It's not really adding up

I went to a mini meet today, and comparing my times to last year, I'd hardly say things are adding up...

Last year: 50Fly 40:40
This year: 50Fly 39.88 (at least I broke 40)

Last year:25Back 22:50
This year:25Back 22:78

I swim 100IM for the first time (I think) my time was: 1:31.01

I joined K and Kylie for this 2 hour event, and we had a blast. A lot of my students were there as part of the swim team they participate in.

I need to work on starts -oh, and also training...ha!

Sexy janai yo!!

While swimming tonight a guy got in my lane (which already had another person in it) and started swimming. Not a big deal, it was a bit busy tonight, but he wasn't of the same speed at all and there were only 2 people in the lane he moved over from.

I didn't think much of it, other than I noticed he was wearing a pretty tight speedo when he walked on deck (and it didn't suit him). Well, I did think much of it when he paused under water at the end of the lane and blatantly stared at my midsection before pushing off the wall (with his head still facing me...)

ugh.

He only go one chance though, then I made sure I was turned the other way when he got to the wall the next time.

I moved into the next lane as soon as possible. At one point I had stopped at the other end where he was also stopped and in front of all the swim club kids, he leaned over the lane rope and yelled "Sexy, ne! Sugoi!"

Oh brother. Give me a break.

anyway: 2200m tonight.

Vampires

While listening to a CBC radio program (my new addiction) on vampires I managed 30 min of bungy cord activity.

No aerobic work today, and my shoulder is not happy about yesterday's swim...oh well.
I have a wedding to attend in a month, gotta look good in a kimono. It's my new motivation.

Saturday night action

My life is dull.

Warm up: 800RIM 800IMkick -no board

4x100 alt pull and scull

10x100 @ 2:00

400 cool down


3400m

Another Day at the Driving Range

I bought a set of used clubs today and spent part of the afternoon swinging at golf balls in Toyama city.

Fun stuff.

p.s. you wouldn't believe how hard it is to find lefthanded clubs in this country!!!

In the Saddle once again

Went for the first ride in AGES today. Couldn't resist the sunshine and this beautiful, mild November weather that we're having here.

40km up, down and around Nyuzen, Funami and Asahi.

No bears...whew. I started up the road towards Fuami Castle, but then came across a bear warning sign...I didn't chance it.

A Wee Dip

Went for a short swim last night.

Just did my regular warm up -which I'm thinking of changing to get myself out of this funk.

800 broken RIM
400 kick

floated around for the rest of the night doing drill work and trying not to think about my shoulder.

Well. Hello there...

It's been way too long since my last post. Gomen.

I haven't been doing much, but at least I haven't been doing nothing...

I've been to the pool a couple of times...

OK, that's it.

I come home from work, thoroughly exhausted. But now I know it's not from work. It's from not working out!

Back to the basics. Back to regular cardio activities. Back to normal.

That's the goal for November.

Ganbarimas.

Healing...

After the swim with Sista K 2 Sundays ago, I finally feel like I'm on the mend. The pain actually subsided and there are moments when I'm not thinking about my shoulder! I even went for another short swim last Thursday. Other than that, I've rarely ridden my bike in the last week and even though I ran a relay marathon on the weekend, I didn't once go out for a run before the event. Good grief, how did my motivation get swept away so easily? Were my sights too high??

The Nyuzen run is a month away and I haven't signed up yet...I'm not sure I really want to run it. What's happening?

I'm still doing a bungy cord routine every morning, but the yoga has fallen by the wayside. I thought writing out my goals here would motivate me, but I'm in a bit of a slump. I hate to use 'being busy' as an excuse, but it's true, there aren't enough hours in the day. I thought riding my bike would solve that, but I find myself with too much to haul back and forth on my bike. I need my car. It's sad really since the weather has been so amazing.

Well, no promises, but I'm going to try to get back on track in the next week. Wish me luck.

Week's worth

Well, I haven't had a whole lot of cardio this week, but I've manange to get a bungee workout in each morning.

I rode my bike on Wednesday to Maezawa (8km via route 8, 10km on the way home via the mountain route), but most of the week has been pretty rainy -or else I've had to pack a ton of things to school, which I couldn't carry on my bike.

The shoulder is in a constant state of pain now -alseep or awake, mobile or resting, I can feel it. Sometimes it's right on top of the shoulder, but most of the time it's deep down under the shoulder blade.

I decided to try swimming tonight -the first time in forever!!. It felt good to be in the water. The shoulder held up through the warm up but I had to do kick without a board. I tried some scull, then just floated around for a bit. Finished with some 50s of fly/back (felt OK) and then a few underwater swims. Definitely nothing special. We'll see how it feels tomorrow. Damn, I miss the pool.

Thanks for swim K!!

I chickened out.

I was supposed to go to get my shoulder checked out this afternoon...but I didn't.
Another week of pain. I'm going to try swimming tomorrow I think. I'm hoping the severe pain I'm feeling today is just muscle soreness from the driving range yesterday. It has to be, I haven't done anything else!!

For those of you thinking that throwing a frisbee around was probably not good for my shoulder...I throw right handed - haha!!

Weekend Activities

This weekend I went camping up in the mountains. By camping, I mean we slept in tents, the rest wasn't really roughing it. We had a refrigerator at our disposal and all the other amenities, but none the less, I got to spend a majority of my time outdoors. On Saturday we played ultimate frisbee for about an hour. The teams were fairly even for talent, but I have to say the other team did have a slight height advantage...we lost 10-8.

Yesterday, after gorging on yakisoba and then soaking in the onsen we headed back to Toyama city. I met up with a friend and we went to the driving range for the afternoon. I miss golfing -even though I didn't do it that often at home I still had my own set of clubs and could go out the the driving range or shoot 18 holes whenever I wanted. Here, the golf courses are pretty limited and very expensive. I've been invited to play next month some time by some teachers that I work with, so now I've got a new focus! The thing is, I don't have my own clubs here, and I'm a lefty. We checked out a used equipment shop last night, but they only had a limited number of left handed sets -apparently it's really rare here to hit left. The cheapest set was around $170. I don't know if it's worth it. I've got to keep looking I guess.

TGIF

a.m.

Bungee cord work out



Bike to Chuo - 16km

Yoga

a.m.

Got up and click on the lastest yoga download I had -blech. It was a lot of arching poses for the back, I didn't like it at all. I guess I'm still really nervous about my herniated disc, I should find out if yoga is helpful or harmful for it.

20minutes worth, then I quit -plus the instructor was really annoying.

Bike to Maezawa

a.m.

bungee cord workout - abs, bis, tris, delts x 2



bike to and from Maezawa Elementary School 15km

Sporadic at best

I spent two days travelling this weekend and yesterday was a recovery day...

Today I rode my bike to all 3 of my schools. I went to Mikkaichi in the morning and walked around Kurobe for 3 hours with a group of students. The school had divided the students according to their neighborhoods and sent them out (with a teacher) to find and document dangerous areas where children could potentially get hurt or approached by strangers on their way to and from school. It was a warm cloudy day and I really enjoyed spending time with the students.

I then biked to Chuo in the afternoon and taught two classes and then biked to Maezawa after work to drop off a book before heading home.


25km in total today, not bad.

Hat Trick

a.m.

Bungee cord arm workout
-bis tris delts pecs



p.m.

Commute to Chou Elementary School: 13km

Same Same

a.m.

30 minutes YOGA for hikers and runners



Commute #3

18km

a.m.

30minutes YOGA for Mountaineering


Commute #2 -Maezawa

20km

Hiking

Hakusan 2702m

Just a stroll up a mountain and then back down.

Took a whole day -go figure.

Two Days before the HIke

a.m.

40 minutes of YOGA FOR MOUNTAINEERS

my first bike commute

a.m.
bis and tris -hardly worth noting.
3x15 at 3kg.


I biked to work for the first time since I started working in Kurobe. I only had one school today, so I didn't have to worry about changing in and out of my bike clothes...

It's exactly 8km to Mikkaichi Elementary School, so in total I biked 16km today. It took me 25min to get there this morning via Rte 8 (which is the bane of my existance, but the fastest, most direct route - I might have to invest in a mask though). It took only 20 minutes on the way home, I was cruising at a nice 28.8km/hr until some idiot turned in front of me and I almost landed on my head again.

Say it with me now,

I HATE ROUTE 8!!!

Note the lack of aerobics...

a.m.

30 min YOGA

TGIF

Woke up at 6:00 WITHOUT my alarm today - didn't need it since a cicada decided he'd serenade me instead...urg.

I got up at 6:50, was yoga-ing it up by 6:15! Did 30minutes worth.

This afternoon -after teaching 4 classes K and I went for a 35km bike ride up to Unazuki town. A great day, cloudy, but still pretty warm -the roadside temp was 27 degrees Celcius at 6:00!!

I turned over 800km on my odometer. Not a great feat, but it's something!

Wednesday's Weights

rolled out of bed, folded up the futon and had time for a quick bis tris and abs set.

no aerobic workout today

Tuesday

I started downloading iPod yoga workouts and I did my first one this morning. Well, I did half of it, they're an hour long and I didn't get up until 6:30...It was pretty good, helped me wake up, warm up and focus a bit. I' have terrible flexibility in my legs, it's true, I can't touch my toes. I'm workin' on it.

Before work: 30min YOGA



Afterwork I hit the pool:

Warm up: 800RIM 400Kick

2x 4x100 alt pull and kick 5sec RIB

cool down

Floating, Floundering, Failing

What I failed to mention in the last post is that I got slightly inebriated on Saturday night and am still suffering the consequences of too many glasses of wine...so today there was NO YOGA in the morning, but my arm got a workout...

a.m. workout:
5x1 hit of the snooze button @5:00


p.m. workout:
warm up 800RIM 400Kick
floated around, did fly drills with one of the masters swimmers -OK, she did the drill, I kicked and watched.
floated some more -had a lane to mysef, can you tell?
got tired of being tired so I got out.

still crippled on my left side. i'm trying to work up the courage to see the chiropractor again...

if I had to rate today's energy levels -I woke up at about a 3, got up to about a 6 during my first elementary school lesson, and am now hovering at 3 again.

Weekend Workouts

Saturday

Weights:
bis and tris 15x3 @3kg
delts 9x3 @3kg
upright rows 9x3 @3kg

abs: reverse curls x100


Sunday

Bike to the beach @35km/h return (in the wind) at 22km/h.

Yogarific -not really

Couldn't move my head to the left again this morning. But I got up anyway and did what I could. Today's the first day of school for me and I needed the meditative part of yoga more than anything else.

By this afternoon I had slightly more movement and felt like I needed to stretch out my body - the best place for me to do that is the pool. I went and did the first 600 of my 800RIM warm up, then did 2 25s fly and 50 kick and I was basically done. So I worked on my T-line (a balance theory I learned during my tech III course years ago). I basically did as an excuse to stay in the water longer and to make people curious, but it IS a good technique to practice once in a while.

So now I'm sitting in my apartment with an ice pack strapped to my shoulder. Yay...

Done for the day and it's not even 6:00!

While I was warming up for weights this morning (jumping around doing goofy aerobics moves in front of the mirror) I managed to aggravate my shoulder/neck again. This is becoming a nucance and a pain in the neck -haha...not funny.

I definitely have a rotator cuff issue, but it's more bearable than this spasm I get in my neck which limits my head movements to less than a 60degree rotation to the left and doesn't allow me to tip my head back or forward. It really stinkin' hurts. It's all the muscles that support the head, but only on the left side. I'm worried that being around little kids all day is going to put added stress on it as they love to hang off of the teacher. We'll see.

In the mean time, I managed to get 2 sets of bis and tris done as well as delts but I had to be creative, any position where I had to hold up my head, i.e. not sitting straight up, was a big no no.

My aerobic set today consisted of 10k to the beach at 30km/h and 10km back at 20km/h.

a sleepy single

I slept in, did a half assed job of yoga today but managed to find some yoga podcasts that i'm going to try on Friday!

I didn't do much else today except sleep.

So for what it's worth:

Warm up: 10minutes aerobics

20 minutes yoga

On another note, I started icing my shoulder, I'm going to see if that helps cut down recovery time after hard workouts. I REALLY have to solve this issue, and fast.

Second Double

WEIGHTS:
Warm up 10minutes
3x12 bis, tris, delts (p/a/l)
3x30 abs
total time:30minutes


SWIM:
Warm up: 800RIM 400 kick
2x400 swim @ 10:00 - sprint the last 25 of each 100
4x100 IM @ 2:30 - decending times were 2:00, 1:50, 1:40 and 1:35!!!! Yahoo. Felt good.
100active rest
4x100 IM @ 2:30 - 1&2 long and strong, 3drill, 4 kick NB.
100 cool down

total: 3000m

First Double

a.m. YOGA - 20 minutes

p.m. SWIM - Warm up 800RIM 400kick
8x100 pull first 4 on 2:00 last 4 on 2:30 (stroke drills)

Doin' Doubles

I'm crankin' up the intensity...I'm going to attempt double days.

What I mean is I want to do something in the morning and something in the evening.

I've decided to alternate yoga and weights in the a.m. and my save my aerobic fun for the evenings.

So M/W/F is Yoga. T/TH/S is weight training.

I'll post more of my new scheme as get more specific with mileage and weights.


Next three goals: 1)Climbing Hakusan (3rd Holiest Mtn in Japan) -September.
2)Namerikawa Road Race (10km) - October
3)Toyama Ekiden (relay marathon) - October

a week of nothing

Sporadic at best, that seems to be my workout routine at the moment...

If you read my regular blog you know that I've been in the company of others 24/7 since last monday -not a moment of it has been doing physical exercise. I feel blah, but more than that, I feel GRUMPY. I've got to get into a routine. I need to set goals, I need to reach goals.

This is driving me nuts.

38km in the saddle

Rode a total of 38km today. I biked to Ishida beach for a bbq which is about 12km from where I live. I managed to keep a pace above 25km/h most of the way, but it was HOT today.

After the bbq I rode up to the 100yen shop near Rt8 and then back down to Ikuji to watch my friend dance at a local festival -that was about 16km total.

And then it was a 10km bike ride back to my apartment -in the dark!

Giddy up.

FINALLY

I haven't stepped on the scale in months...but sometime this morning I decided that I should check my weight.
I've been stuck at 54kg FOREVER so I was pleasantly surprised (considering the amount of eating out and BBQs I've attended this summer) that I've lost 2.4kg!

Yay.

2.6kg to go.

I'm spent!

10km bike to the pool

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

3x400 pull/stroke/pull on 10:00 my HR for the pull was around 140, 160 for full stroke.

Bike back: 12km (took Rte 2) fixed my cadence detector, giddy up!!



I need to start stretching more...

20km

And the tire stayed on. That must be a good sign. I did forget to put the valve cap back on, but had brought a spare tube and used the one from it when I realized it. I rode to the beach and back without any issues. I think I'm over sensitive now though, as every bump feels monstrous and I wince when I go over any amout of gravel...

I do have one concern -but this arose before the flat. Sometimes I get a 'floating' feeling in the back end of my bike, what is that? Is it normal? Does it mean I don't have enough air in my tire?

Anyway, success today! Yay for me!

Wish me luck...

i'm about to attempt my first tire change....

weights

3x15 bis, tris, delts (a,p,l) @ 3kg


40 sqats
abs

swimming with idiots

it sounds a bit harsh, but COME ON PEOPLE!!!!

Give me a break, you see people swimming butterfly and you get in the same lane and start doggy paddling???

You see someone coming in to the wall at full speed and you stand on the blue line so they can't do flip turns???

You see someone comig in to the wall at full speed and you push off at the same time they do a flip turn???

ARGH!! COMMON SENSE. THAT'S ALL IT TAKES.


^$%!@# !!$#$!%!~ !&#%@$$

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

one big set: 5x 200pull 100IM on :30rib

300 cool down

still grumpy...

I miss aerobics classes

I used to do aerobics classes at home quite regularly. The Leisure Centre in Grande Prairie had some great intructors who used to really motivate me.

I've seen some aerobics classes here, but they just don't seem to be of the same intensity as at home.

Soooo, this morning I put on my dance mix tunes and did my own routine. I would really like a step but have no place to put it in my shoe box-sized apartment. So I made do with what I had.

I also inherited Amy's weight set and have vowed to start using them regularly. Today I started. When I get a template figured out I 'll start posting here.

for the time being:

5kg
3x15 bis
3x15 tris
3x15 delts (anterior)
3x15 delts (lateral)


2x20 hamstrings
2x20 squats (no weight)

Short swim

Warm up 800RIM 400kick

6x100 E alt pull (@2:00)&kk(@3:00)

8x25 on 1:00 breath every 5, 6, 7 etc.

2km

No, there's no typo in the title...

I got 1km on my bike today...and then I got a flat!! Or as they say here a "punk-u".


!$#@%$^^%$ It took me a better part of an hour to convince myself to bike all the way to the beach today, so when I finally got on my bike only to have to turn around again - well, needless to say, I was ticked.

So, I drove to the beach instead, with visions of a swim at the pool after -but the water was so nice today, I just swam around in the sea for an hour instead. It always helps to have onlookers to get me to swim better...today there were lots of boys on the beach so I had no problem swimming hard.

I would start at the beach and swim out doing my stroke count for a 25. I started with fly and did about 6 reps of each in IM order and then breast stroke back to the beach. Then I just floated and sculled around for the remainder of the time.

I'm sure it'll help me somewhere down the road when I choose a triathlon with an openwater swim, right??

All day at the baseball diamond.

Too bad it wasn't me playing. I miss baseball/softball/slowpitch...

The Nyuzen High School students had two games today, I had the day off and went and watched both. We lost both games...

This made me late for the pool, so I only had time for my warm up and a few 100s pull.

1500m total.

bike to the beach

K called me this afternoon and invited me to our new favorite spot on the sea.

I biked in my flip flops, but still managed 25-30km/h.
Round trip, it's about 10km??

Not a workout by any means, but it gave the legs some much needed movement after last night's Tatemon fiasco -3 hours of pulling a 2 ton float...I deserved the day off today. Oh, and the pool's closed on Wednesdays!

Mid day swim - how lovely

I didn't have to work this morning, so I went to the pool before my afternoon schedule started.

Warm up: 800 RIM 400Kick
4x400 alt IM and Epull -yes, full stroke 400IM. It kicked my butt, but got my heart rate above 150 -something that I have not had happen in a while (for shame).
200 cool down

holy cow, when was the last time I swam 3000m????

There was a tall guy in the next lane over doing some distance free sets. Other than a bad left arm cross over he was a pretty strong swimmer so I tried challenging him during my pull. He didn't like it when I passed him on my first lap but couldn't catch me at the walls with his open turns! Ha. I love it.

Takaoka swim

I went swimming in Takaoka today.
I was chatting with my friend Daiji on msn and he asked me what my plans were for the evening. I told him I was thinking of going to Takaoka to say goodbye to one of the leaving JETs but I wanted to swim, so I wasn't sure...

He and I rarely get to see each other because we live about a 90min drive from each other and he doesn't have a car. But we both love swimming and joke about the idea that we should swim together. So today we did!

I drove to Takaoka and picked him up and he brought me to an amazing facility! Besides the shiney, spiffy gym it had an 8 lane 25m pool and outdoor dive tank and an outdoor 50m pool!!! I was so excited to swim long course for once -and outside (it was over 36 degrees today). BUT, alas, it was not to be. Swim club was in and they had all the lanes. We had to settle for the short course pool. I got in before Daiji and started my warm up in the only lane with one other swimmer. He looked pretty fast (at least he was young...)and at first he didn't seem to thrilled that I had chosen his lane, but once he realized that I was keeping up to him, he was a bit more polite about the whole thing.

We didn't have a whole lot of time since we did have Dave's farewell dinner to attend. But I managed to get my warm up in at least and a few 50s on the side.

So in total about 1500m. Just wish it had been LC and outdoors...maybe I'll make the trek again. I think that was the pool we would have competed in last month had K and I not gone to Hokkaido. Zannen.

sea me swimming

swam in the sea today, probably a good hour or so in total.

did some actual swimming - maybe 500m worth

and lots of treading...

also taught a little girl how to blow bubbles -maybe I CAN teach swimming in Japan...

bike-swim-bike

biked to the pool (10km) took me just over 20 minutes

Swim:

warm up 800RIM 400Kick
3x 200pull/100IM on 30srib
10x25 on 1:00 breath every 4,5,6etc.

200cool down

biked home


20km on the bike
2550m in the pool

Next Event - Namerikawa Road Race

I got the form in the mail this week. I did this race 2 years ago, I can't remember why I didn't do it last year...

Anyway, do I continue with the 10km or do I bump up to 21?? It's in Oct. I'm not sure I've done enough running or will do enough running for the 21 yet. Maybe I'll wait until next spring and try it in Kurobe...

Hm.

Damn it's HOT

It hit 34 degrees Celcius today. I spent all day in formal clothes for my second day of orientation for my new job...I HAD to get into the pool!!!


Warm up 800RIM 400Kick
4x100 25scull/75E
4x100 kick
cool down


need to get back into a training routine. need something to train for...

Post travel swim

We sat on the ferry reading all day and then drove for 3 hours from Niigata to get home. After unloading everything from the car, I couldn't stand it any longer, I had to go for a swim.

Got to the pool around 8:15, did my regular warm up of 1600m and got out. Felt great!

Back from Hokkaido

Did do as much as I had anticipated on the trip. We only (shamefully) took the bikes off once to ride oround Rishiri Island right before leaving Amy in Wakkanai for her BEE ride. The ride around the the island was just under 60km and it took us the good part of an afternoon to do it. We started off in a nasty head wind on the north side of the coast on a bike trail that lead us to a flock of gulls straight out of a bad Hitchcock scene...there were birds flapping everywhere, except for the dead ones that littered the path. Amy rode over one that was already injured, Kirsten was in front getting the worst of it I'm sure. It was a little hairy to say the least. Not long after we got out of that little nightmare the pathway ended and we had to ride the main road around the rest of the island. Not that that was a bad thing, plenty of shoulder room for us. We took frequent breaks after big hills, watched some surfers, stopped at a volcano with a lake which had been taken over by tourist booths selling flowered flavored soft ice-cream and took pictures of a temple gate near the end of the trip. It was a sunny day, pretty warm and we were all worn out by the end of it.

We did manage a day of canyoning and white water rafting on the second day of the trip. Lots of fun. But when K and I tried to to a hike on our last day, we were foiled at every turn. Seems all the hiking trails have been closed due to typhoon damage. We sat in an outdoor onsen right on a lake instead...

Riding in Hokkaido

Well, as long as the bikes stay on the roof rack...

Sista K, Amy and I are Hokkaido bound. Amy starts her ride accross Japan on the 29th and we're all going up together so K and I can see her off. We are hoping to get a few good rides in, the main one being on an island off the north tip of Hokkaido just before Amy leaves.

I haven't been on my bike since the triathlon. The main reason is because we've had non-stop rain all week. I've been taking my car to school since I've been emptying out my desk all week.

I probably won't post this week, but will try to keep track of our mileage. We'll also be doing some rafting and hiking as long as the weather holds up!!!

swimming in the sun

The pool in Kurobe, where I swim, is an 8 lane 25 meter pool surrounded by windows on 3 sides.
I usually swim in the late afternoon or evenings so there isn't much sunlight left by the time I get there. Besides, Toyama prefecture is a cloudy, rainy prefecture so there isn't much sunlight in general. But yesterday the sun was shining brightly when I got in the water at 5:00. The pool becomes a different world when this happens. The water is bright blue, and you can see clearly to the other end. It kind of feels like swimming in an outdoor pool. I love it.

My first swimming memories are from the outdoor pool at home in Grande Prairie. We used to go down to Bear Creek Park (now Muskoseepee Park) and swim there in the summer. The season's short in GP so the pool usually opens the long weekend in May is closed by September. I vaguely remember taking swimming lessons there, but what I do remember clearly is swimming with my Dad. The pool is L shaped with the short part of the L being the shallow end. I clearly remember him teaching my how to glide off the wall. I know I wasn't very big at the time because my younger brother wasn't with us (if he had been big enough I know he would have been there because he's part fish and it was extremely difficult to keep him away from water), it was only me and my dad. I remember the smells of the chlorine mixed in with the summer smells of trees and grass. Over and over again we pushed off the wall in the summer sun. It's a simple memory, but one of my favorites.


Warm up: 700RIM (only 100fly) 400kick
200 scull/swim
400 kick no board alt 100fly/100breast
200 swim

my left shoulder and my left ankle were not feeling up to par today. oh well, the sun was great.

the aftermath

not that bad really, but the chaffing is driving me crazy!!!



"the" blister



My number on my flabby arm.



















The following pictures are lunch!!!!

stiff and sore, what a great feeling

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

4x200 IM alt full stroke and kick on 3:30 focus on long strokes and turns

400pull long and strong

200 dolphin kick, breath every 6 kicks

Was feeling anti-social today, so I got out early -blah.


Right calf is totally cramped up, I've been trying to stretch it all day. I need to get back into a stretching routine, I'm lazy.

Back to normal...

I needed to stretch out today, I could feel the muscles stiffening. It's a holiday today and raining which means to pool was cho-crowded (very).

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

8x50 scull/drill
200kick
4x100 pull
200 kick

Race Day!!

I DID IT!!

It's over and done with. The stress of it all, washed away in the hot bath I enjoyed Sunday night.

Like I said, 5:00 a.m. comes early. Sunday was no exception. I had prepped everything the night before in hopes of not disturbing Omi too much when I got up. Well, that was blown right out of the water (water being a key word in this adventure...) when I couldn't find me car keys...seriously.

I HAD LOCKED THEM IN MY CAR.

My first thought was, "This is a sign. First your bike inexplicably breaks, it's pouring rain, and now you've locked your keys in you car for the first time in forever (first time in Japan for sure). Maybe you're not meant to race."

I had left one window open about 1cm...

So my second thought was, "Quit being a baby, unlock your damn car and get going."

Omi is my hero. He got a coat hanger and some pliers, and I was on my way in less than 10 minutes.

It was 5:30 a.m. the race started at 9:00. I had to register AGAIN at 6:00 and catch the bike course bus AGAIN at 6:30. I managed to get there in time. I got my number written on my arm (#18) -something I was looking forward to. I've always loved that look -big black numbers scrawled on the athletes...

While waiting for the bus a super friendly lady started talking to me. It was her first time too. We started the conversation in Japanese, but she soon revealed that she spoke English as well -yay for me!!! We rode the bus together and tried to figure everything out -where to put our bikes and other equipment, when to go to the pool, etc.

At 8:30 the opening ceremonies started, everyone huddled under umbrellas while the dignitaries were protectd under open tents. Yes, it was still pouring rain. Sometimes it eased into a drizzle, but for the most part it was full on rain. They announced that they would decide 10 minutes before the race whether it would go ahead or not...

It went ahead. I had my new suit on, I had been packing my cap and goggles with me most of the morning, my running shoes and other gear were in my back pack, under a plastic bag, in a basket beside my bike. I was ready.

We headed to the pool where we lined up in order by the number on our arms. The lifeguard spotted my earrings and told me I had to take them out. Yeah, right. I told him I couldn't (which is true for one of them) and he said that I'd have to tape them!! What?!? Are you kidding me? I showed my displeasure and annoyance and he trotted off to get tape. In the mean time I put my cap on and pulled it down over my ears, covering my earrings. When he came back he realized that my solution was better, I gave him a polite bow and we both went away happy.

The swim was 750m. I had to start in one lane, swim to the other end, and then go under the lane rope into the next lane, swim down, go under the rope, swim down, go under. 6 laps in all, then I had to get out, walk back to the first lane, get in and repeat this 5 times. Each time you go out, someone was standing with arm bands that you had to wear for the rest of the swim. This was to keep track of how many laps everyone did, of course. The thing is, they were big and unless I pulled them right up to my shoulder, they'd slip down my arm. I remember seeing quite a few floating on the bottom of the pool as I swam. Not the best idea. It was fun fighting and clawing my way through the lanes. I loved passing all the 'big boys' without any problem. It got a little nuts at the end of the lanes when everyone was fighting to get under and push off at the same time. I held my own quite nicely!

I was one of the first people out of the pool. I got out, jogged to my bike and told myself to take it easy, be thorough...everything was wet and slippery. I had to get my mole skin on and then my socks and shoes. More people started coming out and were on their bikes before I had my shoes tied! Oh well. As they say here, "My pace".

Ok, the swim was a breeze. I hadn't let myself think about the bike too much (to preserve energy mainly), but now it was here and I was on a bike that I no longer trusted and what could I do but pedal!!

What can I say? It was hard. On the first hill I was passed by nearly everyone. I didn't let it bother me, I just got to the top, took a rest on the first descent and kept my mind on the road. The downhill was scary in the rain. Very slick, I think I wore out my breaks. But of course, I inevitably reached the halfway point, turned around and started the last 10km. Like I said, pretty much everyone had passed me by this time - I was just pleased that I had finished without crashing!!

From the bike to the run all I had to do was take of my helmet basically. The first lap felt pretty good, I knew the blister tape wasn't really sticking at this point, it was saturated with water, but
I couldn't feel any rubbing yet. The second lap came surprisingly quick and I was still upright and keeping a good pace. The 3rd lap was tough, half way and I started cramping a bit. I decided to slow down for some water and then just told myselft that I had to be patient and finish this lap before thinking about the last. Also, my suit had started rubbing at the neck line and it was stinging quite a bit. The last lap was tough. I was spent. But I kept my pace, enjoyed the cheering as I came into the finishing area and absorbed the idea that I had completed my first tri. It was a very good feeling.

After the race the woman I had met came and congratulated me. We went back to the pool together, I took a nice long shower and then enjoyed the free food -fresh vegetable stew and rice balls. All of this in the pouring rain of course. I hadn't been dry since 6:00 a.m.

My official time was 2 hours 28 seconds. So close to breakng 2 hours! Next time I'll definitely wear a watch and keep track of my times. I didn't do it for any part of the race.

Lessons learned: Quit panicking!!! and Patience -finish one thing before thinking about the next.

Loved it. Will definitely do it again!

Thanks to everyone who sent me good luck messages on my keitai that morning! You totally helped me get through my day!

Saturday

I brought my bike into Sports Depot on Saturday. The regular bike fixer-dude wasn't in so they had someone else playng around with it while I waited and shopped around. I found a new swim suit that I thought I could probably wear without having to put on a bra for the run (damn, I hate my breasts!) and I picked up a new hat to run in, an spare pair of goggles and a new swim cap (basically I was trying to make myself feel better with new toys). I also finally bought a bike stand -something I totally should of had from the start, it holds the back end of the bike up so you can play around with the gears and stuff.

The staff finally came over and told me that it was going to take more time so I could leave and they'd call me when it was ready. I went over to Favore (a shopping mall across the street) to get blister band-aids and have some lunch. It calmed me down to be in the crowd. I ate a whole wheat ham and cheese sandwich for lunch, read a book Kirsten had lent to me and just tried to forget about what I'd be doing the next day.

The bike guy called me around 2 and said that it was going to be a while longer (not a good sign) so I decided I'd got to Yastuo and get the registration part over with.

I managed to find the place with minor back tracking.

After I registered I had time for a swim before the bus tour. The 6 lane pool in Yatsuo is pretty shallow but a nice little community pool -and they had a HOT TUB!!!

I did my regular warm up, a little bit of kick and some sculling. Everything felt good.

THEN I TOOK THE BIKE TOUR!!!!

The registration information indcated that there were some steep hills on the course. They failed to mention that it was ALL HILLS!!!! From the very first turn out of the transition zone you're climbing!

The bus never left 2nd gear, if that's any indication...


I was trying to stay calm- talking to myself "it's not that bad, just take it easy, go at you're own pace, use your gears (oh yeah, your gears are screwed at the moment....), ok, stay calm".... but this woman in the back of the bus kept freaking out. Everytime we turned a corner she yammered about how tight it was, at each hill she moaned about how steep it was and every descent she practically screamed at how dangerous it was going to be if it was raining. It was non-stop the whole time. I felt like getting up and telling her how inconsiderate she was being, especially for people who were doing this for the first time yadda yadda yadda. But, I'm slowly turning Japanese, and so like everyone else around me I endured her contemptable behavior without a peep. Oh, and I don't speak Japanese that well... Even the tour guide didn't say anything, although it looked like he was ready to throttle her at one point.

I got off the bus feeling slightly defeated and the race was still a day away.

I went back to Sports Depot, picked up my bike (which I still wasn't convinced was 100%) and headed to my friend, Omi's place to hopefully get some R&R before bed.

Omi cooked me a nice big pasta dinner, we watched some TV and I then I reluctantly got ready for bed..

5:00 a.m. comes quickly, no matter what time you go to sleep....

Pre race panic

OK, now I'm panicking...

I tried to fix my bike after work today. I managed to make it stop making noises...in one gear. I also managed to jamb the other two gears. I took it to the local bike shop but they were clueless, so after tinkering with it all they did was make in noisy again. So now, one day before the race, I have to take it into Toyama city first thing in the morning and see if they can fix it at the place where I bought it. ARGH!!!

I'm not going to cry unless I hear the words "we can't fix it today" -which will be in Japanese....

cross you fingers, say your prayers, do a dance -what ever you think will help me get through this tomorrow.

So no training today. Hopefully I'll have a spare hour to get in a pool in Toyama tomorrow since I won't be coming back to Nyuzen until after the race on Sunday. After I drop my bike off (hopefully) I have to pick up spare goggles and blister goodies and then go and register in Yatsuo. I can also take a tour of the bike course by bus tomorrow, so I might get that done as well, then go pick ulp my bike and head to my friend's place in Toyama to crash for the night.

Toyama is closer to Yatsuo by about an hour. And since I have to be there at 6:00a.m. I figured I'd better get as close as possible.

OK, I'll stop rambling and go to bed. I'm stressed. Can you tell????

Murphy's Law Strikes Again

I rode my bike to school today and for the VERY FIRST TIME something is wrong. Part of the gear mechanism is rubbing up against the chain. Seriously, why now???

I haven't ridden my bike for the past two days, everything was fine. The only thing I can think of is while trying to mount my bike yesterday on my roof rack I could have bent something or done something to make this happen. ARGH!!!

Not panicking yet.........

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

6x150m free on 15sec RIB

100kick
200 alt scull/free by 25
100kick
200 kick alt ez/hard by 25

8x100IM on 2:30

200 cool down

3550m

3 days away

I got my triathlon info in the mail yesterday. Amazing how much more stress is added when all the info comes in kanji!!

Maybe I should have researched this more thouroughly first -I thought I was going to get it easy by having a pool swim, but of course, how silly of me to assume...

So it looks like they're going to take out the lane ropes in the 6 lane, 25m pool and we have to zig zag 150m 5 times. That means we have to get out of the pool after every 150 and go back to the start...this sounds like something I used to do to my swimmers -we called them gorilla sets...damn you Karma!


After the swim is the bike, of course. 20km, not too hard -except they didnt' send me a map of the course. Just a map of where the course is. Looks like if I want to try out the course I have to do it before Friday (tomorrow) or if I want to just check it out I can do that Sat as well....FYI Yatsuo is just over an hour from my apartment. Ick. I still don't know what to do with the bike yet -where I have to put it or when... still deciphering the info sheet.


After the 20km bike is the 5km run. Run = someting I haven't done in a long time....
As far as I can tell it's another loop-run up one side of the river cross a bridge and go down the other side -which I have to complete 4 times.

So like I said, the biggest stress right now is figuring out the bike portion -where to store it, and where to go once I'm on it!!!


Ahhhh, what have I done to myself? And no one to hold my hand.

5 up 5 down

Went for a 10km hike with Sista K and Johnny P this weekend. Hot and humid but a great 4 hours.

The only problem is, this is what I've to work with for the triathlon on Sunday...

Here's the right:





















Here's the left:

Friday -wow, I made it

Spent the day traveling across the prefecture today. Got out of work early for once and was able to get to the pool before the Colare farewell dinner.

Did my regular warm up and some drills. Sound familiar??

Thursday squeeze

Jumped in the pool after racing back from the leavers ceremony in Toyama on Thursday.

Did my warm up and some drills.

Shoulder feels BLAH, it's like it knows something is coming.....

I did it

I signed up for a Triathlon...

It's next weekend!!!!!!!

OK, it's a BABY triathlon, but I already feel sick to my stomach about it.

750m swim (shouldn't be a prob, except I never swim that distante without a pull buoy -my legs are anchors)

21km bike -have done longer rides already, but...

5 km run -if I half to walk, I guess I will....


eep, I'm so nervous.



The worst part is that there isn't anyone doing it with me. K is gone that weekend!

I'm going to try to get a practise run in sometime this week.

Tuesday training

I SHOULD have ridden my bike to the pool -but I needed the car to pick up the free weights from Amy (that's my excuse)

Warm up: 800RIM 400Kick

4x 200E pull @4:00 (hold under 3:15)/ 100IM @3:00 (hold 1:45)

300 cool down

2700m

saturday bust

k and I rode to yamanokoshi (a place we know up in the mountains).

I'm lazy with reading my odometer lately but it's a few clicks, mostly uphill, and on this day it was directly into the wind (no matter what direction we were cycling!).

We then headed down to Kurobe river for what we thought was going to be an afternoon of frisbee, but the turn out sucked and we folded and headed to an onsen instead.

I guess we still managed around 25km on our bikes, but I really feel like we need a longer ride soon.

I guess I'll have to wait for K to get her bike back........



love ya Sista, take it easy!

xox

a decent work out

warm up 800RIM 400KK

4x100 E rotate the 25 sprint. -hold 1:30
8x25 IMOD
4x100 IM @ 2:30
100m cool down

decent sets. shoulders felt great. fly feels brutal...oh well.

29km in 90 min.

Nothing crazy, just a bike to the beach and back.

It's hard to really open it up on the roads here, the roads are barely wide enough for two cars so forget about having shoulders to ride in!!


I think K and I could hold 25km/h if we had a good road. Sometimes I miss Alberta.

i've had a wicked headache since tuesday night. i don't get them often, but when they do they strike with vengence.

i managed to talk myself into a swim after my private lesson last night just to get the blood flowing.

200E
100T
100K
4x25Y
200Kick
3x100 E pull @2:00
100 IM
200 cool down

i won't go into how pissed off or bitchy i was about the lack of lane courtesy -because it never changes. i love how the ones that piss you off the most are always eager to stop and compliment you on how good you are.

argh

I'm still riding my bike to work everyday...logged just over 300km so far.

K and I managed to get our butts to the pool yesterday for the first time in a long time:

warm up 800RIM 400kick

8x100 3Epull 1IM x2

200 cool down

Friday Ride

K and I skipped the morning ride but went for a short ride after work on Friday.
The humidity is really starting to settle in, I wonder what it's going to be like this summer...

We rode along the sea and managed to catch a bit of the sunset.

Thanks for snapping the guy in the boat K! And thanks for getting my butt out of the apartment again!!

Before the rain

Sista K and I managed another 20km bike this morning before the rain settled in for the day.

One good hill -I enjoyed!!

It's a great time of day to ride, hardly any traffic, it's not hot (yet) and your up in time to hear the roosters.

uh, I did hear roosters this morning didn't I K?

Pool's closed

Like I need more excuses to ride my bike....

K and I went for an early morning ride today. I'm not sure how I've come to please the weather gods so much, but they have been on my side since I've purchased my bike.

Started right at 6:00 a.m. were home at 6:50.

18km.

It's 17km to Josh's Apartment

Yesterday was a fabulous June day, sunny but not too hot. A perfect day for a bike ride.
I had to drop something off at Josh's in Uozu and used this as my excuse to get on my bike.
I took the old Rte8 road, then cut through Kurobe, stopped to make a hair appointment at Ageha, got back on the bike and took the twisties to Uozu. I decided to take the scenic/seaside route home, it's a great ride through Uozu, but eventually you run into a river draining into the sea and have to find a bridge inland....I stopped at Ishida beach and stretched, then rode home in the permanent north wind that blows through Nyuzen.

35km. 2.5 hours


edit: my chain fell off when I was playing with my gears going up a hill...took me a while to figure out how to get it back on...it shouldn't have.

Sunday afternoon bike ride to Niigata

Amy's BEE ride is drawing closer and Sista K and I have taken it upon ourselves to use her as an excuse to ride our bikes more...

We headed up the coast to Niigata on a cool, cloudy Sunday afternoon -perfect for biking. I feel really comfortable (physically) on my bike, but I have yet to really push it and break a sweat. I'm sure once I get used to gearing, breaking, and avoiding potholes and dead animals I'll get a little braver. For now I'm happy with easily doing 42km and not having any side effects.

I'm looking forward to longer rides -but first I have to take the time to find out more about riding techniques, cadence, and basic pacing. I have a feeling it's going to get tougher as the weather warms up, but it's certainly a lot easier on the joints than running!

highlights of this particular trip: dead frogs, dead furry creatures, white guys in speedos, detours, and spaghetti dinner (OK, that was after, but a direct result of the bike ride...)


last word: thank heavens I don't have allergies -we got to Jade Beach and Kirsten and Amy were breaking out all over the place!! haha, ok, it wasn't that bad, but if Kirsten didn't have drugs with her the trip would have been a lot shorter!

to the pool in the rain

Sista K and I bike to the pool in the pouring rain on Friday. It is the rainy season after all...

We were soaked by the time we got there, but it's warm enough now that I wasn't too chilled. And besides -we were going to get wet anyway! It's funny how wearing spandex and a helmet automatically makes you "kakkoi" (cool) in the country. Even the girl at the pool said so went we walked in, dripping like a couple of drowned rats.

I was told that these bikes can get pretty treacherous on wet roads, but we seemed to do alright with them. The scariest part so far is breaking going down hill.

It's 10km to the pool.

The swim:

Warm up 800RIM 400kick

200 long and strong.

It was already getting dark and neither of us has great lights on our bikes yet, so we called it quits, put our wet clothes back on and biked home. The rain had stopped so I was almost dry by the time we got back out our apartments.

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

3x100 pull -smoooooth

4x50 IMO

cool down

thursday swim

went to the pool at 8:00 last night hoping for an empty lane, but it was not to be

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

3x100 free pull

200 cool down

not enought room or time to do much else.

I biked to Ishida beach -stretched - and rode back.

headwinds suck.

23km.

First Bike Ride to Kurobe

K and I biked in to Kurobe yesterday to book our tickets to Hokkaido.

It took about 20 minutes. Totally do-able to the pool. That's my goal today.

I've just passed the 50km mark on my odometer -lame.

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick -I know my warm up is long, but it always feels soooo good.

4x200 alt IM and E (did the first 200E w/o a pull bouy, but wimped out on the second one).

200 cool down


2200m

still finding it hard to push myself in the pool these days. My shoulder is def not 100% yet and I wonder if doing more is going to do more harm than good. At the same time, I feel like I'm losing my stamina and strength.

Gotta find some good mods.

bike talk

I didn't work out yesterday, although I did ride my bike to and from school -as I hope to do as long as it's not pouring rain.

Instead, I spent the evening watching Chariots of Fire and putting my accessories on my bike. First the easy stuff -water bottle holder, seat pouch (for allan wrenches and lock), rear light that attaches to the seat pouch, front light (mandatory in Japan, and neccessary since there aren't many street lights here in the boonies), bell, AND the piece de resistance: my new odometer/speedometer/cadance meter!!

It's exactly 3.7 km to my school. Top speed today: 30.4km/h.

This is fun!

A dip in the pool

It seems like ages since my last swim. It's just been hard to get to the pool since my car's been in the shop. I've yet to try the bike that far. Maybe today if the weather holds up and I get my lite attached.

Anyway.

Warm up: 800RIM 400Kick

5x100 Free on 2:15
5x100 Pull on 2:00

8x25 fly on 1:15

200 cool down

2600m

shoulders feel ok

My 4th Kurobe Road Race

Another road race over and done with.

I got a best time (53.10), but it's not as great as a first thought it was. I had the idea that my best time was 55 minutes, but actually it was 53.21 which I apparently ran in Nyuzen last November. My, how easy it is to forget. Dang, that means I have to shoot for 50 minutes soon.

I went back over my old results for the road races I've done in Japan. Here's the tally:

2003 May 25 Kurobe 5km 31.06 (153rd place)
2004 May 23 Kurobe 10km 59.16 (90th place)
2004 October 17 Namerikawa 10km 56.58 (32nd place)
2004 November 21 Nyuzen 10km 1.09.21 (81st place)
2005 May 22 Kurobe 10km 58.03 (93rd place)
2005 November 20 Nyuzen 10km 53.21 (34th place)
2006 May 28 Kurobe 10km 53.10 (60th place)

as you can see, I've been pretty up and down. I started out well in the 10km but had a bad lapses big time in the 2004 Nyuzen race, I had had a fever up until the day before...I actually walked part of that race. Last May's race was also a tough one for me. I guess I need to focus on breaking the 50 minute mark. Perhaps if I can do that by this year's race in Namerikawa I could be convinced to try for the half marathon in Nyuzen in November. PERHAPS.

I have also participated in 2 marathon relays in the past year. One in Toyama last fall and one this year in Kanazawa. Both involve running 2km laps 4 or 5 times. I much perfer running a 10 then trying to sprint 2km. Yuck. But they are sooo fun!



Since the road races around here are pretty much done until the fall I have time to focus on the triathlon in July - a half an Olympic distance triathlon. I hope to see the entry forms this week sometime.

6:35

Ran to the expressway and back. I felt good at first, but I've decided in need better sports bras. :(

The Kurobe Road Race is Sunday morning. How does a year go by so quickly??


Under 55 minutes is my goal. I haven't done it yet...

Sunday was our first ultimate frisbee game of the year.

Last season was a bust.

Hopefully we'll have a good turn out on the weekends!!

Yay!!

took my bike for a spin

chose a road leading to the mountains

followed it as far is it would go in a straight line before I had to turn

biked for 40 minutes

nice

A double day

Well, I ran in the a.m. and swam in the evening!

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

6x100 free alternating pull and swim -long and strong (trying to get my rythmn the same for both) rest was sporadic due to the people in my lane.

4x100 kick alt E & T

cool down


shoulder hurts...

Triathlon training begins

Well, I finally did it.
I blew my coin jar money on a new bike.

It's a GIANT OCR3 road bike. It's black (I always seem to get black bikes...), it's shiney, and it's going to kick my butt.

I've never trained on a bike before. I've got a lot of work ahead of me, learning not only the mechanics of the bike, but the mechanics of my body! Hopefully this won't be as stressful on my back as running is and not as stressful on my shoulders as swimming is. I hope I like it....

The timing is bad, rainy season is coming. I've got to make a schedule and stick to it. I may start alternating running and biking mornings -but I have to find a good route for both -roads here are a bit narrow to say the least, and it's very easy to get lost.


Amy has also bought a bike to train for her BEE ride, hopefully we can do a few good rides together -now we just have to convince Sista K that she needs to get one too!!!

out the door by 6:20

another short run to the express way and back.

I know it's not long enough, it only takes me 10 minutes -which means it's about 2km there. A 4km run is not going to help me next weekend when I run the 10km. I need to find a running route I like...

Warm up: 200 RIM 400kick

5x200 pull (yes, i did them pull, and the shoulder held up!!)

4x100 kick

200 cool down


2800m my best swim in a lonnnnnng time.

Another short swim

2x 400IM 4x100kick

400m drill

Ran to the expressway and back.

not so early morning run

i'm TRYING to get myself to get up and run in the mornings -the sun's up around 5ish now, so it's bright by 6:00 perfect for running. I have tried on and off for the last month to get my butt out of bed and get moving before work. But until today, I hadn't been able to convince myself that exercise we more important than sleep.

Maybe it was all the lying around last week, maybe it's the frustration I'm feeling because I'm putting off everything else right now (cleaning, studying etc). I tossed and turned for 10 minutes: "OK, 6:10 -still time to get a decent run in...6:12...6:15, if you don't get up now you'll never go...you've got time to run the the expressway and back...that's enough for your first day!"

And I did it! I was out the door by 6:24.

I ran to the expressway and halfway back, then the lack of breakfast caught up with me and I walked the rest of the way.

The Kanazawa Relay Marathon is on Sunday, I'd like to do better than my last relay marathon -that means not feeling like I'm dying after every lap....

small swim

400 RIM
2x100 IM

400 kick

4x100 random flailing

shoulders still feeling tweeked -blah

50 minute walk with Kirsten -felt good!!

no swimming yet for me -i still have trouble getting up in in the morning (stiff neck -stemming from my shoulder) so i've stayed clear of the pool for the week. tomorrow will make it a full week of being out of the water. i'm not sure what's driving me more crazy, my sore shoulder or not swimming.

in the mean time, i went for another run today -a short run, but a run nonetheless.

and i signed up for the kurobe road race -this will be my fourth time to run it -and i've chosen the 10km again. my goal is to run under 50minutes by the end of the season (the nyuzen race in November) -haha, there I go presuming i'm still going to be in Japan next year!!!

We had a warm day yesterday so I went for a run.

I ran to the seaside, along the coast and back home.

total time: 60minutes

total distance: I have no idea....

Well, we survived. Not without the help of ibuprofen for me...but it was a great experience and I'm learning to try things even when I know I'm not going to be good at it. I think that's my biggest fault when it comes to competing. If I don't think I can do well, then I don't try. Well, yesterday I tried. The results weren't what I wanted, but the fact that I dove in and finished both my races were a big stepping stone for me. I don't think I could have done it alone, I really needed Kirsten there to talk me through it. And I thank her for putting up with all my whining (and providing the drugs!!) regarding my shoulder.

I only had one major glitch of the day...I thought I was swimming 50 free which was scheduled for the afternoon, but I was down for the 100 free instead which was one of the first events!!! I didn't miss my swim, but I had some of my teammates in a panic over it.

The surprise of the day was my 200 Medley relay race. I was put on a team with 3 other swimmers who are all ex-compets -I was quite intimidated, especially since I was swimming BUTTERFLY!! It was my last race of the day, my shoulder was throbbing at this point, but Kirsten convinced me I'd be ok, and when we were waiting behind the blocks my teammates encouraged me with "MY PACE" -which basically means "go at your own pace". It made me feel a lot better and I even got a little bit excited about my first 50 fly!

We came in first!! We were all pretty excited about it and were giving high fives when they announced that we had broken the meet record!! It was a total suprise, especially for me! I don't think anyone got our splits unfortunately -most of the team missed our swim because they were in the marshalling area or they thought we were swimming in the other pool...haha. Oh well, I got to take home a gold medal nonetheless!


The day ended with a drinking party -of course...but Kirsten and I were so exhausted that we just stayed long enough to fill our bellies and collect our medals. It was a fun and fulfilling day. I had a great time, despite the shoulder and the exhaustion.
The next meet's in October...I guess if I'm staying in Japan another year, I should really try to improve my times.

100Free: 1:21.67 -blah!!!
25Back: 21.17 -I swear I was doing under 20 in practice -haha.

swim meet tomorrow

K and I decided to hit the pool one last time before the meet, nice and short but it felt good.

Warm up: 200E 200T 200K 4x25Y 200kick

random swimming

turns

I have had a kink in my next since this morning - I decided to go swimming anyway. I was in Toyama after work so with no time to get back to the Kurobe pool I took a trip to the pool I'll be competeing at on Sunday...I was able to do pretty much everything despite the kink, however I couldn't hold a board to kick...

Warm up 200E, 100T, 100K, 4x25Y

3x200 Pull on 4:00 1.L&S 2.hard 3L&S

8x25Y @ 1:00

8x25K @ :40

cool down

feeling sluggish...blah -my fly was brutal today although I did manage 4x50 during warm up


Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

4x200 @ 4:00 holding 3:15 -yeah, I suck.

a sad attempt at some sprints....
3x 50 fly @ 2:00/2x25 back @ 1:00

random floating up and down the lane with some kick added for good measure

One week and counting

Well, it's one week exactly till the Master's Swim meet -my shoulders are still sore and I managed to wrench one pretty good last week by trying to open a glass jar...

Warm-up: 800RIM 400kick

Kirsten was at the end of here workout when I finished my warm up and we decided to do a sprint set together -it's so much better to do it with someone.

4x50 IMO on :30RIB
8x25 IMO on :15 RIB (1:00 RIB after the back)

400 pull
200 kick

25s

been doing hypoxics -did 2x25 and then went for the big one! managed to go 45m under H2OT.

200 cool down.

I was supposed to go bowling with some of my students on Saturday at 9:30 -the problem was that I had left my car downtown because I had a staff party the night before. So, after getting to bed at 2:00 a.m. I had to get up at 7:30 to go and get my car. I decided to turn it into a bit of a workout a.) because I hadn't run in forever and b.) it was pouring rain and c.) it gave me more time to sleep...

So that was my first work out of the day. When I got home it was 8:30 and I had a message from my kids saying they had to cancel because some of the boys were riding bikes and couldn't make it because it was raining so hard. We're talking a full scale thunderstorm at 8:30 in the morning.

So I went to the pool instead.

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

4x 200pull/4x25 sprint kick (pull on 3:00/kick on 1:00)

random sculling and 25s -the pool got busy.

I finally got out because the guy swimming next to me was creeping me out...

Nix the last comments

So after raving about my 1500 on Monday, I'm back to tweeks and pains...

ah well, it was good while it lasted.

so, i'm swimming 25 back, 50 free and 25 (i think/hope) fly (in the relay)

Warm up 800RIM 400kick

random 25s of sculling and pull and kick and whatever else I felt like doing...

finished with some hypoxics...went 1.5 lengths of under water T. -not bad, the last time I tried I only made it back out to the first red line.

100 cool down and I was outy

a 1500 FINALLY

My left shoulder has had a wicked knot in it for ages, in fact, I don't know when the last time my shoulders weren't knotted up. Massages just seem to aggravate the problem and rest does them no good either (I have terrible posture and I'm sure that also doesn't help anything). The reason for the sore shoulder is two fold - I've pulled it almost everytime I go our snowboarding. I have a tendancy to land in a way that always pulls that shoulder back and tweaks it. Secondly, my pull is off in the pool. My hand slips a lot -partly due it to being sore and I baby it, and partly due to it being my left arm...I know I'm left handed, but I do a lot of sports right handed, especially throwing sports. My right hand is my power arm, the left is precision I guess. Just the other day I was arm wrestling and noticed that I do that right handed as well. ANYWAY, I've been laying off the distance swims because anything over 200 was a little painful, but last week I did a 400 pull and everything seemed ok. So yesterday, being Monday I decided to get back into my routine of a 1500pull on Mondays. I had a lane all to myself, started easy, long and strong and then built up speed (I've also noticed I need a really long warm up to feel good). I managed to swim it in 25 minutes, not bad for being away from it in a while.

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick

1500 pull @ 25minutes

4x 4x25 ez K, T, Y, E

3100m

WArm up: 200E/200T/200K/100Y 400kick alt E/T

random 25s for about 30 minutes while the lane fills with fathers and their children....


400E
4x100 IM

cool down...

blah

Another swim with Osamu and Toru

When I got to the pool today, Osamu was already in the water!!

I warmed up a bit and then we had another short lesson and Toru joined us. It was pretty fun, they are both athletic so it didn't take long for them to catch on. The can both do a length of fly -it ain't pretty, but they can do it!

I managed to finished my regular warm up and then did one quick set.

3x 100Epull/4x25IMO

warm down

So much for a workout

Well, I took the night bus home from Tokyo last night and was feeling stiff and sore (yes my legs are too long).

So I got to the pool started my usual warm up when whose faces do I see pressed up against the glass....Osamu and Toru!!! Before I knew it, they were in my lane, "Linea, please teach us butterfly!!". How could I resist.....

Warm up: 800RIM 400kick alt E/T

4x 200E pull/ 100Im

200 kick

2600m

Warm up: 200E 200T 200K 100Y 4x100kick alt E/T

8x125 IM @ 3:00 -hold 2:15

200 kick

2300m

Curling

13 JETS crammed into 4 cars and went to Kuruizawa yesterday (Vernal Equinox is a national holiday).

We drove for 5 hours to get there -curled for 3.

lots of fun, I'm sure I'll be sore tomorrow -I should really go to YOGA tonight!

Warm up: 800RIM 200Ekk 200Tkk

300 alt scull/E by 25s


1000 kk alt E/T by 100

12x12 IMO sprint @ 1:00

200 cool down

3000m

Wednesday was a gloriously sunny day!!! I ran to my school, took a break to watch my baseball boys and the ran home. It was my first run in a very long time. The Uozu road race is only a month away. I've got to get going and improve my times or what's the point in entering?
But first I have to get through the swim meet on April 16.
Uozu is the 23.
Kanazawa is the 14th of May and
Kurobe follows 2 weeks after that!!!

YIKES!

as for swimming:

warm up: 800RIM swim/800IM kick

10x100 alt IM and Pull

100 warm down


I need to find someone to get these knots out of my back -I can hardly turn my neck anymore!!!!

I swam last Thursday, honest I did, but I didn't write it down...

Snowboarded Saturday.

Warm up 800RIM, 800IM kick

8x50 on 1:00 !@#$%$% can't spring to save my life.

warm down 100m

then a sushi pig out with lee and rob.

Power Yoga!!

...followed by birthday pizza, wine, and cake.

Happy Birthday to my workout/pigout partner!!!!

Post NIght Bus Swim

Warm up: 400RIM 4x100kick alt E/T

4x75 p/kk/s at 10RIB

cool down

short and sweet

Warm up 800RIM 800IMkick

that's it, that's all


oh, and Kirsten and I signed up for a swim meet in April!

sore shoulders

I'm going to have to start landing my jumps at the hill or else my shoulders aren't going to be able to take it in the pool.

Warm up: 800RIM / 400 IMkick

8x100 kick alt E/T with a board/no board

200 ez

2200m

stretch n swim

Warm up 800RIM / 400 IM swim

4x50 scull
4x50 pull

4x100 kick

200 cool down


2200m

No time, no time, no time

Warm up - 800RIM, 400RIMkick

8x100 alt IM and Free pull

200 cool down

2200

Power Yoga #2

did it again, felt great!

Monday

Warm up: 800RIM / 400IM kick

6x100 IM alt long&strong and EZ @2:30

cool down 200 scull/200kick/200 swim

2400m

The sunday after...

Warm up 800RIM 400IM kick

8x100 alt IM and Epull

warm down 200 scull/200 kick/200swim

2600m

warm up

I now have over 400 papers to mark before next week.

soooo

I had time for a warm up today.

800RIM
800IM kick

Power Yoga

Kirsten invited me to join her for a power yoga class last night!

It was my very first time to try it. I think I did pretty well, but I'll let you know the results when the ROM kicks in tomorrow!!

A Valentine's Day swim with Kirsten!

Warm up 800RIM swim 800IMkick

400 kick with Kirsten -we kicked side by side -haha, it was so fun.

1000 pull -Kirsten set the pace and I tried to keep up -it's so much different when you've got someone there to push you a bit.

100 ez

16x50 2x Y/RIM 2xIM/Y

400 cool down

3900m

short swim

Warm up: 800RIM 800IMkick

5x100 E @2:00

200T
200E
100ez


2600m

friday dip

Warm up 800RIMswim 200IMkick

5x100 pull@ 2:00 -hold 1:30

8x25 Y at :45

8x50 Y/IMO at 1:10

200 warm down

2300m

A swim with Sista K

Warm up - 800RIM 800IMkick

4 x 400 alt pull and kick

200 warm down

3400m

Making up for lost time

Warm up: 4x200 RIM 4x200 RIMkk

4x 4x100 pull @2min/4x25 fly @1:00

200 scull
200 T long and strong

1000 kick alt E & T by 50

200 cool down

5200m

losing momentum

I'm hitting a wall...

I don't know how to get over it/go around it/get through it.

The swimming feels good and I'm more than capable of a good hard bike after, but I haven't done the running I told myself I'd do and I haven't chosen my next event to enter. I haven't done weights in about a month.

Time to set more goals.

Loosening up after a day on the hill

Warm up - 4x150 RIMO swim 5x150 IMO kick

4x 100E/200kk/300pull

16x 25 E started at a breath every 4 strokes and added a stroke each 25 -held the last 3 at no breaths since I only take 16 strokes/25

200 T
200 T kk
100 easy


4500m

a short dip

The international cooking dinner was held tonight at Colare, so I only had time for a short swim before pigging out on Gyoza!!

Warm up: 150x4 RIMO 100x4IMO kk

a bit of kick
a bit of sculling
a good chat with Lee.....


nothing to add up today.

sleepy

I like that I can control my pace, that I'm aware of how fast I'm going.
My turns still suck.

Warm up 150x4 RIM swim 150x4IMOK

15x100 pull on 2:00 descend by 5s -last 100 under 1:30

300 T

200 scull

3200m

GYM: stretch, bike for 30 @60, stretch

sore shoulders

I had a couple of good wipe outs on Sunday on the hill. Landed hard on my shoulder. I felt it today in the pool

Warm up - 150x4 RIM swim 150x4 IMO kick

1500 E pull

100 warm down

nice and easy

2800m

No Swimming this Weekend.....

BUT LOTS OF SNOWBOARDING!!!!!!!

TWO DAYS IN A ROW.

Cute boys

Ok, ok, although Tuesdays are hell at the pool, Thursdays always seem to make up for it some how. Last Thursday it was the YYK soccer team, this time it was just some cute Japanese boy in a blue speedo. We didn't chat, but he was a nice distraction -and well, what can I say, cute boys are good motivation! I'll be the first to admit it -I always swim better when I have someone to 'show off' to.

Warm-up 4x150 RIM swim 4x150 IM kick

4x 200E pull @ 4:00 (hold 3:00)
100 IM @ 3:00 (hold 1:45)

8x50 IMO -first 4 50s last 25Y, second 4 50s first 25Y

400 kick alt E and T by 25

300 warm down

Total 3500m

I hate Tuesdays at the pool...

Tuesdays, for some strange reason are the busiest days at the pool. And the concept of 'fast lanes' and 'slow lanes' doesn't seem to exist. People just get in where ever they please - and since when has swimming been a social sport! Get your face in the water and swim people!! Quit standing IN THE MIDDLE of the lane talking to your neighbors!!!

It's not bad when K and I are together, we usually are intimidating enough to scare people off - but yesterday K got out earlier than I did and when I came off the wall from a flip turn I literally swam right over top of a woman who had pushed off the wall when I was coming in to do a turn. She's lucky, I didn't actually hit her, I just streamlined right up over her legs then stopped short, spitting and sputtering. She was oblivious!!

Another woman stood at the end of the lane, directly on the blue line - like a deer caught in the headlights, not moving whenever I'd come in to do a turn. I actually yelled underwater as a did my turn, I wonder if she heard me...

anyway, I still managed 4000m

Warm up 4x150 RIM swim 4x150 IM kk

2x3x200 SKP E on 30 sec rest

3x200 SscullP T on 30 sec rest

8x25 E sprint @ 1:00

16x25 E pull - each 25 increase the # of strokes before taking a breath by one starting from 4

400 cool down alt E andT drill

GYM: 30min stretching 30min on the bike (10@60/5@80/5@90/5@70/5@40)

Natsukashi

I started going to the gym in Kurobe about 5 months ago - I really enjoy being back in that atmosphere and this particular gym reminds me a lot of the GPRC facilities for some reason.
The gym is my 'alone' time. I really get focused riding the bike and even in the weight room amongst all the chatter and flexing...haha. As with most gyms there are regulars - I wouldn't call myself that quite yet, but I'd really like to be. I've gotten more familiar with some of the other patrons and as my Japanese progresses, I find that I'm enjoying each visit more and more.

But probably the best part of the Kurobe gym is the staff. They are a great group- very friendly and helpful. The made me feel welcome right away and always make an effort to at least say hi whenever I go. There is one staff member in particular who I am happy to say has become a friend of mine. Her name is Yuki and from the first time I met her, I knew that we'd be friends. She is outgoing, outspoken, and FUN! We have similar backgrounds in that we have both been lifeguards and swim teachers. She was a discus thower in university and has worked in the recreation/sports industry for the ten years.

But on to the real reason I'm posting...

On Sunday I went for lunch with Yuki and afterwards, she had planned to introduce me to one of the prefecture's top swim coaches, a guy she used to work with at a pool years ago. He coaches in Toyama city and so we drove in to Toyama to meet him. Toyama city has some really nice swimming facitities, including a 50m pool which is part of a huge recreation centre. The moment I stepped on the deck and saw the swimmers in the water and the coaches on deck, stop watches in hand....

SO, now I have another reason to learn Japanese - I'd love to be back on deck!!!!!! I miss it so much. It was my life for 12 years and I'd really love the opportunity to do something here. There is a small club in Kurobe, but it's only developmental swimmers. Maybe I could start there and convince these guys in Toyama to let me come on deck once or twice a month.

There were actaully two coaches on deck and both of them had gone to Syndey for the Olympics. The swimmers in the water that day were high school and university/college students all of whom were pretty high level athletes. The coaches were totally willing to show me their workout and let me talk to the swimmers during practice.

AGH!! I really want to be back on deck!

Just one more thing to add to my plate!

Warm up: 150xRIM swim 150xIMkick

1500 timed swim 25:00

300 T (long uwp/long and strong)

16x25 E kick 2 1:15 hold :30

4x50 Y/E at 1:30 -hold :50

warm down 400 E drill


EEEEEEP, my shoulders hurt!!

I swam this day, but I can't for the life of me remember what I did...

I think it was:

warm up - 4x150RIM swim 4.100RIM kick

10x 100 free

some fly....

ah whatever, I swam for about 45 minutes and did about 2500m

went to the gym, bike for about 30 minutes....went hom

Warm up - I mananged to get 300 meters in before being sidetracked by 3 boys from the YKK soccer team.

After 30 minutes of stretching at the wall and giving pointers, I managed to put in:

4x200 E holding 3:10 on 3:30 (pull)

16x25 fly on 1:00 -streamline 12.5m long and strong

300 cool down


GYM: 20 minutes stretchin
50 minutes on the bike

Thursday, January 5, 2006

Warm up: 4x150 RIM Swim 4x100 IM kick

15x100 pull - 5@2:00 5@1:55 5@1:50 (the last 5 were not fun!!!)

300 T (long and strong - turns and underwater pullouts)

2x 200 kick - alt T&E / 200 alt scull & E

400 cool down

Total: 4000m

Gym: stretch, bike-30 min, weights...a poor attempt at squats and curls, then more stretching. -blech.

New Year - Same Resolutions

My resolutions never seem to change. It makes me wonder what I actually accomplish every year...if anything.

Here's a look at the past year:







January - I learned a new sport! SNOWBOARDING!!!! I went 6 times my first season.




















May -Kurobe Road Race (10km)



















September - I climbed Tsurugi Dake 2998 m












October - Toyama Relay Marathon
(2kmx4laps)












November - Two events this month! The Kurobe community swim meet.









The Nyuzen Marathon.
(10km)