Triathlon Training: My First Day of Lap Swimming in 15 Years

Holy macaroni... what an exciting day this Monday is already! I know it might not seem all that eventful, but for me, my first day of lap swimming again, after nearly 15 years of doing it, was incredible.
 
Yes, I headed down to the local gym and snuck some freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and flip-turns into my little exercise regimen. As you may recall from my birthday video, I have set a goal to complete my first triathlon by this time next year (hopefully, by next summer), which will just so happen to be around my 40th birthday; and swimming was the last of the three disciplines to incorporate into the equation.
 
So Steve and I switched our routine around a bit this morning and rose at 4:00 am, were out for our 4-mile walk/run by 4:15 am. By 5:25 I was on my bike and pedaled to the 18-mile mark. At which time I hurried, changed, got in the car and headed down to the gym to meet the pool face-to-face.
 
I had trepidation about this part, let me tell you.

Now swimming isn't new to me by any means. In what almost seems like another lifetime, I was a competitive swimmer. From the age of 7 all the way through my sophomore year of college (when a nasty little injury cut my dreams short). I was a high school All-American, US National record holder, qualified for the Olympic Trials and even earned a full-ride swimming scholarship to college; so indeed, my years in the pool and the endless amount of laps, meets, best times and big goals were a huge part of my childhood.

Me in 1981. Don't you just love the dangling goggle strip. Ha ha!

But the last time I swam (other than just for fun in the summer) was just about 15 years ago. Right after Brynn was born, I got a different gym membership where the pool was outdoors and not heated many mornings (brrrrrrr). I loved it then, but I was in my early-to-mid 20s at that time and hey, a decade-and-a-half can kick your ass sometimes when it comes to surviving workouts; so suffice to say, I was just hoping that my arms and legs remembered what to do this morning.

That's me...many years ago.

Lo-and-behold, they actually DID! My feet started kicking, my arms started pulling, I remembered how to turn my head to breathe; I even retained the same funky rhythm I always stroked as a youngster. It was crazy (and SO cool)!  I don't know why it was so invigorating for me, but it just felt so amazing to be gliding through the water once again.

Perhaps it was memories of a time long ago that I loved (and struggled with a love/hate relationship from time-to-time as well). Or maybe it was just that my 39 year-old body could still fight its way through things and that my bike riding and running had earned me some stamina. Maybe it was just the peaceful and quiet swoosh of the water and seeing those black tile lines run along the bottom below me once again. It was most likely a combination of it all. But the bottom line is that it was fantastic and I can't wait to do it again.
 
I hope to squeak in swimming three times a week at this point and increase my yardage and frequency as the triathlon approaches. I swam 2,200 yards this morning; which is about 1.25 miles.

My ensemble is much more chromatic these days. My black swimsuit now sits between colorfully-decorated ink; and I don't even need to wear a cap to keep the hair (ha ha) out of my eyes.

Yay for my first swimming day. I'm so stoked.