Monday, March 3, 2008

Swimming like a cat!


There a lot of things that being cat-like would be a compliment. Cat-like reflexes, spring like a cat, even running like a cat would be good. Swimming like a cat unfortunately, would not be a compliment,but that is how I felt today. For some reason my stroke was very bad and the more corrective action I took, the worse it seemed to get. My head kept coming out of the slip stream to breathe, my pull was weak to say the least, and I felt like my back end was dragging on the bottom. Not a pretty sight!
However, being a stubborn soul, I slugged it out and still managed to put in one hour and over 2,500 metres (I lost count again). Chalk this one up to just a bad day and leave it at that. This is the first poor swim I have had in a long time so I really can’t complain.
Yesterday we went into Edmonton for the day to visit our daughter, Francesca. We hadn’t seen her in awhile, and she had been away in Mexico for a week. It was a great day and she managed to squeeze a little shopping trip out of Mom and Dad while we were there. Roads were nice and clear and we were back home at 7:30 p.m. The schedule called for a 1:15 bike ride focusing on technique so I managed to work that in before we left in the morning. I would really like to get a couple of outdoor rides in before IMAZ, but we’ll have to see if the weather co-operates. It would be nice if the roads were swept to, otherwise you can be sure of some flats. The cycling is generally coming along well and I like doing the technique workouts. The intensity is not that high and it is all about maintaining good form, knees in on your top tube, still upper body, push down and pull up. Sounds simple enough, but most beginner triathletes don’t spend enough time on it. How hard can riding a bike be? That is generally where you start, until you are humbled on the race course watching everyone fly by you. About the time, that you figure it out, and decide to actually start spending some time on it. And cycling takes time, lots of it. It’s all about time in the saddle. I have found since using the Spinerval DVD program my workouts have structure and purpose and that has made a huge difference. Hopefully the real proof will come on race day!
Tonight I did an hour long run, a little over 8 miles and I felt really good. The legs feel much better and the Achilles issue seems to be behind me (thanks to the trigger point Mike). Over the next six weeks I will ramp up the runs a bit, but not so much as to get myself into the injury zone. That will be key over the next little while. Keep the volume up and avoid the injuries.

Have a great day!

1 comment:

Love2Run said...

It's a good thing you don't eat like a cat or you'd be sinking to the bottom of the lake. I'm still amazed that you will be doing little actual road riding before the race. Be especially careful if you do manage to get out on the bike. Stay healthy, time is short ;-)