In the picture below is the brother of officer Dean (he is in white shirt by Z holding the flag). We were honored to have his brother run. This was only a small portion of the people that came out to the Blue run.
Here is some of my teammates. Frank of course took pictures at the finish line. Kathy and Sunshine passed out waters at mile 2 with me. :>) I appreciate them coming to help so much! Our team loves to help and give to deserving causes.
The Run for Blue raised almost $8,000 for the 2 officers families. Well done Hattiesburg, Ms! and Thanks Z and all the other volunteers for putting this all together!
Now to Saturday..... My cousin who just finished her first half ironman earlier this year had been telling me about her swimming and how much it had improved. She went to a swim camp and is going again in June to another one in New York. She's a lot like me. She wasn't known for being athletic growing up. I can honestly tell you that I was HORRIBLE at sports! I tried softball one time and the ball hit me and I never tried it again. I was lanky and uncoordinated. LOL Yes, I did cheer a couple of years but cheering when I was young wasn't like it is now. I didn't have to know how to flip and jump like they do these days. So when I say I was NOT athletic...believe me.. I was not.
Anyway, my cousin and I have been keeping up with each other lately. She recently started running when she turned 50 and ran her first marathon earlier this year. Afterwards, she told me she had a lot of knee / leg issues so she was going to start swimming and biking. I briefly mentioned to her about trying a TRI. Well, she has gotten all into it. She loved her first half ironman and she's doing another one later in June. She wanted me to come meet her at the pool on Saturday so she could show me her swim drills she learned at camp. She said they really improved her swimming. I was anxious to go meet her because swimming in my worst event. I ran run and bike, but I'm just not comfortable in the water like I am running and biking.
So I got up early Saturday to do my long run before I would meet her. I did 10 easy miles and off to Hattiesburg I went to meet her. Let me just say that the Institute for Wellness in Hattiesburg is AWESOME! OH if I lived in Hattiesburg, I would have to check into joining that wellness center. It's got everything!
She first asked me what I thought competitive and TRI swimming had in common. I wasn't sure where she was going with her question, but she soon explained and it makes sense. I've done a little reading since then and she's right. Well, I should say the coach that told her that is right. :>) Competitive swimmers only have to swim fast for a couple of minutes and they aren't going to hop on a bike and ride a couple hours and then run a couple hours like a TRI swimmer after they are done swimming. TRI swimmers are training for distance and endurance. Kind of like marathon training. You don't want to use all your energy swimming. You want swimming to be your easy event. And the one way to do that is to learn to RELAX in the water. When she said the word "relax" she had my full attention. See that's where I struggle. I tend to fight the water and try to hurry up and finish.
After we did drills and practiced for 1:30 hours, it was time to go. She was going to stay and swim more but I told her I needed to get on home. I'd already been gone most of the day. My husband thinks all I do is run, bike or swim. But honestly if I was at home, I'd just be watching him watch golf, ESPN, or weather. LOL
Anyway, she told me I need to quit focusing on trying to swim as hard and as fast as I can. Yes, I've been swimming a mile each time I go lately, but now I'm going to slow down and practice my form and try to RELAX. It will be a whole lot different when I get out in open water rather than being in a pool! I might not be getting a mile in each time for awhile, but I'm going to learn to do it right. :>) She also told me that my swimming is better than hers when she started. After watching her swimming, I don't see how, but if that's the case then maybe.... just maybe..there's hope of me to improve. I'm going to give it my best shot. NEVER EVER QUIT as I tell people all the time. :>)
If you're interested in how many laps or meters it is to swim a mile...here's you some info:
So what did you do this weekend? Remember, exercise is good for you! :>)
No comments:
Post a Comment