Pool Running

Tonight I went pool running. One of the women I run with, Sally, has shin splints and is being checked out for stressies. After following Em's journey to recovery, I'm pretty sure she's got them. Anyway, I mentioned pool running to her the other day and volunteered to run with her. I learned from Em's blog that having a running partner would help.

I was supposed to send Sally some info but she beat me to it, doing her own research and deciding to give it a go. That has made it really easy for me as her research meant that I didn't even have to work out where to buy a buoyancy belt.

I had been going to the gym after work to do Body Attack, but I gladly swapped activities when Sally suggested we go tonight. We're planning on aiming for three sessions a week.

Now, I don't need to go pool running because I'm injured. I have an entirely different reason for going - it's to get me back into the pool. I used to love swimming when I was young but now I have a whole lot of "too fat to be seen in bathers" body issues to deal with. If I'm going to have a go at this baby triathlon I'm thinking of doing next year, I have to start swimming again. If I make an "exercise date" with someone, then I'll go. Regular pool running should help me to feel more comfortable about being at the pool.

Another advantage is that it's something different that still helps me work on my cardio fitness. I'm not at all keen on the cardio machines in the gym, so this is a good alternative.

Pool running was a strange sensation. I can see that I'm going to have lots of questions for Em when she gets back from Sydney. Either that, or I'm going to have to do some research of my own. We were maintaining an upright position and running down the pool to about the half way mark before we turned around. It took us about 90 seconds to get to the half way point. That fitted in nicely with the intervals we were doing. It took a while to get used to the action and I can see that the water resistance on my arms is going to really benefit me.

I made an effort to push the intensity when we were "sprinting" but it didn't feel anything like the effort that real running requires. I was chatting away while we were running, which made me wonder if I was working hard enough but my arms and legs were pumping away. I meant to wear my HRM but I forgot to put it on. Getting out of the pool to put it on seemed like too much effort, but I'll wear it next time so I can keep an eye on my heart rate.

When we got out of the pool it didn't feel as though we'd worked all that hard, but I'm feeling generally tired now. It's going to be interesting to see how I pull up tomorrow.

Oh, as for the dragon boat training - I felt fine today. A little stiff, but no pain. I got home to an avalanche of email about decorating the dragon boat, wearing pink hats, and generally turning it into a carnival. It looks as though we'll be there all day. Two of the races are in the morning and the third is in the afternoon. This is sounding as though it's going to be an absolute hoot.

Edit: Style Consultation update

I was styled beautifully today. SC suggested that one of my tops would look great with my olive skirt and jacket. I tried it today and it was terrific. I also wore the waist shaper, which makes such a difference to the way my clothes sit, my gold bangle, and I managed to wear the pointy black court shoes all day as well.

Another definite improvement today was that I seriously considered wearing some makeup. I didn't actually wear it, but thinking about it has got to count - doesn't it?

I felt as though I looked great today, which is definitely good for my self-confidence. Now, all I have to do is get SC to style my bathers. You think I'm joking, but I seriously think she would if I asked her.