A few more changes to my trianing regime this month. I
have been finding it difficult to find a pool near me where I can do a long
swim over 3 hours without getting interupted by swimming lessons and other
people kicking me out of the lane. So, I got back in touch with ‘The
Orcale’ (Mr Adams) who once again advised me. This time that there is no
need to do a long swim of 3-4hrs, as long as I am covering around 25km per week
of quality sets. So, I have made some changes to my training plan as well
as finding a new place to train near work.
|
Wk
|
Planned (km)
|
Actual (km)
|
Time (h:mm)
|
Weight
|
CSS Test Pace
|
|
|
|||||
|
1
|
25
|
18.5
|
5:04
|
86kg
|
|
|
2
|
25
|
24.17
|
7:00
|
|
|
|
3
|
25
|
28.5
|
8:08
|
|
|
|
4
|
20
|
18.3
|
5:15
|
87kg
|
1:24
|
|
Total
|
95
|
89.47
|
25:27
|
|
|
By moving to a pool near work I have been able to change the
length of the swim sets that I have been doing from just over 3-4km per set to
5km. The first couple of weeks of doing these longer sets was pretty hard
work. If I thought I was working hard before it was nothing compared to
this. I started to hit a bit of a low towards the end of the middle of
the month, just when my form was picking up I started to get slower again,
feeling slow and lethargic. Yes I have had a bit of a cold and
still getting broken nights sleep (I feel like a broken record on the sleep
front), but it felt like more than that. I remember reading somewhere
that before a peak in perfomrance there is a bit of a dip as the body is
adapting to the increased work load. I really hoped that this was the
case......and then, as if by magic, my form started to improve quite
dramatically. I knocked 4 seconds off of my previous month’s CSS which
was awesome, so it was all looking good.
I have also decided to stop doing weights sessions and instead
dedicate the time to doing yoga and more pilates. Both of which
incorporate some form of strengthening exercises, especially around the
core. I have started to feel looser and more flexible from doing
the yoga, which can only help my swimming. I imagine that it is a
combination of stopping doing the weights, becoming more flexible and the
increased quality of the sets that I am doing in the pool that has led to
significant improvement in form....long may it last.
The eating has been going well this month too....actually a
little too well, my target was to put on 1kg per month so I dont have to carry
the extra load for too long. However this month I managed to put on 2kgs
which shocked me a little, but then I have been eating massive portions of food
as well as quite a bit of chocolate, not to mention the endless bags of
nuts. I’ve actually managed to put on a bit too much weight, so on that
front I am slowing down the calorie intake!
