Awesome weekend.....not because I laid down amazing rides and runs but because it was a weekend that had it all- training, coaching, family and friends
Training...of course there was some. Super fun and relaxed 3+ hour ride on Saturday with John, Cathleen, Liz and Chelsea. Since we are all (except John) racing Wildflower it was a cruisy ride out through Poway and up Scripps Poway Parkway and home. I tested out my massive cassette and am pleased with the cadence I was holding on the climb. I was extremely proud of the self installation of the new cassette....well until John and I took off and there was this clanging sound, a sound like something may fall off my bike sound. Oops...seems that little spacer is quite important. No worries, I rode home, took the cassette off, inserted the space and was back on the road in 10 minutes. John had time for Starbucks and the girls a pottie break. Nice day and fun times!
- Sunday was a nice run, well until I came upon the 10 ft rattle snake on the sidewalk. Okay, maybe it was 2 feet or even 18 inches but it was hogging the entire corner. What the heck - Easter Sunday and there he was. I took the long, long path around and was totally freaked out for the rest of the run. Headed to Frogs for a great swim and called it a weekend of training!
Coaching - my newest swim client! I am very excited about my newest client...he is signed up for an Olympic in September and is struggling swimming 1 length at time. We have a lot of work to do but he is committed, eager to learn and we had 2 x 1 hour lessons this weekend and made HUGE gains already. Saturday we met at the JCC and the kicked me out, no more future lessons! Only lessons given by the JCC staff. Dang it! I figured we could go to UCSD but they were closed on Easter so he agreed to drive to Frogs in Carmel Mountain. I have taught 20+ lessons there and never had an issue...not today- new head life guard and she asks us to leave. Nice impression I am making...kicked out 2 for 2. She called her manager and they agreed to let us stay for the 1 hour, but huge bummer! They say it is a liability...but when he is a member of the JCC and we both paid and singed waiver for Frogs, how is that a liability? And, as a USAT coach I have liability insurance....Argh! So after Wildflower we are going to meet at UCSD- he wants 2x1 hour lessons per weekend and I am excited to help with his progress and get him up to 1500 meters.
I have been teaching swimming since I was 14. Granted I took a sabbatical for 15 years but it is amazing how it all came back so quickly when I started up again. The Internet is such a lucrative source for learning, confirmation and giving me background on certain drills and why they work. I have taken 4 webinars as well as the USAT Training and I get better every time. The key really is consistency and coming back. The most success I have is when we see each other every week or every other week and they work mid week and then we correct and learn more. Swimming is technical and most people have more than one issue to correct and sometimes you have to correct them one at a time or the brain is overloaded and everything falls apart.
It is amazing to watch as an athlete fatigues...the stroke falls apart. I now yell to stop, stop! As soon as the incorrect technique returns, stop. Building new muscle memory is not easy, but it can be done!!! Once the technique is corrected then we work on endurance, not before, not during!
Movies...we rarely, okay never get to the theaters so when we see movies they are long out of the hype and everyone has seen them, but they are good So we finally saw The Kings Speech and The Fighter. KS was as good as it was hyped to be...great historical fiction and Colin Forth really did a stupendous job acting the stammering. Well worth seeing if you are one of the few that missed out. Really this was a feel-good history lesson, one that reminds us in no uncertain terms that royals are people too and have struggles like the rest of us. Riley even liked it- "even though it was kind of like a documentary" she said. The Fighter is an enjoyable underdog-triumphs-over-adversity story. Predictable yes, most of the drama takes place outside of the ring, where lives are on the line, a family is divided. Nothing new here but really well done and worth seeing.
And finally Easter....Easter Egg hunt for the kids and my Dad! Great fun- always a good time when everyone can see the final egg but for the person looking for it. Lots of candy, money and good fun! Wonderful dinner with my Dad and Kathi, Billy and his neighbor Irene and the kids and John. With my Mom in Boulder, Billy brought a date ;) Less time training so more time cooking...Lamb Tangine, Moroccan Quinoa salad and Easter treats for dessert. A perfect finish to the weekend.
That cartoon cracked me up!
ReplyDeleteAnd cool about your new client. That will be very rewarding for you both when he finishes his swim this fall! :)