Ben's Workout 11/9/13

I had my first swim lesson today. It was awesome. I've got some good things going for me (strong kick and nice streamline) and have some things to work on (keeping my head down and breathing properly).

The hardest part is getting used to the breathing. The coach had me doing a few different things to just get used to the water while inhaling and exhaling. That's the part that comes from getting comfortable in the pool (I swam once last summer and probably only once the summer before...).

She also told me that I cut through the water very well and don't try to muscle through it like a lot of people do. We practiced gliding with the head down so that I'd start to understand how to move less and go farther.

Overall, it was a lot of fun. Swimming feels a lot more natural to me than I expected and the coach said that I'll be putting up some fast times very quickly. I'm going to get to the pool at least once this week to practice before the next lesson.

Even though I was tired after the lesson I decided to lift a little since I was already up in Oneonta anyway.

Warm-up:

Swim lesson
Stretching & Mobility
1500m row

Strength:

Leg Raised Bench 3 x 6 135#
Side Plank Shoulder Raises 3 x 6 20#
Seal Fit Flutter Kicks 3 x 30
Hang Clean and Press 3 x 6 85#
Reverse Rows 3 x 6
Russian Twists 2 x 20 20#
Preacher Curls 3 x 8 50#
Skull Crushers 3 x 8 50#
Hanging Leg Raises 3 x 10
Russian KB Swings 3 x 20 35#

I'm not sure how many podcasts you two listen to but there were some really good fitness ones the last few weeks that you should check out. I listen when I cook/eat my meals and when I'm driving to hockey or the gym. You have someone to talk to when cooking/eating and probably aren't in the car as much as I am so...

Anyway, this week was good. Check these out if you have time:

• Ben Greenfield Fitness Podcast: Mass Made Simple by Dan John interview
• Rich Roll Podcast: Interview with Ben Greenfield on fitness, homeschooling, and training for an Ironman on a low carb/high fat diet
• Barbell Shrugged: Kelly Starrett from Mobility WOD
• Fat Burning Man by Abel James: Danny Dreyer on ChiRunning, How to Train for an Ultra, and How to Run without Your Legs
• Endurance Planet: Low or High Intensity for Ironman and figuring out your formula (probably more triathlon-focused than you are interested in...I'm becoming a big fan of Tawnee Prazak)

Morning Coffee Swim from Endurance Planet on Vimeo.