Swim Squad

For over a year now I have procrastinated about joining swim squad - a group training session with a coach - Greg Watson.  I find swim squad grueling and painful and counter to the happy, easy triathlon training style I have pursued recently which entails relaxed, steady swims and leisurely lunch at the spa.  

Last week Greg asked me if I wanted to be taken off the swim squad mail list and I told him I would try to join the swim workout at least once this spring.  At Tamako Ekiden, yesterday my teammate Motozo mentioned he was going to swim squad in the evening and so reluctantly I decided to participate.

And it was brutal.  

3,000 meters of frenzied gasping and thrashing. Not only was this the farthest I have swam since Ironman in May 2006, it was the fastest.  In swim squad you follow the previous swimmer by 5 or 10 seconds.  I desperately tried to keep up with Mary and stay ahead of the guy behind me who kept bumping into the bottom of my feet.  We did 100-meter intervals in 2 minutes, with 10 second rest, which was bad enough.  However it was the 25 meter drills keeping our head above water and 25 meters of keeping our arms extended in front of us and just propelling ourselves by kicking that really killed me.

I felt really satisfied when the workout was over.  Greg said my stroke looked better and I was quicker than a year ago and my times were faster.