One Hour Swim - 54 Laps

I am feeling much better. My eyes look shot and my skin a little pale but I had the normal spring back in my step. I wore a real nice suit and tie to work today so people would notice that over my tired looking face ... first guy I see looks at me and says, "You look like shit!" ... thanks!

So since I was okay I decided to go to my new gym today to swim in the pool for the first time. This pool is a 25-meter pool and I can tell it is a little longer than the 25-yard pool where I used to swim.

Overall I am happy with this pool. Looks like it doesn't get all that much use and it is clean and new!

I haven't done laps in a couple of weeks and was afraid that I would struggle. However, my pool swim was very strong today. I was hoping to get in 25-30 laps and I ended up doing 54 laps (1350 Meters). I did mostly 100M intervals with 30 second breaks. My times on the intervals were between 1:50/100 and 2:15/100. I did a couple of 50M intervals towards the end and my best time was 45 seconds. I'd love to be able to do that all the time but was pretty darn winded -- gonna take a lot of laps to keep a pace like that!

Tomorrow is a scheduled 6 mile run according to my 1/2 Marathon training program. Saturdays are always the the long runs. This week is a little shorter because it is a recovery week. Next Saturday is 9 miles and the Saturday after that is 10 miles. Then on Sunday I am going to go ride at least 25 miles on the Tri bike maybe 50 miles, if time permits (Translation: can I get my butt out of bed and get my ride in before football starts?).

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

P90X Hybrid Day 32: 1500 Yard Swim

I got back in the pool today and surprisingly felt quite good! I took it slow and steady and when it was all done I had done over 60 laps. I really focused on bilateral breathing and my overall form. The freestyle swim stroke, at first glance, looks rather uncomplicated. But after closer examination you begin to realize that it is actually very complex and technical. And anytime you do one thing wrong the whole form goes to hell.

Anyways, after I got kicked out of the pool today (I was done but still it is the point) I decided that a new gym was in order. My terms at the current place are month-to-month so I can leave at anytime. They gym is fine but the fact that I pay extra to be able to use the pool and it is ALWAYS being used by outside groups is ridiculous. This month they added another "program" on Tuesday and Thursday nights that leaves Open Swimming from 8:45PM to 10:00PM on those days. Unacceptable. So I drove down to the Ballys that is only about 8 miles from the house. I have never been in this gym but it is huge and has a 25 Meter Lap pool. It even has an indoor running loop. It takes like 12 laps to do a mile but that is pretty cool! The best thing is that I was still able to get month-to-month terms and it is about $25 less than the old place!

With the new membership comes a free personal trainer session. Usually I never take advantage of these since I am pretty motivated. However, since it is free and the guy was pretty cool (and ripped up) I decided to give it a try. We talked for a little bit and decided he can help me with some core work - I mentioned yesterday that ARX has become mundane so this might be a good opportunity to learn something new. This guy was sort of excited because of my current conditioning. I guess most people don't join the gym in good shape. We decided on Saturday to do the training, he thinks he can kick my butt and I told him he better Bring It. Should be fun!

Tomorrow is a 5:00 am run for 45 minutes. Then after work I will get in my Legs & Back workout for the final time at my old gym!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

P90X Hybrid Day 9: 1000 Yard Swim

Hello from Hot and extremely Humid Texas!

I have a bunch of stuff I need to get down in the yard around the house but it is just too hot out to do anything. So, I spent most of the day inside until I went to the gym to swim some laps.

Before I get into my swim I want to talk about this cool swimming website I found. It is called Swim Smooth and it teaches you all the aspects of having a good freestyle stroke through an interactive app that you can download to your computer. I wish I would have found this thing about 4 months ago! Check it out if you are planning on learning to freestyle or even if you have been doing it for years!

Anyways, I went to the pool today for the first time since my Triathlon. I decided to work on my stroke and my breathing using some of the techniques from the Swim Smooth site.

Also, all the reading I have been doing about improving my swim time involves doing intervals. Today I did a couple 4x100 sprints and a 4x50 sprint. This allows me to go fast but also not to lose my form. It is all about the muscle memory. I felt very good after the swim and could have went a little more but decided to stick to my plan of doing 1000 yards total!

Tomorrow is Shoulders & Arms and Ab Ripper X. My left shoulder is feeling a little better today so I plan on Bringing It hard.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training: 750 Yds Swim + Video Gear Check

Hello!

So, I had another crazy day at work and I am sitting here now at 11:00PM finally able to slow down. I got home around 6pm this evening and went straight to the gym. I did 30 easy laps and just focused on my technique and breathing. I felt really good after I left pool.

After that I stopped at Target and picked up power bars, whey protein, and some other supplies. From there it was cleaning out the car, packing my luggage, strapping the bike rack to the car, cooking dinner and packing up all my Tri gear! I think that everything is good to go. I have a bunch of stuff to do tomorrow for work and then we are leaving for New Braunfels.

If you want to learn more about the event I am participating in here is the website: http://www.jacksgenerictri.com/

The only negative news is that the weather forecast is now saying that on Sunday the high temperature is going to be 105 Degrees!! As you can imagine, I am not real pleased with that, but what can you do! I am guessing by the time my run starts it will already be in the low 90's - definitely going to wear my hydration belt!

Anyways, whenever I first decided to do a Triathlon one of the the things I found myself asking over and over again was, "What gear do I need to do a Triathlon?" So, after a couple of months of asking questions and Googling like it was my job I am pretty sure that question is answered. Now if you are considering doing a Tri here is my video checklist:



Wish me luck and I will be back with a full report on Sunday evening.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training: 1000 Yard Bilateral Swim

Last night I was able to get to the gym around 9pm and get in a quick 40 laps. For the first 30 laps I did nothing by the bilateral 5 stroke and then the last 10 laps I did five on the left and five on the right every other stroke. I want to be efficient with both strokes in case the conditions are rough or if sighting becomes an issue.

Other than that my eating has been nothing but clean since I've returned from Spain. I don't even think I have had a single beer. And my body is responding to the high quality nutrition because my strength and stamina has been off the charts the last few days.

This evening I am going to do a medium-high paced 5k. Going to try and do it around 24-25 minutes just to give my heart a good aerobic and some anaerobic workout. Tomorrow will be an easy 30 or so laps at the pool. Friday I was planning to do a light 2 mile run but I may not have time as it is the last day of the month at work. Then we are making the 3 hour drive to New Braunfels. We rented a house for the weekend since the the Tri is on Sunday morning.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training: 1500 Yd Swim + Ab Ripper X

The countdown is on ... 6 days until my race!

I am not at all nervous, somehow I have been born with out that emotion, but I am anxious!

This afternoon I went to the pool to do laps and practice my bilateral breathing and Total Immersion technique. I am happy to report that today was my strongest swimming day in months! I did the first 20 laps (500 yards) focused on alternating breathing every 5 and 3 strokes. So my cadence was like this: 5 underwater strokes - Breath, 3 underwater strokes - Breath, 5 underwater strokes -Breath ...repeat .... I would normally take me about 17 strokes to per lap so I was breathing an average of 4 times per lap. And by breathing on odd numbers it has me alternating on the left and right while taking my breaths

The next 20 laps I just breathed every 5 strokes. This went much better than the last few times I have done it. The best apart about this is that you can really work on your freestyle technique when breathing doesn't get in the way and I was moving like a fish through the water! By far the best my TI stroke has felt since I began swimming a few month back. I am pretty pumped about this development more importantly confident.

The next 20 laps I did a pyramid. 6 laps (30 sec break), 5 laps (break), 4 laps ...etc. I stopped at 2 laps because it was the side of the pool I started on and I had to grab my towel and locker key! The last 4 laps of the pyramid I did the backstroke. I decided that if something went wrong (cramp, muscle pull, elbow to nose...) with my freestyle stroke at the Tri I better have a back-up. I was surprised at how well the backstroke went for me considering I had no idea how to do it. But if something does go wrong I'd be cool with doing this for a little bit.

I have started to lay the supplies out that are going to be needed for the race. I bought myself a bag that is made for Triathlons. It has a ton of compartments and a little chair/bench that comes off so I can sit down in the transition area to put on my shoes. It also has a compartment that is water proof to put your swim gear in after the race - very cool. And it comes with nylon mat that can be used to stand on in the transition area. Yeah, I took that out because a towel will be fine! Anyways, my dining room table has become my staging area and will continue this way until Thursday night when I pack everything I need in the bag.

Tomorrow is a running day. Will try and do 4 miles on the treadmill.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training: 1500 Yd Swim

Yesterday afternoon I went to the pool and got in 60 laps which is 1500 yards. Although I am still pretty slow in the water my conditioning felt good and I wasn't even that tired when I finished. I considered going for 2000 yards but since I am doing a Bike-Run Brick the next day I decided to stop and save a little for the Brick.

Not much else to report. I have 7 days left of training before my triathlon with this morning's cycle will be my last workout on the bike and I will alternate swimming and running over the next 6 days!

Alright, time to go do the Brick!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training: 1000 Yard Swim

Well, I just realized I forgot to post yesterday! I got caught up in a book and read it through the night and never even check anything online. Was a good book, I guess!

9 days until the Triathlon!

It should be a fun weekend. My friend Chris is also doing the Tri and his wife and mine are good friends so we rented a house in New Braunfels for the weekend. On Friday afternoon we are going to make the 3 hour drive to the house and then Chris and I are going to go to the local bike shop that is sponsoring the event in Austin to pick up our race package and register. Then on Saturday morning we are renting tubes and floating down the river. This is an absolute blast and usually requires a cooler full of beer! I might have one or two but will probably designate myself as the driver so I am not tempted to have more. We figure after the tubing we can hit a nice restaurant and carb-load away and turn in early that night. The race starts at 8am on Sunday morning and is about 15 minutes from where we are staying. I am planning on getting there by 6:30am to get the transition area all set to go.

Anyways, yesterday I went to the gym and again there was a group in the indoor pool. It turns out that it is the local high school and they are holding try outs this week. And the goofy french looking dude with the crazy accent I mention the other day is the swim coach - always makes me laugh when stereotypes are spot on! And the first lane is open for us members so my bitching was somewhat short-sighted, but a couple of water-walkers were in the lane moving rather slow. Since it was around 6:30 and the sky was clear I went to the outdoor pool.

The water temperature was pretty much like a bath - very warm! But that is good because I imagine the lake I am swimming in is going to be 80+ degrees so it is good to get used to it! I felt pretty strong in the water and I can tell my conditioning is coming back. I was on my 40th lap when I noticed a little old lady was trying to get my attention. I stopped and looked at her and she said, "What the hell are you doing?", shocked I looked back at her and said, "What the hell you talking about?", she pointed to the sky, which was filled with lightning bolts and was no longer clear. She then purposefully strode away without another word - nice. I was so engrossed in counting my bilateral strokes that I didn't even notice the huge storm clouds developing overhead and the accompanying light show! So I jumped out of the pool and ran for cover.

Probably could have done another 20 laps but I had such a strong swim that I cannot complain.

I was planning on Swimming again today but have decided to go Running instead and let my swimming muscle recover a little. This way I can swim tomorrow and then on Saturday I should be fresh for my bike-run brick!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training: 3.1 Mile Run + Ab Ripper X

So I go to the gym this evening with the intention of swimming and practicing my breathing. I get there and some swim club/team/group/thingy is in the pool. Some crazy foreign dude was yelling at the people swimming laps. A coach, I assumed. I listened for a minute and couldn't tell if he was yelling in English or not. Very weird. It was about 5 minutes after 6pm and they are usually done at 6:30. Luckily, I brought my running shoes and shorts so I decided to jump on the treadmill and get a lower intensity run in and then go swim when the pool opens up.

I did 3.1 miles in around 25 minutes. I ran at a nice pace and can really feel my conditioning coming back to me. And a huge difference in my HR without the NO-Xplode! I could have pushed it a little harder but wanted to save something for the pool. By the time I finished and cleaned off the treadmill and had some water it was about 6:45 and they were still in the damn pool! So, I went up to the weight area and grabbed a mat and did ARX. Used an 8 lb medicine ball again for the Mason Twists! By this time it was 7pm and I went down to the pool again and as I was walking down the steps I noticed a new pool schedule hanging on the wall. This group has the pool on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:30-7:30pm! I was too hungry to wait another half hour so I just went home. I am sort of PO'd that my gym lets this group have the indoor pool for 3 hours during peak time. On M/W/F another group has it from 5-6:30, I can live with that but the Tues & Thurs is not cool. Might have to find a new gym!

I'd like to go to the pool early tomorrow but our upstairs A/C is not working and the repair man is coming at 7:30am. I am very concerned that my Quintana Roo fund is going to have to be used to fix the stupid air conditioner. Hopefully it is a small insignificant part that needs fixed (yes, I am aware that I am delusional) and it won't cost hardly anything. But when it is 100 degrees everyday the A/C in your house is a lot more important than a new Tri Bike!

Tomorrow will be a swimming day.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training: 1000 Yard Swim + Fresh Air Fund 1/2 Marathon

I received and email from an organization called the Fresh Air Fund asking if I could mention a 1/2 Marathon that they are Sponsoring in New York City on August 16th. According to the website the Fresh Air Fund is:

Since 1877, The Fresh Air Fund, a not-for-profit agency, has provided free
summer experiences in the country to more than 1.7 million New York City
children from disadvantaged communities. Each year, thousands of children
visit volunteer host families in 13 states and Canada through the Friendly Town
Program or attend one of five Fresh Air Fund camps.

So, if any of you are in the NYC area this looks like a good time and a great cause. Here is the sign up link: http://www.freshair.org/half-marathon.aspx

Okay, today was another busy work day. I packed power bars and water in my travel cooler and was able to eat clean all day! Around 6:30 this evening I was able to fight the fun Houston traffic on over to the gym and get in 1000 yards swimming. My conditioning has definitely declined since my last swim. The first 750-yards or so were pretty strong but the the last 10 laps were tough. My HR was up like it was when I first began swimming a few months back. The good news is I still have 2 weeks and the Tri is only 500 Meters!

Tomorrow morning at 7am me and a buddy are going to do the 26.2 mile road bike trail. My legs are feeling pretty strong so I am looking forward to it. The next two weeks I am going to try and do more of my training outside. This is going to be a challenge because Houston is absolutely ridiculously hot right now. We are always hot, but this year is just sick. We are having a record heat wave and I can't even remember the last time it rained. The reason I need to do this is because my Triathlon is going to be in these conditions and I need to be ready.

It is so damn hot that I got my head shaved yesterday. I couldn't handle the sweat in my hair anymore so I said screw it and I figure I will be more aerodynamic for my race (hehe).

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 58: 5K Run + ARX + Strength Training

Got to the gym late today. I had a real bad tooth ache so I took some painkillers and needed to wait until the effect wore off. Damn tooth aches hurt man. I lost some of an amalgam filling and it is killing me. I don't have time to get it fixed until Wednesday so gonna have to suck it up!

Anyways, in order to give myself some extra energy I took some of the N.O. Xplode prework-out drink. And as usual it got me all jacked up! I crushed a round of Ab Ripper X and then jumped on the treadmill for a 5K run. I wanted to run at a medium to medium-fast pace since the last two days I have really pushed it physically. When I finished my time was for the 5K was 26:30 -- and I felt really good.

So, I went to the free weight section of the gym and did an abbreviated Chest & Back workout using dumbbells and the lat pulldown machine. Glad I did this because I have been slacking on my strength training since I have become Mr. Cardio over the last few weeks.

Tomorrow I have a bunch of appointments all over the city so I have no idea when I will be getting home. But when I do I am going to go back to the gym and try and do an endurance swim (50+ laps).

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 55 & 56: Rest + 750 Yd Swim + 5K Run

Yesterday was both good and bad. But mostly Good! Good that the Pens took home Lord Stanley's Cup and Bad that I had to take a rest day.

I got home from work around 4pm and Annie wanted to go see "The Hangover" ... we haven't spent much time with each other lately and we both had LOOONG weeks so I said what the heck. It was playing at 4:25 right down the road. So glad she talked me into it because it was hysterical. It was as good as Old School and Wedding Crashers, maybe even better! My side hurt from laughing.

We had to rush to get home by 7pm so I could watch the hockey game. By the time the game was over I was mentally drained and pretty much exhausted from the week and decided to sit down upstairs and watch last week's episode of "Rescue Me" on the DVR. I feel asleep 20 minutes in on the couch and no workout happened after that!

To make up for it I did a bookend brick at the gym: 30 laps (750 yards) in the pool and 5K on the treadmill. According to the pool lap clock I did the first 550 yards in 12 minutes. I then did a slow 10 laps to work on my form. My breathing has been struggling the last couple of times out so I needed to refocus. I feel like I got a hold of it on the last few laps.

Then I got changed and jumped on the treadmill. No HR monitor, just RPE running today. I started out at 7.5 MPH and did the first two miles in 16 minutes. My legs were feeling some fatigue so I slowed down to a 9 minute mile pace and finshed the run at 25:53. I was really pleased with this time. Especially after a long swim too!

The heat here has been brutal. The last few days have been 97 degree highs with heat indexes in the low 100's. Tomorrow is going to be no different so I plan on getting up bright and early and driving down to my 26 Mile track for a bike ride. I picked my bike up at the LBS today and it is back in good working order. I am itching to get a good ride in!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 47: Swimming 1000 yards + Intervals

Yesterday I went to the gym and did my swimming. I did another 500M (22 laps) timed test and did it in 12 minutes. I was really focusing on getting my elbows high in between strokes and finding the rhythm of the hip rotation. After that I swam another 18 laps practicing my breathing. It went well and I am feeling more and more confident about swimming each day.

After the laps I worked on doing some intervals. Swimming as hard as I could I was able to get down and back (2 laps) in 35 seconds. Now this would be awesome if I could swim like this for an entire 500M but at this point my chest would probably explode.

Today I am going to go for a 4-5 mile run. It is pretty darn hot outside so I might have to go back to the dreaded treadmill!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 44: Timed Swim and Interval Laps (+ My Goals)

Today I decided to time myself swimming 500 Meters to see how I am doing with my Total Immersion Freestyle technique. I used the lap clock that is on the wall of the pool. And my time was 11:00 minutes flat! I focused on just swimming comfortable and did not try and kill myself. I figured this could be a starting point for me to build on and continue to get better. Overall, I was pretty happy with the time. I then checked the results of last years Triathlon and this time would put me right in the middle of the pack of my age group! After the timed swim I decided to do some Interval swimming. I'd swim one lap very slow. Then the next lap a little more rushed and final the last lap as quick as possible. This really got my heart rate going and I am going to incorporate more of this into my training.

Back to my time today. This got me thinking about what I'd like for my goals to be in the Triathlon. Well, when I first began this little journey of mine my goals were twofold: 1 - Just Finish and have Fun; 2 - When standing at the starting line I want my last thought to be, "I am ready" and not, "I wish I trained more!".

But being that I am stat guy and am pretty confident both of the previous goals are going to be accomplished I am now going to add some time per event goals.

Swimming Goal - 10 minutes - Based upon today's time and the fact that I have never done an open water swim (OWS) this is a solid goal for me. In my age group (30-34) wave last years race had 102 people. So chances are I might be a bit freaked with that many people kicking and slapping around and a bloody nose or foot to the jaw may slow me a few seconds!

Cycling Goal - 49 minutes - This is an average of 17 mph over the 14 mile course. From reading the message boards about the race the cycling conditions are not ideal due to the large amount of participants and narrow bike course. I'd be happy to average 17 mph and hopeful I can avoid the crowds and do better than 49 minutes.

Running Goal - 27 minutes - Running right now is my weakest of the three disciplines. If I can average 9 minute miles after swimming and cycling I will be very pleased. I also believe over the next 60 days running is the sport were I can make my greatest gains.

Transitions - 6 minutes - I have been practicing the transitions in my garage on brick days. However, until I do it for the first time I am not sure what to expect! Six minutes for the two transitions is probably more than what I will need but chances are I will screw something up here!

Total time - 1 hour 32 minutes.

Tomorrow is a Running Day. Gonna try and do it in the morning -- bedtime now!

Triathlon Training Day 34 & 35: Rest Day + Jog + Bike + ARX

Yesterday I ended up stopping by a bar for happy hour to see a friend and order our plane tickets to Madrid, Spain. We both had our laptops and aircards but the Continental Website was so slow that it took some time. So, we ended up having a couple of beers. Then Annie had made dinner plans with some other friends so she picked me up at the bar and we didn't get home until late. That effectively whipped out any chance of getting a workout in! The good news was that I still ate very clean despite having the beer and I had not taken a Rest Day this week yet so this was actually okay to do. My body was a little weary too so it probably worked out for the best.

This morning I wanted to go for a run. It was overcast and humid out so I decided to go to the gym. I started out on the treadmill and was having some pain in my shins. Not like a shin-splint pain, but more like a muscle pain. I ended up doing 2 miles on the treadmill before I got to the point of it hurting too much to continue. I did some stretches and it felt a little better. I then jumped on a stationary bike that had handles on it just like my road bike. I went for 25 minutes here so I felt good about getting in both a short run and a bike ride. I just hope the shin problem was an isolated incident and doesn't continue.

After the bike ride I went to the back of the gym and did another strong Ab Ripper X workout. By the time this was done I was pretty nice and wore out!

Tomorrow morning I'd like to get in a decent bike ride. If the weather is crummy then I will go swim again.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 32: P90X Chest, Shoulders, & Triceps

Well -- Today is normally my scheduled rest day but I was feeling pretty good and decided to do Chest, Shoulders, & Triceps. This is such a great workout and I miss it now that I am in hardcore cardio mode.

I was seriously considering just taking the rest. I got home around 5:30 today and was completely exhausted. Part of the reason is because I missed lunch. It has been a long time since I missed a lunch and my body reacted by telling me it wasn't please with this. I sat down on the couch to check my work email. The pugs jumped up on my lap and I passed out for about 45 minutes. I woke up when my wife got home and she was hungry so dinner had to be made. Then we started watching the Idol finale and by the time that was over it was after 930pm. Annie went to sleep and I decided to do C/S/T. The little nap did wonders for me and I would have felt guilty if I didn't take advantage of that energy boost.

I didn't kill myself like I usually do on the P90X workouts, but I still was able to Bring It pretty hard. I have lost some of my strength as my reps were down from when I finished my 2nd round of P90X. On the Pike Presses I used the chair and was able to only do 11 reps, I think I did 17 on my last attempt. Not awful but still not what I've become accustomed to! My triceps and shoulders are sore right now and I bet I feel it tomorrow morning!

Tomorrow I am supposed to do a 15 mile cycle. If it is as hot and humid as it was today I may swim instead and do the cycle early on Friday morning. With the holiday weekend coming up a lot of people are off on Friday so traffic should be light and make the bike ride that much more pleasant!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 30: 1000 yards Swimming

Today is a good day! My company sent my new computer to me and the best news is they just swapped out the hard drive from my old one so I don't have to worry about reinstalling anything!

I had a very cleaning eating day again and am really beginning to feel my supplements kicking in - despite long hours working and training my energy level is solid!

This evening before the 24 season finale I went and got in 40 laps at the pool. I did not work on my swimming drills at all but instead focused on keeping my form and doing laps. At about lap 20 I realized I wasn't rotating with my hips as fluently so I paused and took some deep yoga breathes for about a minute. I had to do it again at about lap 35. Overall, I had a great endurance swim. I'm still not very fast but I am a million times more comfortable compared to day one and my legs felt great when I finished up today. If my legs feel like this on the day of the Triathlon then the bike and run are going to be fun.

Going to do ARX right now and then off to bed!

Not really sure what I have scheduled tomorrow and I am to tired to even click on my google calendar to check!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 23: Swimming & Ab Ripper X

I am officially at the 12 week point until my Triathlon and I am feeling really good about my training. When I decided that I was going to do a Triathlon I set two goals for myself: #1 - Just Finish the Race; and #2 - When I am at the starting line do not have the thought that I should have trained more! I figure if I make sure #2 happens than #1 will take care of itself!

This afternoon I went to the gym and decided to push it pretty hard in the pool. First I went to the aerobic area and did Ab Ripper X. I did 40 reps on every move except Fifers, Oblique Raises, and Heels to the Heavens - only the standard 25 on these! I was pretty sweaty after that and then went to the pool.

Now that I am getting better at my freestyle technique the next step is to work on adding some speed! So I started out and swam 10 laps (250 yds) slow to just warm up. After that I decided to use the lap clock and time myself for a hard 10 laps. When I hit the final wall I was at 5 minutes and 15 seconds. I was very pleased with this time. The Triathlon I am competing in has the swim portion measured at 5-- yards. If I can do this in around 10-11 minutes I would be thrilled!

After I sprinted the 10 laps I stayed and worked on my form and did the Total Immersion Drills. I probably did a total of 40 laps today! I am really enjoying swimming.

Tomorrow morning I am getting up early and am going to do my 3.1 Mile Run.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 18: Swimming + Ab Ripper X

Got to the gym today and went and did Ab Ripper X! I was able to blow right through it again and add in a bunch of extra reps. When I stood up I was a little winded so I might have overdone it some. So before I got changed and jumped in the pool I stayed in the back of the gym and did about 10 minutes of stretching to loosen up some.

After that I did 6 laps to get the feeling of the water and then started practicing my Total Immersion Drills. This was the final Drill (#14) to practice and it went very well. I'm becoming very comfortable in the water and am really enjoying swimming. I ended up doing about 40 laps today. A cool story - in the lane next to me was a guy who I have seen at the pool a few times now. We have talked a few times and he told me he swims in a masters program and tries to swim at least 5 times a week. So, he was swimming laps next to me and I waited for him to get to the wall so I could see how I compared. He beat me by maybe 1 or 2 seconds but what I really noticed was that he was doing at least 2 strokes for every one of mine but was only barely ahead of me! This Total Immersion book really is worth its weight in gold!

Tomorrow I am leaving very early for San Antonio and will not have a chance to workout. I am hopeful that I can get a run in on Friday morning but it will probably be unlikely. Same goes for Saturday. If I get home early enough on Saturday night I am going to try to get in either yoga or core synergistics.

Chances are that I am not going to be able to blog or answer comments over the next three days so I hope everyone has a nice active weekend and I'll be back on Sunday!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Triathlon Training Day 16: Ab Ripper X + Swim Drills and Laps

Started out this morning with my normal whey protein shake. I have been feeling a little parched the last couple of days so I brought 2 gallons of water with me in the car. It is amazing how drinking tons of water throughout the day makes you feel very good! I had a Balance Bar for a snack and then went to lunch with a customer. We went to a pasta place and I was able to get whole wheat penne - I wish more restaurants offered healthy selections like this! I had two handfuls of almonds for an afternoon snack and had a whole wheat turkey sub for dinner. My carb intake today was higher than usual but I needed some extra energy since I was going swimming.

After work I went to the gym and got a good stretch in and then jumped into Ab Ripper X. I started a little sluggish and had to refocus before I jumped into the Fifer Scissors. After that I was able to do extra reps on everything but the oblique raises - sometimes these just shred me up!

Then I jumped in the pool and did 10 slow laps to warm up. After that I worked on my Total Immersion Drills. I am now on Drills 7 & 8 (after I finish I will recap all of the drills) and am starting to feel comfortable in the water. On Friday I felt like I took a step backwards swimming but today I took a huge leap forward! For some reason everything I have been practicing just clicked for me? I practiced my drills for about 30 minutes and did about another 15 laps while doing them. After feeling pretty good about my practice I finished up strong by doing another 10 laps. The best part about today's swim was that my legs felt great after the workout. Which is a very good thing since swimming is the first part of the triathlon!

Tomorrow is a cycle day - going to try and get in at least 15 miles.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff