I swam for the first time in 18 years, and you know that saying that you never forget how to swim? Well, I remembered most of it. Luckily I can still doggy paddle like a four year. Even luckier I can still tread water like the 1986 Camp Swim Treading Champion that I once was. One thing is definite, I hate water going up my nose just as much. This time I wore ear plugs to help turning my head into a bucket. I also wore a silicone swim cap. It didn’t keep my hair dry but it does have sharks screen printed on both sides. That has to count for something.

The pool is near my house and has an active senior’s community. I was the youngest woman in the changerooms by a clear 4 decades since I arrived at the start of the senior’s pool fitness hour. They looked like they had fun doing low impact water aerobics in the shallow end. I stuck to the deep end and reminded myself how the front crawl works, and the backstroke is relaxing. Why is everyone more comfortable with the backstroke? Swimming backwards isn’t particularly easy, and then I worry that I’ll smack my head into the wall when I get to the end of the lane. I spent a total of 40 minutes swimming and I am definitely going to swim each morning five days a week from now on.

At the gym I tried out the elliptical. I need a change from the stationary bikes because it is oh so boring as well the bikes aren’t comfortable for long periods of time. I can ride for 50 minutes max before my backside is screaming with pain. I gave the elliptical a ten minute whirl and I didn’t like it at all. It felt like running in place without gravity. I thought I was going to fly off of it and I had to regulate my speed to stay standing. Monday it’s back to the dreaded stationary bike. I’m starting a new routine: Every other day fast intervals, the other days resistance training on the bike. I’m limiting the session to 30 minutes, maximum of 40 to stave off boredom and butt pain.

I managed 60 squats with 50 lbs. Not bad. I’m aiming for 100 squats and then throw on another 10 lbs, starting back at 60 squats and build up to 100 again before adding an extra 10 lbs. Repeat until I can no longer stand it.

The rest was upper body. Monday it will be lower body, switching to upper on Tuesday. I increased the weight on the chest press machine and the lat pulldown, as well as the weird back muscle machine whose name I can never recall. On Monday I’m increasing the hip abductor and adductor to 120 lbs from 110, and the hamstring thingy to 90 lbs. Both will be a count of 60.

I’m saving Saturday and Sunday for recovery, but on tired out days I’ll take it easy and only do swim and bike.

That’s the plan anyway!