Three weeks out is normally the peak training week for endurance athletes in terms of volume and intensity. In my experience, recovery is faster with swimming than running, so I extend the peak into Week Two. Usually I drop the volume slightly, but shoot for my longest swims of the macro-cycle during Week Two. That is my plan this year.
For Week Three, I busted out what I think is the biggest seven days of my life. I have run more miles in a week, I have swum more meters in a week, but I never run and swum more together. I have already written about several of the days. Monday, I reported on already. I ran 4.02 miles and did a straight swim at Twin Rivers for 9,100 meters. I don't remember now why I called that swim off, but I stopped at 3:14, short of the 4:00 hour threshold I am always anxious to cross.
Tuesday I hammered 7.21 miles on the road and swam 5,400 meters that contained some quality sets. Wednesday was the double dip day when I swam 4,038 meters in the pond practicing with Tristan and did another 2,000 meters at the pool, besides the 3.15 miles I ran. Thursday I wanted to cram in all the swimming I could, but the predicted rain with its attendant lightning came early forcing me out of the pool after a mere 2,600 meters. But Friday, that special day of the week, I had reserved for the fish farm.
I arrived at the pond Friday morning somewhere around 9:30, my earliest of the year. The plan was to swim and run and swim and run mostly all day. It took awhile to get my stuff set up. I dropped the truck's tailgate, rolled out my outdoor carpet beneath and behind it, and set up my chair. Then I placed two towels on the tailgate, set up my running shoes, and placed the soft cooler in the bed of the truck. For me, this is like being at the beach. I love it out on the fish farm. I have the best training set up in the world, and I have it all to myself.
At 10 am I waded into the cool water of Lee Watts 30 and started stroking away. I did three plus laps and then crawled out to meet my waiting running shoes. I shuffled an easy two miles once running the center road between two ponds that both had six aerators going, only the road separating the two groups of machines. The sound the aerators made and the slight scent of the fish water they put into the wind added an extra layer of ambiance to an already great environment. I love this place, I thought as I shuffled past.
To make a short story long, I swam and ran and swam and ran until I had swum 7.43 miles and run four. It wasn't the monster I had hoped for but a pretty solid day nonetheless. Date night with Penny meant I needed to get home and wash the fish slime off.
Saturday I took a long run of 11.02 miles with three half-marathon race pace intervals thrown in. Later in the day, I worked in the yard and lifted some weights. I looked up my lifting from last year and found that I am just a bit stronger now than then. Sunday, of course, is always a super easy day. Besides church and nap, I shuffled a slow and easy 2.02 miles.
For the week, I
ran 36.63 and walked 4.86 miles,
lifted weights once, and
swam 36,092 meters.
I need two big swims for Week Two. One in the pool of over four hours and one in the pond of over eight miles. Anything else is a bonus.
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