 initiative.



You can do this by going to the Go For 5 site and donating. These funds are distributed by grants through the organization to collegiate swimming programs.

Long Holiday Weekend

I hope that everyone had a great 4th of July weekend! I was really lucky that the local Rec Center in my hometown was open ALL weekend, including July 4th. I bascially spent nearly all of my free time at the pool during my 3 days off. I've felt REALLY good in the water the past 4 days too! I can tell that I'm definitely swimming stronger! My lung power feels like it's increasing too. Over the last 4 days, I'm starting to finally see improvement. I've finally decided to start flipturning again. I desparately need to up my lung power, and that's the only way I know how to do it effectively. Besides, Coach Chris will be yelling at me come fall, if I don't.

I worked today on speed drills, along with my flipturns too. I've noticed that I'm coming into the walls with a lot more speed, and I'm coming out harder and faster too! Why oh why couldn't I do this early this spring? I'm not sure what's happened in the last 2 months, but I'm awfully glad it finally clicked. I may actually be up to a meet this fall!

Swimming With Just Me

Today, I decided to do a more race pace workout. I didn't use any equipment, except a kickboard and pull bouy. I had a GREAT workout today, and I felt really strong in the water. I LOVE days like this!! Anyway, here's my workout for today.

Warmup:
5 X 50 Easy Kick

Main Set:
5 X 50 Free

5 X 50 Breast

5 X 50 Back

5 X 50 Pull

Cool Down:
5 X 50 Easy Free

5 X 50 Easy Breast

5 X 50 Easy Dophin kick

Goggle Cleaner Review

Last week, I posted a review on the TriSwim products. The same company, SBR, Inc. makes the Foggle goggle cleaner towelettes.



The Foggle product is made not only for de-fog and antifogging purposes. It also cleans your goggles. I've used a few antifog products and have only had temporary results with them. I used the Foggle towelette last Saturday, I've put in nearly 9,000 yards, so far this week. I'm happy to report, there's no sign of foggy lenses. That's saying something since, I've been swimming in the outdoor pool and the goggles have gone from the air temperature of 98 degrees with a heat index of 105 to the water temp of 90. As far a clean goes, it left my goggles VERY clean. There were no spots left from the evaporation of the cleaner either. Spots on my goggles ANNOY me to the Nth degree!!! In fact they left my goggles so clean, that I used the same towelette to clean my sunglasses too! The towelettes are good for around 6-8 uses, which makes them super economical too! It seems you just can't loose with Foggles!!

Again, another big plus is that SBR does not do animal testing, which makes me even happier with their products!! So, if you're swimming and looking through those foggy lenses, visit the SBR, Inc. website and pick up some Foggles. Foggles come in packs of 6 for $6.89 or in giant boxes of 48 for $34.56.