Training To Train

A few of my high school swimming friends have had posts on Facebook about getting back into swimming. It seemed like a good idea so I decided to look into a Masters program in my area. I found one that posted their workouts online. I took this as the perfect opportunity to do a few workouts on my own before embarrassing myself in front of people. I decided to start today, I put my favorite old Speedo on and it was about 6 inches too long. I decided that suit was shot and tossed it in the trash. Luckily, I found another; I pulled and pulled and pulled it on. For the swimmers out there, if felt like putting on a paper suit, but it wasn't. It is obviously important that I get back in the water since things aren't fitting properly! I packed my swim bag before I took the kids to school. Swimsuit, check! Goggles, check! Towel, check! Kickboard, where the hell did that go? Fins, I know I had some once... Cap, stuck together in a clump. Paddles, MIA. Pull-buoy, with the paddles. So, I obviously needed to make a stop at the sporting goods store before I went to the gym. I dropped the kids at school and headed to Sports Authority. I got all the necessary equipment and headed to the pool.

I got in the water and couldn't believe how slow I was. I haven't swam this poorly since I was an 8 and under! If someone wanted to time me they would have needed a calendar! When I was swimming in highschool I found a lot of motivation from my fellow teammates working out with me. Unfortunately, the only one swimming with me was a woman twice my age and twice my weight! This woman did have a talent, it just wasn't swimming fast. She was able to swim breaststroke without getting her hair wet! I continued to swim my workout and the longer I went the better I felt, I was getting back in the groove. Then I felt someone staring at me. I looked up and there was a creepy man sitting in the hot tub watching my every move. Hmmmm, maybe I am not doing as well as I thought I was. Why is he staring at me? Am I doing something wrong? Does my stroke look that bad? It has been nearly 20 years. Wait a minute, I have not water tested this suit in years. Can he see through my suit? Dear God!! I spent the rest of my workout low in the water for fear that I was giving a free show! It took me an hour and 15 minutes to swim a 2500 yard workout. That is less than half what I did in an hour when I was in highschool I was thankful that it took me so long because the pool area was clear before I headed to the locker room. I took a good look in the mirrow when I got to the locker room and I am happy to report that he wasn't staring at me because my suit was see-through! I am still not sure what he was looking at, but at least I know what it wasn't! My shoulders are sore, my ankles are sore, my legs feel like Jell-o and I feel great! I can't wait to swim on Monday!