Angie Swims

Some mornings I can't bring myself to get out of bed and catch the train in time to swim before class, today was not one of those days. Feeling drained, I elected to not plan a workout and instead swim on of my favorite sets: 1000m repeaters. I got in 3 before needing to head to class. Already I'm feeling the emotional fatigue of returning to school. Insomnia and middle of the night panics are already starting and it's the first week of class. Maybe its a conditioned response in anticipation of what's to come. Maybe by establishing a low emotional and sleep baseline early on will help make the lows and anxiety not so intense. Like, if I brace myself it will be more okay? Um... probably not. The 1.5-hour commute isn't getting any shorter and my reading lists are getting longer, but so are my weekly swim goals... so there's that. Then there's this: I leave for the 24 Hour relay next Thrusday! Instead of swimming before class I'll be swimming before catc...

Yesterday was the first day of my second semester, and in an effort to practice better self-care, I spent an hour in the pool before heading to IT to get my computer running again. It was a rare morning. I arrived late not getting in until 7:45 and there was an empty lane, say what!? I managed 10 x 100m on 1:45, slow I know, but swimming fast ain't my thing. Then 3 pyramids! Big fan of building up to 100 by 25s. I build one freestyle pyramid and two IMs. Best part, I managed not to drown swimming butterfly! Other best part of the morning, IT revived my zombie computer! 

Cold water swimming is like hitting a hard reboot on my mindset. It must be instinctive, or biological, to have overwhelming feelings of peace and safety after coming out if mild hypothermia. But I feel like those feelings have as much to do with being outside with friends. Today it was sunny and windy, but no so windy as to cause the sand to sting my calves getting out of the water. From the map it looks like I went for a walk and dipped my toes in the river, but in fact the river was super high! Not only was it high tide, but we've been having king tides this winter and they seem to be making an impact on the Columbia. The water was super cloudy and at one point my wrist dragged across rocks that I'm only used to seeing several yards away from the water line. I didn't have my usual bottom landmarks to gauge distance off of, the tire and car door indicate 100ish yards and 300is yards from entry point respectively. Now that I'm thinking about it, it would be a real bumm...

4-mile swim + burning 1,135 calories (according to Garmin) = eating all the snacks. Longest swim since my post-Neuro midterm swim fest. I ate my way through the fridge and the pantry. Surprisingly enough there's stuff left over for breakfast!

I told myself I wouldn't apologize for not posting and so long but... I am sorry. This time of year is far from my favorite. It's a constant battle to not become firmly entrenched in painful holiday memories. This year I've battled those feelings buy swimming a lot. I've been swimming so much in fact that it became normal in my life again, and I found myself beginning to lose track of just how valuable and profound that time in the water is. In the month of January so far I've logged almost as much distance as I did in the whole month of December. I've also had the chance to swim with people I haven't seen in months and had the pleasure of several blissful open water swims including ones New year's Eve and New year's day in Seattle. That trip grounded me in a way that only the swim community can. It reminded me of how small I am but h dedicated and supportive the community is even of complete strangers. Seattle, NYE/NYD 2020. This is my se...

I'm calling the open water swims I did in North Carolina over the week of Christmas sandwich swims since I got to swim on Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas. The Christmas Eve swim was at Jordan Lake (supposedly too cold for swimming...hahaha not true.) It was a bit on the windy side but 6 to 12-inch chop isn't so bad. The bonus side of this location was it was only half an hour from my mom's house. I see a great deal more open water swimming here in the future, especially since the pool hours suck and it's about the same cost in gas to drive to the lake as it is to pay for entry into the stupidly nice indoor 50-meter pool near her house. Here's the photo dump from that swim: Yesterday I got to swim in the Atlantic ocean for the first time since I was a teenager. That's almost 20 years. And it made me feel really old. However, I was not cold. The air was around 72 and the water was definitely 60 or a little bit above, I ...

Longest swim at 42, 14 minutes 38 seconds- 674yards. This swim felt really good, strong and in control. Annnd I was able too tell when my bikini top came untied AND my fingers worked well enough to retie it! 👙😳🤣 But... It took longer than it should have and I lost valuable heat and distance. I was hoping to get in 800-850yards. Oh well. Lessons learned. Double knot bikini in the future. The Yeis were hosted today by the Hood River Tri Club- added bonus: post-swim hot tub and homemade cookies! Not a bad way to start the long trip across the country to spend the holidays with my family. (I briefly considered telling them my flight was "canceled" but then I realized I didn't purchase trip insurance.) My partner is staying in Portland with his family, our family, I will miss spending the holidays with them this year. It will be good to see my mom, sister, and the kids- at least that's what I'm telling myself.  Swim dump: I swams this week!  12/...