Monday, October 5, 2009

Just call me the little mermaid

I've gone swimming twice in the past three days. I'd forgotten how much I love it.

A couple of friends from college days, with whom I've reconnected on Facebook, swim a lot, and it must have been all their status updates that got me thinking. About a month ago I decided that I should get a bathing suit that I could use for real swimming, not my BJ's $20 tankini with too-long straps that fall off my shoulders all the time. After hemming and hawing and searching online for a suitable suit with free shipping, I bit the bullet, paid the lousy $5 shipping and got a wonderful x-back tank from Land's End. It's not as streamlined as a racerback, but it works, fits and stays on my shoulders, which is important for all sorts of reasons.


On Saturday, when the kids were in their swimming lessons, I ducked out to the member services desk at the Y and bought a swim cap and some goggles. I changed super-quickly into my new suit and managed to squeeze in a few laps before it was time to collect the kids after their lessons. Feeling refreshed, buoyant and powerful, I resolved that I'd swim every Saturday.

And then I got thinking...why not stop by during the week for a few laps? It's not like I have the swimming technique, the stamina, or the time to spend an hour in the pool or anything, but why not jump in and do a little bit after lifting weights? It's a little more exercise (and every little bit helps) and it makes me happy. Why not?

So today, I was a whirling dervish in the Nautilus room, trying to get all my machines done so I'd have time to swim a little before having to pick up Timmy from preschool. I whirled myself into the pool area, discovered 3 lap lanes open (and one of them EMPTY), swirled into the locker room and tore back out of there 2 minutes later in full lap-swimming gear, including earplugs this time. I found a safe perch for my glasses, put on my goggles and gingerly stepped down the ladder, relieved that the pool was much, much warmer than the ocean at Nantasket (and even warmer than the other pool on Saturday.)

I set off in my inelegant front crawl, which I taught myself to do in grad school when I first discovered fitness swimming. As usual, swimming into the deep end freaked me out; there's something about seeing the lane-marker stripe go down, down, down that just gives me the willies a bit. (Strangely, it didn't bother me in the other pool on Saturday. Maybe because that pool is much newer, and doesn't look like it would like to swallow me up for lunch.)

Soon, however, I was concentrating on breathing air, not water, and didn't have time to think about the menacing stripe too much. All told, I only did 5 laps, with some resting in between laps. I think I could have swum longer, but I had to whirl myself into the locker room (leaving quite the array of puddles, I'm sad to admit) and into my dry clothes and get back to Milton to pick up Timmy. I was only 4 minutes late. Next time I'll have to allow myself more time, and not stop at the bank on the way to the Y. I think I'll try again on Thursday.

3 comments:

JEN said...

i've never been a swimmer (love the water but not for a purpose like exercise, LOL) but Keith swims almost every day we go to the Y, he's a merman ;)

cmmoore said...

Good for you! So important to keep in mind - and in perspective - how much time you will be spending in the pool. Easy to squeeze a little time in. Some days when I feel rushed, and I think, "I don't have time to run five miles!" an annoying inner voice says, "No, but you have time to run three..."

Thank goodness for little voices. ;-)

Kathleen Billette-Saul said...

Awesome - so proud of you. My stamina was awful when I started, but taking breaks and changing strokes really helped. I was in the 86-degree pool tonight for a 25-min swim. I have the same impression in the deep end, I have to say. From that point of view, I prefer my maximum 5-footer right in the back yard.