Sara's Learn To Swim Month 1 Workout #2

I just love these swim workouts: I feel as if someone analyzed my life -- swim experience and mentality and everything else -- and designed these personally for me!

Of course I actually believe that's what happened!

Here's the link again:

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1945

I cut out this workout and placed it into a credit card sleeve so it's basically waterproof, and keep it poolside next to my water bottle. Also this time: MY WATERPROOF WATCH came it the mail and I used it for the first time today. This is a huge improvement for me, and provides so much more useful information. Especially since Sara's workouts include 30-sec and 60-sec breaks between laps/sets. I feel so efficient resting for the exact amount of time and pushing back into the water when the break is over (instead of guestimating!)

Workout #2  700 Total

• 150 warm up swim
  :60 seconds rest

• 4x50 swim
  with :30 seconds rest between each 50

• 8x25 swim
  -With :30 seconds rest between each 25
  -Count the number of strokes you take on #1
  -Try to take one less stroke on #2, one less on #3, one less on #4
  start over and repeat for #’s 5-8

• 150 cool down swim

I was all ready to start with the kickboard and pull buoy (my personal one didn't come in the mail yet), when I noticed that it's different: no kick and pull, just 50 yards (there and back) and then 25 yards.

At first I could not swim 50 yards (there and back) crawl. I fell apart in the second half and side-stroked to the end. This was very disconcerting. Also my goggle were filling with water and I couldn't freakin' see. I was too exhausted in my 30-sec break to figure out how to tighten the dang things and kept swimming with eyefuls of water -- if it could be called swimming, more like staggering. Since I couldn't make it for 50 yards, I decided to try slowing down, like I see these old ladies and old dudes swimming like a walk in the park, and it worked. I could actually get through the distance.

Then I had to to swim swimming 4 25-yard pool lengths with 30 seconds break, the first time I count my stokes. It came up to 13. I caught my breath and was able to adjust the goggles more tightly. The second length, I tried to do one less stroke. How to do that? I wondered as I swam.

Suddenly I noticed that I could see underwater! It was amazing! And, I realized that as I kicked a little harder and reached a little more dramatically, I cut it down to 12 strokes! It was such an epiphany! I hit 11 on the next one and not quite ten, and then repeated the set with the same results. It was an absolutely brilliant strategy, because I had an extremely effective way to improve my stroke in an immediate basis. Incredible! I felt so empowered and amazed.

Loved it! Came home nicely tired and truly exhilarated!