Of Swimming Bondage

I didn't know what to expect today as I often feel sluggish after a deep tissue massage. Judging by my IM & breaststroke times, I was, but I performed pretty well on my freestyle test set, on par with the best I've ever done on this without any sort of tech-suit advantage:

• Warmup sets (1700): straight thru after 0:30 rest after 1st 400
  
  • 1 x 400: 100 fr, 300 IM k/d/d
  
  
  
  • 4 x 100: on 1:40, descend free swim (1:17, 1:13, 1:10, 1:06)
  • 4 x 100: on 2:00, kick, dolphin/flutter by 25s
    
    • 1:34 to 1:29 (better than recently)
    
    
  • 6 x 50: #1 & #6 easy free, #2 to #5 build IM
    
    • 33, 36, 40, 31+
    
    
  • 4 x 25: on 0:45, free, 5-6-7-8 strokes fast, w/Zoomers and paddles
  • 1 x 100: easy on about 2:30
  
  
• TEST SET 3 x 300: free on 4:30, fast pace aiming to even split as much as possible
  
  • Aim to determine your 100 aerobic workout pace
  • 08-07-09: 3:36, 3:34+, 3:33
  • 09-01-09: 3:27, 3:25+, 3:26
    
    • best non-tech suit performance
      
    
    
  • 11-16-09: 3:47, 3:49, 3:51
  • 12-08-09: 3:31, 3:32, 3:30
  • 01-10-10: 3:32, 3:30, 3:31
  • 01-21-10: 3:28+, 3:26+, 3:23 (w/B70 leggings)
  • 03-02-10: 3:28, 3:29, 3:27 (w/TYR leggings)
  • 04-09-10: 3:34, 3:28, 3:27 (w/endurance jammers)
  • 08-16-10: 3:34+, 3:37, 3:38 (w/endurance jammers)
  • 05-06-11: 3:32, 3:29, 3:31 (ancient paper jammers)
  • 06-03-11: 3:27+, 3:26+, 3:26 (ancient paper jammers)
  • 07-04-11: 3:30, 3:36, 3:42 (ancient paper jammers)
  • 09-07-11: 3:41, 3:37, 3:37
  • 10-07-11: 3:42, 3:39, 3:36
  • 11-10-11: 3:30, 3:26+, 3:27 (Yingfa jammers)
  • 11-29-11: 3:30, 3:34, 3:37 (Yingfa jammers)
  • 01-02-12: 3:46, 3:44, 3:41+ (Yingfa jammers)
  • 01-31-12: 3:39, 3:36, 3:35 (Yingfa jammers)
  • 02-27-12: 3:34, 3:30+, 3:27+ (Nike lycra brief)
  • 03-26-12: 3:28, 3:25, 3:24 (ancient paper jammers)
  
  
• 6 x 50: active recovery pull, 2 each on 0:45, 0:50, 0:55
• 2 x 4 x 100:
  
  • Round #1: #1 to #3 IM descend on 1:45 (1:22, 1:18, 1:16), #4 easy pull
  • Round #2: #1 to #3 breast descend on 2:00 (1:30, 1:28, 1:26), #4 easy pull
  
  
• Then I was going to do 8 x 25, diving the odds fast IM order, but my calf seized on the 1st dive so I just floated a 50 and called in a day

TOTAL: 3,750 SCM

Commentary:

• The great thing about the consistency of this set -- when I swim well -- is the confidence it builds. My best ever performance was about 5 weeks out from my best ever Masters meet, the Rowdy Gaines meet in the Fall of '09. I am feeling completely on target for some fast swimming in Greensboro.
• I'm loving the competition that's showing up in Greensboro: it will make for fun racing and, as always, a chance to see people I haven't seen in a year, or, in at least one case, about 25 years!
• My sisters and Dad are all signed up for Greensboro, so we'll have our family relays happening for Brundage Swim Masters. We've got the t-shirts made ... I just need to get some caps made up quickly!
• I'm working on lining up pool time while I'm in Montreal later this week. I've got one Masters workout that I should be able to hit at McGill and then a couple of other pools where I should be at least be able to get in for some open lap swimming. In a dreamworld, I'd get three pool workouts in while I'm there, but I'm setting my goal at two as the clear priority is my daughter's swimming.
• If there are any Old Breaststrokers reading this, make sure you're up at 6am on Friday to swim with me at the McGill Masters (http://www.mcgill.ca/athletics/recre...s/mastersswim/) as your competition in Greensboro looks even tougher than mine; you can't afford three days out of the water at your age