Eau Du Chlorine

Za Claw
Apparently some time in the year between quitting year-round swimming and the swimming season of my senior year I picked up this weird thing with my hand where there is this 90^o bend of my wrist. It had always been there in my freestyle recovery, but apparently it was infecting other parts of not only my freestyle, but my butterfly as well! Za Claw, as it was affectionately dubbed by my coach, was on display at the meet last weekend, but it is by no means the first piece of photographic evidence.

An early occurance of Za Claw

This stunning specimen manifested itself at the tender age of 15, and while it is not a fully developed claw, it is certainly a portent of things to come. But I digress.

While it is impossible to deny the allure of having a quirk of yours have a name as cool as Za Claw, I think it may need to go. It's really wreaking havoc in my stroke -- my hands are pointed in every direction but the bottom of the pool. I think that Za Claw is a result of too much tension in my wrist and forearms. I just need to relax because all that tension in my freestyle catch and pull is really messing it up. I notice a marked improvement when I let my arms let go of that tension. That is something I am going to need to think about constantly when I'm swimming. I don't think it's a problem for the recovery -- it's stunningly common -- but it's definitely bad juju in the catch and pull.

Bobble Head
During my lackluster 100 breaststroke in the meet on Friday I realized mid-race that my head was doing Bad Things. It is supposed to remain stationary with respect to my body, but it sure as hell wasn't. My head should not be leading the charge to the breath -- that is the job of the catch, pull, and insweep, not bobbing up and down like something in that Whack-A-Mole game. I also am having issues with kick/pull duality. I can have a good kick and I can have a good pull, but I can't have them both at the same time. They seem to be mutually exclusive. The solution? More drill. More work. More emphasis on the naughtiest-sounding of the strokes.

The Auto-Recovery
Pull width is a chronic problem of mine. I am constantly pulling too wide on freestyle, backstrong, and butterly, but the fly definitely has the best reward for fixing it.

When I get it just right and (later in the pull) my hands touch under my stomach/hips, my hands propel themselves forward like little rockets upon exiting the water. It's great! If I do everything right, then I don't have even try to get my arms over the water -- it just happens like they're being snapped ahead on a rail.

This is very tiring after a while (especially on the traps) so I must continue to work on it. This could be invaluable on the IM.

Posted by Jitterbean Girl at 8:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Swimming the 200 freestyle, 18 February 2006

Today wrapped up this year's meet short course yards meet. I finished it out strong and had a lot of fun! So, without further adieu...

The 200 freestyle was my first event today. I swam it really well, split-wise, meaning that I had the right intensity going on each 50 and that my first 50 was the fastest and my last three 50s were split very evenly. Towards the end you have to do that sprinting thing, and there I could feel my stroke shortening significantly. I was in lane one and had several teammates cheering for me on the side of the pool, which was AWESOME. Overall I came in at 2:12.30. A fun swim, and a faster time than I had anticpated!

The 200 IM came next. I was all psyched up for this one -- I was seeded second, and the first place seed was 17 seconds faster (than my wild-ass-guess entry time). She was 45, so I figured I might have a slight advantage in that arena (though that is by no means a given or a guarantee!). I also remembered swimming against her in the 100 breast the night before, so I knew she probably had a good stroke and hence we would probably swim the IM similarly.

My philosophy on the 200 IM is that you should swim each 50 like it's its own race -- you don't hold anything back even at the beginning because it is so short and the different strokes use completely different parts of your body. I took full advantage of my start, kicked underwater for about 12 yards, and popped up in the lead and stayed there for the rest of the race. I know I gave this one everything I had and pulled myself out of the pool exhausted but with the time of 2:23.90. Totally sweet. Added bonus: I not only won this event in my age group, I won it overall! Huzzah!

Last on the agenda was the 200 breast. I went into this with mixed feelings -- I simply haven't put the time in training for this event and my technique is sadly lacking. I also split this race badly -- I gained a second on each progressive 50. I came in at 2:48.42, which is a far cry from the 2:34.69 I swam to get my first AAA time almost nine years ago. I shouldn't beat myself up too badly though, as I think it is what my time was close to when I started the same season that culminated in that AAA time. Doesn't mean I'm happy with it either, though. I'm looking at this as a great starting point from which to improve (massively)!

The meet wrapped up with an awards ceremony. I had taken first in three events and second in the other three, which proved good enough to tie for the high point award in my age group, which earned me a nifty water bottle that boldly proclaims "ALASKA MASTERS State Swimming Championship High Point Award." (Side note: I hate to sound tacky, but I would have won every event I swam if someone from California hadn't come and swum in our Alaska state championships. I was not terribly pleased about that, especially since those first-place points are points our team could have used.)

So that wraps up the weekend. I'm tired and sore now, but the overwhelming thought running through my head is That was SO worth it. I am beyond ecstatic and thrilled to the nth degree that swimming has regained this focus and this role in my life -- I have missed it so much!

Damn, it feels SO GOOD to be back!

Posted by Jitterbean Girl at 11:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)