Catch Up

I'm behind on almost two weeks worth of workouts!

After my last post about my second swim lesson, I headed South for a few days of vacation. I packed my running gear, intending to at least run around the French Quarter or maybe find a yoga class to drop in on. I should have known better. They only came in handy on my last day when my hangover demanded clean, comfy clothes for the flight home.

Last Tuesday, March 5th, I took the day off of work. This allowed me to go to the 5:30 Aerial Silks class, where I worked on cleaning up my Angel Drop. I felt significantly improved by the end of class. (Although drops are still just not my favorite thing.)

Immediately after Silks class, I headed to my last scheduled Ashtanga class. I was so super sweaty by the end. (Yoga is one and half hours, so added to my one hour of silks, I was beat.)

Wednesday night I had tickets to see a band I like, so no physical exertion that day.

Thursday was Aerial Flow. First Thursday of the months means a new routine! I only saw half of it, but I already love it. I took a video of the instructor demonstrating and watched it a couple of times throughout the week to keep it fresh in my head. Unfortunately, I missed going last night because I am sick.

Saturday at noon I went to a drop-in class of Ashtanga Modified Primary. (This was how we were to complete our 10th class of the series.) This class was still accessible, but definitely went more in depth than my beginner's classes. There were hand stands and head stands in addition to the shoulder stand. But I really liked the mixed levels and the instructor was able to offer other modifications to make a pose work. There was also several more vinyasa movements in the series, so I got very sweaty.

I went directly from yoga to the gym to get in some swimming practice. There are three lanes at the pool and only one was being used. I committed myself to a half an hour. As soon as I got in, the other person got out and no one else entered the area until right before my half hour was up. I didn't feel like I was improving much, but I'm sure that it did actually help.

Sunday I slept in and then went to the gym for more swimming in the afternoon. All three lanes were in use when I arrived, so I decided to do something else and keep checking back until a lane was free. Unfortunately, I had forgotten my phone and headphones at home since I had expected to only be in the water. I just ran on a treadmill for about 10 minutes, which was boring with nothing to listen to or watch, and checked on the pool again. A lane was free, so I changed into my suit and grabbed it while it was open. I spent another half hour there and definitely could feel improvement. Not great, but I can feel the progress.

Monday night was Aerial Silks class. I practiced the dreaded Star Drop, gaining an awful burn in the crease of my thigh and pelvis. I also practiced a few of the harder moves from the Flow routine.

Throughout the days of my return from vacation I had started to feel more and more tired. I wondered if I was not resting enough since I had been out doing something every night since I got back. Tuesday I was sick and I suspect it's onset is what was really making me so fatigued. I took gym clothes with me in the morning so that I could stop at the gym after work, but I could tell I was sick in the afternoon and decided to rest. I cancelled my Wednesday swim lesson and haven't done anything since.

I am starting to feel better, so pending my snot inventory tomorrow morning, I am hoping to go to a spinning class and spend another half hour swimming (with a plan to repeat again on Sunday with a possible addition of a yoga class). I'm eager to dive into my triathlon training in earnest.

Swim Lesson #2

I went to my second swim lesson last night. I had hoped to get the pool at the gym with my friend before Wednesday, but schedules did not align. It'll be two weeks before I go back and now I have my own gym membership, so I'll be getting some practice time in before my next lesson.

We worked on breathing with my face in the water again. I felt a little closer, but definitely not there. In addition to breathing work, I got some pointers on technique for my arms that definitely helped me glide. I also got to use fins, which were great until they made my feet cramp up.

I felt like I did worse this week than my first attempt with the backstroke.

There's so much coordination involved. As soon as I focus on breathing, my arms don't pull right, my body doesn't twist. There's just so much going on. I'm really looking forward to a lot of practice next week.

Swimming Lesson #1

I started another new thing Wednesday night: swimming lessons. Since I am planning on doing at least two triathlons this summer, I need to brush up on my swimming. I took swimming lessons as a kid (see: more than 20 years ago) and have been in pools and the ocean, but I usually just float around, typically with an adult beverage, and have no reason to ever actually swim.

When I was in Puerto Rico last Fall, I did try to do real swimming in the ocean. I felt like it took me forever to get anywhere and the waves made it difficult. I had planned to try again in the pool in Florida for a family vacation with the in-laws after Christmas, but due to a blizzard, I never made it.

The gym that I plan to join next week has an indoor pool as well, but while they do have personal trainers, it seems that none of them are swim-specific. So I contacted a health center that is connected with the hospital behind my house for lessons only. I bought a package of 5 lessons, so I can practice at the gym throughout the week and meet with a swim coach once a week or so for improvement tips.

My lesson was scheduled to be a half hour in length. I was a bit late, so we went a bit over, which I appreciated. The instructor has been a swim coach for years, mostly teaching little kids. She is middle-aged and not intimidating, which I appreciate. We practiced swimming with my face in the water (I always want to hold it up) and finding a breathing pattern that works for my timing. She said that my strokes were pretty good, I just need to get my arms up higher sometimes.

We also worked on the backstroke, which she said is good to know in case of fatigue or injury, or anything else that might go on during a triathlon. This was much easier since there's no concern about breathing as your face is entirely out of the water all the time. My form was worse here and I really need to lift my arms more (like all the time) and I seem to go diagonal a lot.

I'm hoping to get into the pool at the gym before Wednesday to practice, but it might not work out. Anyway, looking forward to more practice and I already feel more confident that I can be a good swimmer by the end of June.