Ouch!

This was my first week in the water after 13 days-ouch! A very quick scan of my USMS fitness log aka “flog” it appears that this is the longest break I have taken from swimming in over a year and half or likely much longer.

To make it particularly challenging this comeback comes after a the annual MIT Z-Center pool closure for maintenance. Every December when the pool opens 50 meters long course. Not ideal for a comeback!

Post Anacapa Island channel swim in early November I felt fried physically with a sore shoulder and frankly mentally fatigued. Coach Chloe suggested a break. After the long swim I logged about 9 days in the pool with a light work load of just above 3,000 yards. December rolled around with some work travel, a trip to Paris to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary and the annual pool closure and we ended up at 13 days without swimming.

I have slogged through this first week back in the water swimming four times averaging about 4,000 meters. It’s always a bit of an adjustment getting use to 50 meters but by the end of the week I felt I was slipping back into the groove. Truth be told I like 50 meters versus 25 yards much better.

The plan is to ease back into the “swim routine” over the course of the next several weeks to get the mind and body ready for English Channel training. If things go as planned the goal is by mid-January to get back to approximately 15,000 to 20,000 yards a week and building from there. If for not other reason I need to start swimming to shed some added weight (not too bad). When you don’t workout as intensely you can’t afford to chow as much.

There is a small part of me that has enjoyed being a slug…thankfully it’s a small part.