It's going to one of those dreary days today. The weather is suppose to be cold and rainy all day. Well - we have had some great weather up to now so I can't complain. No-one listens anyway. I got in the pool again this morning. I figured I would get in a usual workout. Warm up, drills, kick, some intervals, cool down and leave. Well-------
Did you ever notice, that when you are in the pool and alone everything is fine. You swim at a comfortable pace, concentrate on form and make it from end to end. But wait - let's throw in another swimmer in the lane next to you.
Let's start by making that swimmer in the lane next to you a poor, slow swimmer. What happens to your swimming? Well for me I don't tend to go much faster than when I am alone. However I do tend to concentrate on my form more so that I look better in the water. Yes this is a little vain but what the heck. If I am going to do this triathlon stuff I might as well make it look good.
Next let's change to a proficient swimmer. Maybe a little faster than you are. What happens to your workout? Well for me - and this happened this morning - I ended up trying to catch up to him and match his pace. I was pushing past my normal speed, getting a little sloppy and actually getting slower as time went on. Why is it that egos are so strong? It is good to push harder and try to stay up with faster swimmers. I felt good that I was able to keep up for as long as I did. I even learned a little from watching him.
Anyway - It looks like I will be running in the rain today. My friends look at me like I am crazy. but hey - maybe I am in a way. I need to run, bike and swim in adverse weather conditions. Otherwise, come tri day, if the weather is foul it will not be as big a shock to my system. Tonight I'm back in the pool again. Not too much swimming, more coaching. CIAO ! |
