Want to know why have swimmers have such amazing bodies? Because you use Every. Single. Muscle. in your body to swim. My upper body, back and obliques are beyond sore today which made for a really interesting first day of Boot Camp and by interesting I mean I just came home and immediately ate two Tylenol.
The good news is that I could keep myself afloat and propel myself forward. By the end of the class I was managing to get in breathes every third stroke. There’s a lot to remember in swimming. It’s a bit like speed skating that way–it’s all about the technique.
The bad news is I couldn’t even do one 25m lap. (Note: For the sprint the swimming distance is 750m. For the Olympic distance it’s 1.5k). I’d get close to doing it but I’d start to panic because I felt like I wasn’t getting enough breath and would stop.
Anyway, it’s a starting point. And as my friend Jacki pointed out “there’s no where to go but up.” Which, I certainly hope is the case because going down in a pool means you’re drowning.
And on to things that would only happen to me…
Have you ever heard of cupping? It’s an ancient Chinese form of alternative medicine in which a local suction is created on the skin. Basically they heat these glass cups and put them on your skin to create a vacuum and your skin is sucked up into the cups. I was going to put a picture in but honestly it’s so gross I can’t even stand to look at it. If you want to see it, just google “cupping” but I’m warning you in advance….yuck.
Anyway, guess who cupped their eyes? Apparently I put my goggles on too tight and by the end of the class the goggles had sucked or pushed all my skin upwards and out. Basically I left the pool looking like Squidward.
This is me twelve hours later – thankfully, with the help of cold compresses it’s gone down quite a bit and my makeup has covered the red marks left on my face.
I’m my own walking gong show.
Mental note: Loosen goggles before next class.
I have searched high and low for goggles that A) don’t leak ; B) don’t fog up; C) don’t require constant adjustments while swimming and C) fit well enough to stay on while not leaving me red-rimmed and puffy afterwards. I have not succeeded in finding the perfect pair but I’m somewhat happy with the Aquasphere Kayenne. I still wind up with the red rim and puffiness after a swim, which is why I use sport sunglasses for the bike and run portions of a race – otherwise, I’d really look like a scary, inflamed, sweaty mess.
You can do it, Sharon!!!
Swim goggle marks are hawt. The swim comes together really quick. At first one lap just kills you. Then you can barely finish 2. Four can be a bit of a struggle, but suddenly 8 is easy, and 16 happens because it was easier to keep going. Trust me. I’ve done this twice now.
That is really really good to know. I’m just going to keep at it and (hopefully) improve.
I love you.
I googled cupping. I will never be the same again.
I know, right? Completely gross.
You’re killing me. I try not to laugh at other’s misfortunes (sometimes succeed), but it’s especially hard when you make it so funny. I keep thinking I need to add swimming to my workout cycle — mostly because I suck so badly at it that I’d have to burn a ton of calories just trying to get from one end of the pool to the other. And the breathing thing — NEVER got close to getting that down. Way too claustrophobic for me. And I wouldn’t have even known that I’d have to worry about Squidword eyes. You’re like a public warning system. Thanks!
I feel like I did my good deed for today. My eyes have finally gone back to normal.