Swimming

I went swimming today for the first time in I don't know how long. I swam a thousand yards and it was tough. Tougher than it ever has been. I used to swim a straight thousand for warm up (I had a lazy coach).

I consider myself to be a relatively athletic person but time and time again I am reminded that my body was not built for running, jumping and other land related movements. I'm just slow. Embarrassingly so. I've started to play a little tennis and I totally have the coordination to hit the ball over the net. My problem with tennis is getting to the ball. I'm just not quick enough.

I was however built for the water. Recently I've learned that I'm more buoyant than other (most?) people. (Insert obvious and inappropriate flotation device joke here). I have always moved really well in the water. Sometimes I wonder if I have a strong back and shoulders because I'm a swimmer or I'm a swimmer because I have a strong back and shoulders. My mom was telling me the other day that she took me to a mom and tot class when I was three and I made it miserable for everyone. I screamed and fought the whole time. Even though I apparently hated it it must have stuck because the next summer I whizzed through all five levels of swim lessons at the rec center. I was always the kid that was in the pool for hours uninterrupted when we went in the summer.

I wasn't in love with competitive swimming. I wasn't all that fast. But I LOVED playing water polo. Its maybe the only thing that has really come naturally to me. Without much coaching at all I took to that sport like a duck to water (pun intended). I somehow knew without anyone telling me how to maneuver myself, where to put the ball, how to get around the defense etc. The problem with being really good at water sports is that not many other people are. Lap swimming is a pretty solitary activity. And have you ever heard someone say "Hey lets get some friends together and play a pick up game of water polo?" I'm lucky if people know what the game is let alone how to play it. People are always amazed that water polo players tread water for the entire game (touching the bottom is illegal). I'm amazed that a soccer player runs for 90 minutes. God made some people good at running and jumping. He made me good at treading water.

Which brings me back to my experience at the pool this evening. Even in my sad state I could still swim circles around most the people I know. But man I did not love how hard it was for me. There were a couple of walls it seemed too much work to do flip turns! I've never felt that way. Flip turns and I have always been friends. The other thing that surprised me is that my goggles were hurting. I kept adjusting but it never got better. I realized its because I've lost the calluses around my eyes from wearing swedes so much. I'm going to have to start wearing padded goggles. PADDED GOGGLES! Like I'm some kind of guppy.

One of the advantages of swimming is its not that hard on the body. I don't have any lingering knee or ankle injuries. Sometimes my shoulders will get really stiff and pop but I don't think its unusual. The one part of my body that doesn't seem to have the tolerance for swimming they once did is my ears. The water hurts my ears.

Anyway, I've set a goal to be able to swim 6 x 100 on 1:30s by the end of the summer. I used to do that no sweat. Maybe I'll start at 12 x 50 on a minute. We'll see if I can do it.

Sorry so long. Geez.