Fat Floats

The silver lining of gaining 9 pounds this holiday season is that fat floats so swimming should be a breeze from now on. I find it very hard to believe I ate and drank enough to actually gain that many pounds so I'm hoping some of it is just temporary. The gluttonous living began with Amsterdam over Thanksgiving and has carried over the entire month. But I'm starting to see a light at the end of the holiday tunnel so hopefully things will be back to normal soon.

The ice turned to rain. Lots and lots of rain. I woke up to the sound of thunder, which is not something you expect to hear in the winter. I spent the morning relaxing with family and enjoying my baby nephew for a bit more before he left. The next time I see him he'll be completely different. After some lovely pancakes and bacon (thanks mom) I decided I really needed to get out and swim.

I went to the local aquatics center and the pool was quite nice. There were only three of us there, likely since it's a holiday weekend. I wanted to do the descending 1000 I've come to like so much but was too lethargic to start with 400 so I switched it and did 100, 200, 300 and 400 with rests in between. Since I haven't been swimming much, I didn't limit the rests and just waited for my heart rate to slow down before beginning the next set. After the 400, I flipped it and did 400, 300, 200 and 100. I felt a little heavy and slow in the water and had some breathing issues, but overall it was a good swim.

One of the fun things about swimming is observing the quirks of other swimmers. You see a lot of interesting stuff for sure. Today I was next to that guy who tries to race you and beat you even if it nearly kills him. We were starting our laps on opposite ends of the pool so he'd just hang out at the wall taking a nice break until I reached the wall to turn around. He'd take off at the same time and then do his best to beat me to the wall by one second. His turns were a bit faster than mine so he'd always beat me on the return. Now this is fine and I don't mind, however, it was slightly annoying that the guy never swam more than 100 without taking a break. So yeah, it's not hard to beat a girl - one recovering from a shoulder injury who barely swims and hasn't worked out in a week no less - who's on the 300th or 350th yard of her 400 yard set when you've just been chillin' at the wall drinking water. It's the swimming equivalent to the treadmill peeper guy at the gym who is obsessed with matching your speed throughout the entire run.

I had a small sandwich for lunch and am going to try very hard to limit my intake of fatty awful foods for the rest of the day. I still have a week of holiday debauchery to survive so I need to take it in moderation when I can.

Swimming
Distance - 2,000 yards
Time - 39:21