When I started swimming again this year, I swam eight laps and thought I was on the verge of near death.
Seriously.
It wasn’t pretty.
Yet over the past 10 months, swimming and I got more comfortable. I got sort of faster, not by that much, and am still working on being completely comfortable in the open water. But the one thing that I was reminded of this past Saturday is what we often overlook in the search for speed: endurance.
On Saturday, I swam my longest swim ever: 2.1 miles!
Sure it was in a pool and yes, it was part of a speed workout and still included drills, kicking and rest. But I don’t give a damn – 2.1 miles and it couldn’t have come at a better time. It was that workout when you are ok with not being the fastest, but you’re ecstatic to see how far you’ve come. Like the first time you ran a mile, swam a mile, ran a 5k, a half marathon, or any time when you took it to the next level.
I’m still dealing with my knee issues and haven’t run in over a month. I’m still experiencing mental highs and lows, but being able to achieve something new in a foreign sport was the kind of mental mojo that I needed.
So you say you’re not a swimmer? Yeah, me neither.
Damn you, Pinterest.
YEA!!! I cannot even imagine! You are awesome!
I JUST started swimming last week and I am HORRIBLE, it is so tiring… 2.1 miles- my goodness superstar that is a looooong way! I am hoping your knee starts to feel better but at least you’re insanely good at these other activities too for the time being 😉
Jojo! I hope your legs are ok after that super-amazing race you did! When will I get to see your face again?!
way to go! keep celebrating those victories : )
Awesome job! I still remember the first time I made it down and back without stopping in a 50 meter pool. I was so proud of myself. Swimming is tough! Well done girl!
2.1 miles?! That’s AMAZING!!!
Pinterest gets me EVERYTIME. And I learnt a lesson last week– I’m a much better swimmer than I thought. Pinterest always wins.
Congratulations! I can’t imagine how tough it must be for you not to be able to run but it’s awesome that you’re finding new things to kick ass at. 😀
One word: incredible. And another: congratulations!
Thank you! Just trying to stay positive here…
CONGRATS!!! That is a huge accomplishment! I definitely noticed the same thing. When I did my first Master’s Swim I only made it 1 hour and my arms were heavy but by the end of IM training I was able to stay 1 hour 20 minutes and get out feeling great. I slightly improved my speed, but not by much, but the increase in endurance is what you really want on race day anyway! You want to come out of that 2.4 mile swim feeling like it was a warm-up.
Hi Page! Congrats on your long swim. It’s awesome to see how far along you are progressing and to see that I’m not alone in conquering all of my aqua-related willies either.
Thanks to your inspiration (and blogging) I got back into the pool again today after a week or so hiatus.
-Amara
Congrats on the 2.1 mile swim, that is awesome!
Bummer to hear that your knee is still giving you problems, hopefully you are able to run soon. But I know exactly what you mean about being able to achieve something in a foreign sport even if you can’t run right now.
You should be very proud. Congrats!!