Swimming Saturday

Good morning! 

After having a cup of coffee with Fred, I began my day with a workout in the water.  This is number four of my running rest days and I really felt the need to get some kind of cardio workout in without jeopardizing the healing of my Achilles.  Jesse suggested a pool workout, so that is exactly what I did. 

Keep in mind…I am NOT a swimmer.  Even though I held lifeguard jobs all through high school and college summers, swimming has never been for me.  I never had an interest in jumping into a cold pool in the middle of winter, especially at those 6am practices they used to have.  Ugh!  No way!  But, I have to say, today’s workout wasn’t so bad and the water wasn't cold either!

I headed to the local community center and paid a reasonable $6 for a day pass.  I lifted a few weights, crunched a few abs, and headed down to the pool when it opened at 8:30am.  

My wardrobe doesn't consist of a Speedo bathing suit, or anything "swimmer-ish," so I had to make due with what I did have... 

The pool was rather nice, and not crowded at all.  I even had a lane all to myself! 

Last night, I picked up some goggles to wear so 1) I could see where the heck I was going and 2) so I {somewhat} looked the part...

On to the workout...

Here’s what I did:

10 minute warm-up

10 x 50 yards {10 seconds rest in between each-- **some of the rest was a little longer due to my toe cramps {see below}

2 minutes rest

5 x 75 yards {45 seconds rest in between each}

2 minutes rest

Swim for as long as I could go….I chose 200 yards

2 minutes rest

10 x 50 yards {10 seconds rest in between each}

Cool down

**I must say, I got some crazy toe cramps in both feet after swimming the first few laps.  They really hurt!  I had to stop after a few of the 50's and wiggle my toes and stretch them out.  My lane neighbor {Jim} told me that cramps are caused when someone isn't used to the kicking motion.  When I talked to Jesse later, he said the same thing.  Once I got into it, they subsided and onward I went, determined to finish the workout.     

When it was finished, I felt great!  My body didn't feel beat up, like it sometimes does after a hard running workout.  I did feel a little water-logged, but that is to be expected.  When Jesse asked if I wanted to come back for more...I said, "Yep...bring it on!"  I can handle this until my doctor's appointment on Tuesday.  

Once home, I sat down to my favorite breakfast of plain Greek yogurt sweetened with agave nectar, a spoonful of almond butter, some strawberries, and a handful of my homemade granola.  

Time to start the day!  On the agenda: purchasing my flowers and hanging baskets, planting them, and a night on the town with Fred...

Enjoy!

Tracy