my first week at Masters swim and a new weight training routine

I DID IT! I went to two Masters swim practices last week. Yay me!

Note: I did not say I did two Masters swim practices last week

Tuesday night they swam 3800+ yards. I stepped up to 1200. They did IM sets (front crawl, back crawl, breast stoke and butterfly, in some specific order that I don't know!) and I stuck to only front crawl. They used paddles, fins, kick boards and pull buoys. I don't own any training aids. They watched the clock and did their sets on specific intervals. I watched them in amazement.

Even though this workout seemed to turn out exactly like my solo trips to the Y, I did get a few pointers on what I can do to improve my efficiency and dedicated a few laps to focusing on some tweaks. That is exactly what I was hoping to get out of my first few workouts.

Thursday night I stuck with them a bit more. I shortened my own warm up then we did 10 x 50 stroke drills, a set of intervals with paddles, a set of front crawl intervals and I shortened my own cool down. I worked. Hard. And arrived home exhausted, starving, and so freaking motivated! With each drill, they explained to me what part of my stroke it was supposed to correct. I had a lot to focus on during every trip down the lane and I was reminded more than a few times to keep my head down, reach for the wall, rotate more, etc. I have a long way to go but I'm excited about it too.

sink or swim?

Last night I went for a swim at Y and for a little while I shared a lane with a guy named Dave. He swam, literally, twice as fast as me (grrr... wish I was faster!).

After my workout was over he told me about a Masters swim program in my town. They swim at a school one mile from my house! I live in a small town, so I'm always excited when something that I usually associate with a "big town" (like adult athletic opportunities) actually happens in my edge-of-suburbia neighborhood. He explained that they swim Tuesday and Thursday evenings. They do drills and intervals and give each other form tips, precisely what I need. Typically the Tuesday workout is about 3000 yards and the Thursday distance is a little shorter.

This would be a perfect fit for me if I was the kind of swimmer who could just crank out 3000 yards. I'm just not there yet. But there are no beginner Masters programs and, short of hiring a personal swim coach, there are no advanced swim lessons.

So now I have to convince myself to go. Tomorrow. Sink or swim, baby!

Facts:
I will be the slowest swimmer there
I will have to skip intervals
I will not be able to finish the workout
I will be studied and get a lot of constructive (I hope) criticism

When I first started running, I was able to run alone until I had worked up the confidence I needed to run with a group.  I'm self-conscious about my swimming and not comfortable with people watching me (I try to swim in the lane farthest from the lifeguard for this reason!) and I'm so embarrassingly slooooow! But I know I need help and I can't wait until I feel better about myself as a swimmer. I want to do a half iron distance triathlon next year. I have been trying to work up the nerve to join a Masters program for a few years but never took the first scary step.

Maybe this Dave guy mentioned the program because he sees I need help but I'm not too far off. Yeah, that sounds about right...

I hope they're nice...