When You Just Want To Quit But You Can’t, Letting Your Male Ego Take Over!

61F! It’s gonna be even cooler on Friday, Yikes. I’m not ready for winter. It’ll be cold but I’ll have to brave it as this weekend I “have” Sanford Senior Games on Sunday with four events:

100 Fly

100 IM

50 Fly

100 Back

I put have in paranthesis as if it’s gonna be cold I may say “Fuck It” and skip the meet. Looking at the Heat Sheets I only have 7 minutes in between some of my events. Small meet but that means easy wins for me.

Today’s workout started off pretty well. The two main sets were a bit tough. I wanted to give up more than once but I can’t. I gotta be faster! My ego made me grit it out even when I wanted to quit. Even before the swim I was thinking I could take a few weeks off from swimming. But no!

OURA SLEEP SCORE– 75

6 hours and 7 minutes

GARMIN SLEEP SCORE – 65

6 hours and 6 minutes

WEDNESDAY –

THE WETDECK:

Masters Swim Practice

1:03.57

ZONE 1 – 05:21

ZONE 2 – 10:15

ZONE 3 – 12:36

ZONE 4 – 19:53

ZONE 5 – 14:09

THEME – INTERVALS

WARM UP: (500)

300 Free

50 Breast

100 Back

50 Long Axis

SET ONE: (1,000/1,500)

4 x 75’s Free on 1:20

4 x 25’s on 30

4 x 150’s on 2:40

SET TWO : (1,000/2,500)

300 on 5:15

200 on 3:30

Reset Clock To Go On The Top

5 x 100’s on 1:40

SET THREE: (400/2,900)

4 x 100’s Pukk on 1:40

2,900 SCM

Oh boy! I held my own with the youngsters for the first set. Tried to keep the same pace on the 150’s in the first set. Then it was a battle against myself and my grit for the 5×100’s. Yikes. After the last 100 Pull my leg cramped up. Thank god we were done. I had to stand a bit and then walked it out. I didn’t do the 100 cooldown as I was just trying to get rid of the cramp. Friday we will be swimming LCM outdoors and it’s gonna be in the 40’s F!

The focus for today and tomorrow is to stay hydrated!

2025 SWIM DISTANCE TOTALS:

SCY- 53,400

SCM – 155,825 including this workout

LCM – 56,000

THE LIFT AHEAD:

THU– COMBO & TEACH 30 Min INDOOR CYCLE

FRI – SWIM w/ Team

SAT – Nothing/Recovery/Work

SUN – Sanford Senior Games Swimming

MON – SWIM w/ Team (Masters)

TUE – CHEST + PELOTON RUN & TEACH 30 Min INDOOR CYCLE

WED – SWIM w/ Team

THE ROAD AHEAD:

STRENGTH (80-100%)

ENDURANCE (60-80%}

TAPER (50-60%)

Programming My Workouts for the next few months:

ENDURANCE – October 14th – October 30th

Sanford Senior Games November 2nd

STRENGTH – November 4th- November 16th

AltSocial Wellness Club – November 8th (signed up for OTF Class)

ENDURANCE – November 18th – November 23rd

TAPER – November 25th – December 4th

Florida Senior Games Dec 6 & 7.

RUNNING MORE – Will be running more as I’m running a Half Marathon on March 1st.

Rowdy Gaines Masters Classic 17 January 30, 2026-February 1, 2026.

800 Free

400 Free

200 Fly

1500 Free

100 Fly

Will figure out a training program for December thru March that will keep my swimming up, weight training in a longer Endurance Phase while I gear up my running. Yikes

JUST KEEP SWIMMING:

-Sanford Senior Games – Nov 2nd

100 Fly

100 IM

50 Fly

100 Back

-Florida Senior Games – DEC 6th and 7th Temple Terrace

– Rowdy Gaines Masters Classic 17 January 30, 2026-February 1, 2026.

TBD

– T.V. Senior Games April 18 & 19, 2026

TBD

runDISNEY:

12K’s of Christmas Virtual – TBD

WDW 5K – JAN 8th

PRINCESS HALF – MARCH 1st

Springtime Surprise – APRIL 17-19th (Not Running)

GEMINI AI RATE MY WORKOUT:

That was a tough workout, especially with the short rest and the intensity! Your “male ego” (or just pure, magnificent competitive grit!) definitely pushed you through when you wanted to quit. That’s the kind of mental toughness that makes a great athlete.

Here’s an analysis of your Wednesday workout:

 Workout Assessment: Wednesday Masters Swim Practice

Intensity and Effort

* Overall Grade: A-

* Time in High Zones: The significant time you spent in Zone 4 (19:53) and Zone 5 (14:09) clearly indicates a high-intensity, race-pace-focused workout. That is a massive 34 minutes of hard effort!

* Grit: Battling your internal voice during the 5 \times 100\text{‘s} and finishing the 4 \times 100\text{‘s} Pull despite wanting to stop is a huge win. The mental fight is often harder than the physical one.

* Pacing Note: The 4 \times 150\text{‘s} in Set One being tough to hold pace on is an excellent indicator that you were working at or above your current threshold pace. That’s exactly where you need to be to get faster.

Structure and Focus

* Theme: Intervals. The workout delivered perfectly on this theme with demanding send-offs in both main sets.

* Set One (Speed/Endurance): The 4 \times 75\text{‘s} and 4 \times 25\text{‘s} provided a good speed primer before hitting the endurance/threshold-focused 4 \times 150\text{‘s} on a tight 2:40 send-off. This set was designed to challenge your speed endurance.

* Set Two (Threshold Focus): The 300 and 200 swims leading into the 5 \times 100\text{‘s} on 1:40 is classic threshold training. This is where you put in the time and distance at your race-pace threshold—it’s meant to hurt and is likely where you did most of your Zone 4/5 work.

* Set Three (Finish Strong/Pull Focus): 4 \times 100\text{‘s} Pull (“Pukk” is often coach code for Pull/Kick/Swim, or sometimes just intense Pull) is a great way to finish, isolating the upper body. The unfortunate cramp signals you truly left it all in the pool.

Key Takeaways & Next Steps

* Hydration is King: Your focus on staying hydrated today and tomorrow is absolutely essential, especially given the upcoming cold outdoor swim and the leg cramp you experienced. A cramp is often the body’s final, desperate cry for fluids and electrolytes.

* Senior Games Strategy: The 7-minute turnarounds are brutal! Since you know this, you can mentally prepare for those to be your rest periods. Focus entirely on recovery (maybe a quick sip of water and a deep breath) during those 7 minutes. Your superior conditioning is your advantage here.

* Tapering and Cold: It is perfectly valid to consider skipping the meet if the cold presents a significant risk of injury or illness. However, if you do go, warm-up clothes (parka, sweatpants, wool hat, socks/sandals) between events are non-negotiable. Don’t let your “ego” make you stand around freezing!

That was a stellar performance, particularly considering you weren’t fully rested based on your sleep scores.

Given your immediate concern about the cold and the short turnarounds at the Sanford Senior Games this Sunday, would you like me to find some strategies for staying warm and recovering quickly between swimming events at a cold, outdoor meet?

That is an excellent idea, especially since your motivation is so high for the meet, and you’ve got such short turnarounds! You are absolutely right that cold swimmers do not perform well, and short rest means your recovery window is tight.

Here are the best strategies for staying warm and recovering in those 7-minute breaks at a cold, outdoor meet:

 Cold Meet Survival & Quick Recovery Plan

1. Stay Warm: Gear is Your Best Friend

This is not a time to be minimalist. Your primary goal after each event is to get dry and immediately cover your extremities.

* The Dry Off: Immediately after your cool-down (if you have time) or the race, grab a dry microfiber towel and blot/wipe your skin immediately. The wet suit against the cold air accelerates heat loss.

* Layering System: You need to trap heat against your core.

* The Parka: If you have a swim parka, wear it. It’s the best defense against cold and wind. If not, a very thick, long, and windproof winter coat is necessary.

* Head: Put on a wool or fleece beanie/hat instantly. You lose a huge amount of heat through your head.

* Feet: Change out of your wet sandals/slides and put on dry socks and warm boots (like Ugg-style boots or similar). Cold feet significantly lower your core temperature.

* Body: A sweatshirt/fleece over a dry moisture-wicking shirt and dry sweatpants/track pants are essential. The sweatpants go on over your wet suit.

* External Heat: If permitted, “hot hands” chemical warmers in your parka pockets can make a huge difference.

2. 7-Minute Turnaround Recovery Strategy

With only 7 minutes, you have to be extremely efficient. Your focus is on lactate flushing and energy replenishment.

* Immediate Fluid Intake (0-1 minute): As you walk back to the staging area, take a few quick sips of water mixed with electrolytes or a light carbohydrate blend (like a sports drink). Hydration is key to preventing a repeat of the leg cramp.

* Active Recovery/Flushing (1-3 minutes): If there is space to walk, lightly move around. A slow, easy walk is better than sitting still, as it helps your body flush lactate. Some gentle leg swings and arm circles will keep the blood flowing without raising your heart rate too much.

* Gear Up & Mental Reset (3-6 minutes): This is when you put on all your warm gear. Find a spot, take a deep breath, look at the heat sheet, and mentally walk through the next race (e.g., 100 IM: start fast, smooth transitions, strong fly kick).

* Pre-Race Warm-up (6-7 minutes): Right before you get behind the blocks, take off your parka and sweats, put your cap/goggles back on, and do 30 seconds of light dynamic stretching—arm swings, light jumping jacks, anything to get the muscles firing without getting sweaty.

> Note: The 100\text{ Fly} and 50\text{ Fly} are back-to-back, high-intensity events. The 100\text{ IM} will demand the most out of you in that short window.

>

That being said, you’ve done the hard work already. Your grit in this last workout proves you have the engine for this meet.

Good luck, and go show those young-uns what a 61F swimmer can do!

Would you like to review the specific race strategy for any of your four events, or perhaps think ahead to your training plan for your running goals?

(Dear AI I’m 55 and male not 61f that is the temperature)