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Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Day 15 - Swim caps, goggles and FINALLY some real laps

It's a good day so far!  Unless you count me checking my Facebook fan page and noticing that instead of 302 fans, I now have 299.  That means a few folks "unliked" me.  Hmpf..."get over it, Jennifer!!!" Okay, moving on!

So the week started off pretty good with consistent exercise.  I decided to try the recumbent bike again this week, so on Monday I did it only at 1-3 resistance level.  I kept my sweatshirt on the whole time (45 min) in order to sweat more.  I didn't sweat very much, but enough to feel that my workout was light, but still not too bad.

Tuesday I did the bike for 15 minutes and then a new arm routine from my Oxygen magazine.  It was a bicep/tricep routine and I loved it!  It was only about 20 minutes long, so I did about 10 minutes of abs and that completed a pretty good workout for the day.

Today was the day for me to swim again.  I didn't make it to the pool last Sunday as I had hoped.  Between my friend Lori busy with family stuff (she was only visiting for the weekend) and my dear husband leaving me for a business trip at 5am, I just didn't get that accomplished (no gym daycare on Sundays).  But I DID do some preparations for swimming by making a little stop to the Swim and Run Shop on Saturday.  I bought a swim cap and some swimmers shampoo.  I will NOT turn these lovely golden locks green!!!  When I swam last Friday, I held my head out of the water as high as I could and, man, was that a bad neck cramp!  I ALMOST splurged on an underwater MP3 player, but I figured that I'm not a good enough swimmer to deserve a special treat like that yet. 

I had to wait until after 10am because of water aerobics (no laps during class!!) which was a little annoying.  I like to get my workout over with as SOON as I can, which usually means waiting for the gym daycare to open (8:30 or 9am depending on the gym).  But there would be NO excuses today.  I had no special plans for the morning, so Anthony and I packed up and headed out. 

Side note:  I had to practice putting on my swim cap 6 or 7 times at home before trying it in public.  It was surprisingly hard to get on!  I followed the little diagram it came with.  You know, the "proper" way of putting on your swim cap.  It kept slipping off my head and giving me some lovely static eletricity.  I have heard that wetting down your hair helps, but that seems like a hassle (more excuses from me?  you're kidding!).  I finally was able to get it on without it popping it off by just yanking it on.  It didn't look right, but that's probably b/c I had my hair piled up on top of my head.  I looked like a Cupie Doll instead of an Olympic swimmer, but that somehow seems more fitting anyway.

Into the pool I went.  Today I was at a different Idaho Athletic Club than last week, so it was another new experience.  I didn't see any kickboards, but that was okay.  I had a swim cap and goggles now, so I felt more ready to swim laps (just like a big girl)!  My first lap down was the crawl.  I was surprised at how well I remember how to do this.  I'm sure my form and technique could use some fine tuning, but I really don't care about that right now.  I went up and back and by the end of those 2 laps my heart was pounding and I was out of breath.  WOW!  This really IS a good workout!  To heck with kickboarding for 35 minutes!! 

I decided that my goal today would be to swim for 30 minutes.  I could do anything for 30 minutes.  Heck I could eat a whole bowl of popcorn by myself in 30 minutes (in fact, I'll bet I could do it in 20)!  So I decided that will be my goal as I'm just beginning.  I am too busy concentrating on what I'm doing to count laps, but I want to do that eventually.  Just a few more times of just swimming as much as I can in 30 minutes without dying.

To be truthful, I wasn't able to continuously swim.  I would have to pause after each lap, but tried not to rest for more than 30 seconds.  That's hard work!!!  By the end of 30 minutes, I had done the crawl and the breastroke and I was panting!  As I was getting dried of and dressed, my heart was STILL beating.  I think that I actually got a good workout today.  I'm so proud of myself!!

One of the most bothersome things during my swim was my right arm.  It was very sore from lifting yesterday.  Oh, and the fact that my goggles kept fogging up and getting water in them.  I think I'm going to have to invest in some new ones...

So I want to have a modest goal when it comes to swimming, as it IS a bit of a pain to get to the pool.  I want to swim 1-2 times per week for 30-45 minutes.  I hope to be up to 45 minutes soon.  I don't know how long it will take me to get there, as I was EXSTATIC today to see the clock when my 30 minutes were up.  I'm sure, just like anything, it will take practice.  But at least I'm feeling a little more confident about my new undertaking.

An update on my foot:  I called the doctor yesterday to ask why my foot is STILL hurting after 6 weeks.  I asked if it was okay that I had been walking around my house barefoot, up and down stairs, all over every room cleaning and chasing after children.  They told me that I should be in my shoes with the rigid insole at all times (besides showering and sleeping).  Drat... who wants to be in shoes all day every day?  Oh well...short term ... short term...

The better patient I am now, the sooner I can return to teaching my classes AND go to Turbo camp in July.

Tomorrow's workout:  45 minutes on recumbent bike with light resistance.  Friday:  shoulders and legs.

Plan out your workouts, people!  Hold yourSELF accountable for your goals!  Thanks for visiting and listening to me rant and rave.  Stay cool...


3 comments:

  1. Hi Jenn! Good job with the swimming! My hubby was a competitive swimmer all through college and still swims a couple of times a week. I'll ask him what kind/brand of goggles he uses.

    Also, it helps if you can find a good Masters swimming program with a coach to push you. If that is not available, check out some of the online programs (i think it is swimplan.com) for good routines for you to do.

    Keep it up!

    :)melissa

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  2. I'm in the same injured boat right now & I want to cry. But instead of having your drive and determination to keep up your workouts, I've sat in the corner feeling sorry for myself & stuffing my face with Oreos for the last 4 weeks. The scale is not my friend anymore. I'm on day 1 of my 6 weeks of hell, but I did get in a bit of a workout this morning when subbing for Rachel.

    If you want a swimming partner, I LOVE to swim. I was a swimmer back in the day & remembered my love of swimming while training for a triathlon last June. I don't swim for a set amount of minutes, I just set a certain number of laps & see how fast I can do them. Although now I need to actually swim for my cardio workout so I might have to change that approach!

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  3. Melissa: thanks! I actually did come across swimplan.com and printed off a routine. However, when I reviewed it, I decided that the first couple of times in the pool I'd just do what I could. I think I will definitely do one of those programs soon.

    Amber: I totally get it, sisters. I have been such a munching machine since my injury. Aren't you supposed to be LESS hungry when not working out as hard? ;) It's an emotional thing for some of us. That's why I've been so driven to get on top of my fitness routine. My nutrition, on the other hand, is not in tip top shape. But the more I drive myself at the gym to do the things I'm "allowed" to do, the better I feel, no matter how many treats I had that day. You can do it, too!

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