April 2015 Week 6 Session 2

I've settled into the routine fairly well and managed to put some power into the water. I'm also developing a 'feel' for the water and know when I'm pulling effectively. On the first set of 'fast' lengths I achieved a long term goal of a clear sub 2:00min/100m.

As usual I fatigued during the hour but the overall average was fine, and better than last week.

Slowly through the mist

This week I'm starting to increase the distance a little after a step back last week. The basic half marathon distance felt to be the right point so long as it was done gently. I made a great effort to start very gently (not all that difficult as all my joints were stiff) and to aim for an even pace. I did very well on the effort aspect as illustrated by my heart rate.

Pacing was fairly consistent but I should have been a bit faster in the second half to match the downhill gradient and give an even GAP. I was held back a bit by discomfort related to my right ankle, I feel it was tightness, or even mild cramping, of the peroneus muscles as it was a few inches above the level of my shoes. I'm going to the physic on Monday so I can hear her opinion.

I'm gradually coming to the decision my right ankle is irritated by lengthening of the muscles as much as the edge of the shoe. That is a low heel drop shoe is part of the problem.

April 2016 Week 5 Session 3

Today' swim got off to a good start as the warm-up was another personal best at 5:02 minutes, and I could have been faster as I had to pause to pull past a slower swimmer!

The spike set was as tough as usual with a loss of pace. I only managed 1 length at a pace of 2:00min/100m but lots around 2:05min/100m. The general pace was very similar to last week but clearly better than 2 weeks ago when I took more rests too. Importantly I managed a pace of 2:10min/100m average for the final 8 'fast' lengths with fairly consistent  SWOLF through the session.

April 2016 Week 5 Session 2

Another new session today. The routine called of 7 slow lengths followed by 3 fast, all repeated 8 times. Of course this meant thatI had to reserve a bit of pace for the whole session! Three lengths is a real 100m and my best fastest was at a pace of 2:01.4min/100m. I'd really hoped to have done at least one of these sets faster than 2:00min/100m but it wasn't to be today.

On the whole I managed to show an increase for the  'fast' lengths but on the thirst all I did was increase my cadence. Overall I need to focus on catch and not accept lazy technique.

April 2016 Week 5 Session 1

I was in Manchester today and did my swim in the 'new' Aquatics Centre.  I'd hoped to experience a 50m pool again but the timetable showed that it would be 25m. That means that I had to be fast!

The warm up was done in 5:02min which is a personal best but I don't think it counts in a short pool. Today's session was 4x800m, so a bit shorter than previously but in longer sets. Really the set length isn't an issue for me at all. My pacing was fairly consistent but building fatigue was evident from an increase in strokes per length through the session.

Importantly I did manage a few lengths at a pace faster than the 'magical' 2:00min/100m but not in a distinct block. The moving average of 2:15min/100m was pretty good.

The Centre itself was fine. The pool and changing rooms were cleaner than is often the case. The only oversight was the absence of shower gel in the shower area.

April 2016 Week 4 Session 3

At the Goodwin pool I accepted that today's Spike Set would be disrupted before 09:00 as the pool is reconfigured for swimming classes. I managed to get most of the session completed at the full 33.3m and then worked as best as I could in the 25m section. The shortened section doesn't have a wall at one end so it can be a struggle to get a good start. At least I put the effort in even if the data is poor.

I only managed 2 lengths at better than 2:00min/100m which is a little disappointing. This might have happened because I didn't take any significant breaks and kept up a firm pace throughout the session as I was trying to get as much as possible done before the reorganisation. Nonetheless the SWOLF was low as I did keep good long strokes.

April 2016 Week 4 Session 2

Once again I've had an enforced break of a few days due to general busy-ness at work. Today's swim went well though with a PB in the 200m warm-up of 5:05min. Today's routine was the 6 slow lengths plus 2 fast lengths and I did mange to demonstrate an increase in pace of at least 12s/100m in each set.

I managed to do the fast lengths at a few seconds better pace than last week including a few at 2:00min/100m or better. As usual I became fatigued during the session which was reflected my peformance data.