Aquamom

Perhaps you've noticed my nom de plume, "aquamom60"?  When I speak of fitness-related pursuits, swimming has always been my weakest link.  I've always looked on with admiration at those who can swim leisurely, rhythmic laps for exercise.  Maybe it's the Zen-like appeal of the water. Maybe it's the way the environment becomes a little muffled with your head under water.  Maybe it's the glide through the water or maybe it's the timing of the breath (three pulls, then breathe!), or maybe it's the absence of terror or panic on the serene swimmers' faces. Being a pushover for accessories, I think the cap and goggles could be a compelling factor for me as well.

 

Because I was never a strong swimmer, a top priority when I had my kids was making sure that they could swim.  This way, if there was ever an emergency, at least they'd stand a chance of being able to save themselves if I was unable to.  We are a beach and pool-loving clan, our family, and I wanted them to grow up with a love and appreciation for the water.  So they were all enrolled in Mommy-'n-Me swim classes as babies and they could swim before they could walk; they all became lifeguards, and they all dabbled on one level or another with competitive swimming. 

 

Hal Higdon tells me that Sunday is a cross-training day - a day to spend an hour doing something else that's vigorous and cardio-based - just not running, and nothing with lateral knee movements.  Having missed any of my opportunities to attend to a yoga class today, I decided to pull out the cap and goggles and get into the pool. With a kickboard, of course.  I thought that kicking my way through an hour on a beautiful, sunny late Sunday afternoon would be the perfectly leisurely- yet-vigorous-cardiovascular solution - how hard could that be?

I spent one hour kicking lap after lap in a 50-meter pool, interspersed with some deep-water running, with the kickboard at full-arm extension.  I actually got into a rhythm, enjoyed listening to some Allman Brothers and Jimmy Buffet courtesy of the pool sound system.

Lesson du jour:  it's amazing how fast your heart rate jacks up when you get in the pool!

This weekend has been nothing if not one humbling experience after another! 

After an hour, my arms were like rubber bands and my legs were wobblier than after the 9 miles ran yesterday.  So the second lesson du jour is: just because you're not sweating doesn't mean that you're not kicking some serious butt!