Posted By Rich Bryant on April 17, 2010

I’ve been ramping up my swimming workout a little gradually this season, and have made some nice changes as well.

Thus far I’ve done very little with the scuba fins (although I really need to change that in order to get proper exercise for the upper legs and hips).   Also, while last year a “lap” in the pool consisted of swimming  a backstroke (“oar stroke”, to be specific) for one pool length, and a conventional Australian crawl the next length, this year I’m swimming the more physical Australian crawl for both lengths.  Now that I’ve adapted I’m finding this much more enjoyable.

Also this year I’m interleaving weight training with the pool trips.  I got into the weight training habit during the Winter off season, and I’m just not going to let that go.  I must say, however, that if I had to give up one or the other (the pool or the weight room) I would be keeping the pool – those pool sessions just seem to yield almost magical benefits.

This past couple of weeks my oldest son has been accompanying me on my swimming workouts, which has added an entirely new and deeply rewarding dimension to the entire experience.  We probably communicate more and better chatting back and forth between laps than during the remainder of the day.  And of course having a swimming buddy can be just the nudge needed to hit the water on those occasional fence-sitting days.

Yesterday we visited a pool that is about 25% longer than our normal pool – just to experience some longer laps.  I had a little trepidation about taking on these longer laps (doubting my stamina), but I must say it was an altogether bully experience!  Those longer laps became almost meditative, and I found myself having more time to work on, and be aware of, my technique.

I’ll definitely be visiting this longer pool again in the future!

Categories: Workout Diary
Tags: swimming, Workout Diary