48% REM/RECOVERY is crazy good.  But what does it mean – 

What 48% Indicates

 Optimal Restoration: Hitting 48% means nearly half of your entire time asleep was spent in the most rejuvenating phases rather than light, easily disrupted sleep.  

 Potential “Rebound” Sleep: If this is unusually high for you, it often occurs after periods of high physical strain, cognitive stress, or prior sleep debt. The brain naturally prioritizes deep and REM rebound to compensate for deficits.

 Keep Total Sleep Duration in Mind: Percentages only tell half the story. 48% restorative sleep out of 7.5 to 8 hours is peak recovery (~3.6 hours of deep/REM). However, 48% out of 4 hours of fragmented sleep still leaves you short on absolute recovery minutes.

As for today’s swim..GOOD.  I felt tight during warm up got got going. Both 30-something pace mates were there and boy did they push me. 

OURA RING – 55

4 hours  31 minutes

48 % REM and Recovery

FAIR

APPLE SLEEP SCORE – 52

5 hours and 03 minutes

 LOW

MASTERS SWIM – wEDNESDAY 10/22/26 – SCM INTERVALS

Halloween Naughty Costume Body: Loading… 🟩🟩🟩⬜⬜

1:06:20

ZONE 1 – 12:06

ZONE 2 – 07:46

ZONE 3 – 06:12

ZONE 4 – 11:11

ZONE 5 – 10: 44

WARM UP: (500)

300 Swim

50 Fist / 100 Swim 50 Fist

SET ONE:  (1,000/1,500)

5 x 100’s Free on 1:45 (1:27/1:26/1:25/1:24/1:4)

500 Free on 8:30 (7:32)

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

500 Free on 8:30 (7:33)

4 x 100’s in 1:35 (with 4 sec rest the watch recorded it as a 400)

100 sub-1:20 (don’t have my time but it wasn’t sub-1:20)

SEY THREE: (500/3,000)

100 Kick / 3 x 100 Pull / 100 Long axis Cool Down

3,000 SCM

JUST  KEEP SWIMMING:

2026 SWIM DISTANCE TOTALS:  (including last swim)

SCY – 61,000

SCM – 64,800

LCM – 95,500

Florida State Senior Games December 5-6, 2026

ROWDY GAINES MASTERS CLASSIC

01/29 – 01/31

The 4 Month Training Plan Phases:

STRENGTH (80-100%) 10/19 – 012/01 Six Weeks

TAPER (Below 60%) 12/2 – 12/4

Florida State Senior Games December 5-6, 2026

STRENGTH (80-100%) 12/6 – 1/18 Six Weeks 

ENDURANCE (60 – 80%) 01/19 – 01/23

TAPER (Below 60%) 01/24 – 01/28

ROWDY GAINES MASTERS CLASSIC

01/29 – 01/31

THE LIFT AHEAD:

THU – BACK or SWIM & AIRPORT

FRI/SAT/SUN – TBD / Away NC Wedding

MON – SWIM w/ Team

TUE – CHEST & TEACH 30 Min INDOOR CYCLE  MOSSA R30

WED – SWIM w/ Team

THU – BACK & TEACH 30 Min INDOOR CYCLE  MOSSA R30

Disclaimer: This information is for general knowledge and should not be taken as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional before considering the use of peptides and/or testosterone replacements    therapy. Financial Disclaimer: I hold stock in both Peloton and Enhanced. 

RANDOM ACTS OF FITNESS –MY CENTERS IMPLEMENT PROGRAMS TODAY THAT INSPIRE PEOPLE TO MOVE THROUGH LIFE AND SPORT TODAY WITH: WVB, Pickleball and more. 

Gemini AI Rate My Workout:

No sugarcoating it: you are surviving on a razor-thin sleep budget right now, but your body is fighting back like an absolute champ.

The most fascinating part of your night? That “crazy good” 48% REM and Recovery is actually your brain’s emergency survival response to being incredibly run down. When you sleep for barely 4.5 to 5 hours while grinding through a grueling training program, your body pulls a genius move called rebound sleep. Recognizing how exhausted you are, it skips the junk light sleep and dives straight into the heavy-duty restorative stuff. Since you spent about 2 hours and 10 minutes of your short night in these deepest, most critical recovery zones, your biological systems were working in overdrive to patch you up.

But look at those sleep scores—a 55 on Oura and a 52 on Apple. Those numbers are dropping a truth bomb. Your brain might be working with incredible efficiency, but no matter how many deep phases you pack in, you simply cannot cheat the clock. Under 5 hours of sleep just doesn’t give you enough total minutes to fully repair. Your “fair” and “low” ratings aren’t a knock on the quality of your sleep; they are an urgent warning that you are running on empty.

Yet, somehow, you still crushed a high-octane 3,000 SCM master’s set. Feeling tight during the warm-up was your body’s blunt way of begging for more rest, but your competitive fire—and those 30-something pacemates—totally saved the day. Having training partners who push you to hit rapid times like 1:24 on your 100s when you’re already exhausted is exactly how grit is forged. You went to war, held your pace, and survived a major physical challenge.

But as you look ahead, remember that you are in a demanding “STRENGTH (80–100%)” block. To make those hard-earned gains stick and protect your immune system, that sleep deficit has to be paid back.

AI Workout Grade: A- (Performance) / D- (Recovery)

The Good: You showed elite mental toughness by refusing to back down, hitting intense pacing, and completing a 3,000S meter volume set on almost zero sleep. That is pure “just keep swimming” heart.

The Watch Out: Pushing your heart rate into Zones 4 and 5 for over 21 minutes on a 52 sleep score is like redlining a car on a dry oil tank. It is incredibly hard on your central nervous system.

The Action Plan: You have a NC Wedding trip on the horizon and “TBD” days ahead. Treat those travel days as a critical recovery mission. Go all-in on sleep, focus on mobility work, and allow those hard-working muscles to finally rebuild. You are training like a warrior—now it’s time to rest like one.