The Rain.  I almost turned around and skipped swim practice.  It was pouring out and I dreaded the drive in the dark rain at 4am. I made it. I did it. It wasn’t pretty. IM and SCY. Ugh. It felt harder than it wasn’t. 

Yesterday I got my Swim Cap from that 5,000 LCM Postal that I signed up for but never did.  Which means we haven’t had LCM SetUp in two months.  LCM should return either next week or the week after but on Mon/Fri so on Wednesday Free “Distannce” Workouts will be SCM. 

Im going to try to make it Mon, Wed and Fri for the next few months. They’ll be a few late nights on Thursday but not as many. So I will take a weekend Recovery Day on weeks I swim on Friday. I need the swim time for Rowdy. I can do a Combo Dry Land on one day of the weekend and one Recovery Day

Today is Rowdy Registration at 10am!  Last year I swam:

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

FRI – 800 Free / 25 Fly

SAT – 400 Free / 200 Fly / 100 Back

SUN – 1500 Free / 50 Fly / 25 Back / 100 Fly

The goal is to do the same again!

OURA RING – 68

6 hours  59 minutes

22 % REM and Recovery

FAIR

APPLE SLEEP SCORE – 87

8 hours and 10    minutes

 HIGH

FITBIT SLEEP SCORE – 81

7 hours and 20 minutes

GOOD

MASTERS SWIM – MONDAY 11/02/26 -IM INTERVALS

1:02:04

ZONE 1 – 06:34

ZONE 2 – 09:37

ZONE 3 – 16:13

ZONE 4 – 15:32

ZONE 5 – 01:40

WARM UP : (500)

300 Free

100 Back / 100 Mixed

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

4 x 100’s Free on 1:45 (1:19/1:19/1:19/1:14)

4 x 75’s Back on 1:30

4 x 50’s Breast on 60

4 z 25’s Fly on 25

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

3 x 100’s IM on 2:00

4 x 75’s 50 Back / 25 Breast on 1:40

3 x 100’s IM on 1:50

100 Free sub 1:30 (1:15)

SET THREE: (500/3,000)

4 x 100’s Pull Free on 1:40 (1:20/1:21/1:22/NT)

100 Cool Down

3,000 SCY

JUST  KEEP SWIMMING:

2026 SWIM DISTANCE TOTALS:  (including last swim)

SCY – 69,900

SCM – 64,800

LCM – 95,500

Florida State Senior Games December 5-6, 2026

ROWDY GAINES MASTERS CLASSIC

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:

TUE – CHEST & TEACH 30 Min INDOOR CYCLE  MOSSA R30

WED – SWIM w/  Team

THU – BACK & TEACH 30 Min INDOOR CYCLE  MOSSA R30

FRI – SWIM w/ Team

SAT – RECOVERY 

SUN – COMBO DRYLAND

MON – SWIM w/ Team

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 DEPARTMENT IMPLEMENT PROGRAMS TODAY THAT INSPIRE PEOPLE TO MOVE THROUGH LIFE AND SPORT TODAY WITH: This November we have Tai Chi on the Squares, A Dance Fitness Thanksgiving Week Class for kids and planning Jan’s 5K

Gemini AI Rate My Workout:

Here is the Gemini AI Rate My Workout based on your rainy-day IM session, sleep trackers, and big-picture training plan:

🏊‍♂️ Gemini AI: Rate My Workout

Date: Monday, 11/02/2026 | Focus: IM Intervals + Grit ⛈️

Overall Rating: 9.3/10 (The “Mind Over Matter” Champion)

Getting up to make a 4:51 AM swim practice is hard enough. Doing it on a pitch-black, pouring-rain morning when you’re craving a reason to roll back over? Elite mindset. This is where the training plan for Rowdy and the Senior Games actually gets done. It “felt harder than it was” because of that mental hurdle and the challenging IM set. You showed up, got 3,000 yards under your belt, and built some massive mental calluses today.

1. The Workout Breakdown (3,000 SCY)

• Warmup (500): A sensible mix of Free, Back, and stroke combos to wake up the shoulders.
• Set One (1,500 Cumulative): The Speed & Stroke Starter. Solid holding on those 100 Frees (1:14-1:19) followed by the high-frequency transitions of Back-Breast-Fly on descending intervals (all on relatively tight times, especially 25s Fly on 25s!).
• Set Two (2,500 Cumulative): The Heart of the Practice. IM transitions. 3×100 IMs on 2:00, followed by the hybrid 75s (50 Back/25 Breast) on 1:40, then descending straight back into 3×100 IMs on an even tighter 1:50. Rounding that out with a sub-1:30 Free (cruising at 1:15!) demonstrates excellent late-workout endurance.
• Set Three (3,000 Cumulative): The Pull & Flush. Back-to-back 100 Pull Frees (1:20-1:22) to drag tired arms through the finish line before a well-earned cool down.

HR Zone Analysis:

Your intensity was well-distributed for a multi-stroke IM session:

• Zone 3 (16:13) & Zone 4 (15:32): Nearly 32 minutes in your aerobic and threshold zones. This is the sweet spot for building SCM stamina for Rowdy.
• Zone 5 (01:40): Brief, which is perfect—IM can spark red-line fatigue, but you kept it controlled enough to survive the high volume.

2. Recovery & Sleep Stats

• The Verdict: There’s a variance in your tracking, but overall your body was reasonably well-rested enough to tackle the early workout.
• Apple (87/HIGH) & Fitbit (81/GOOD) vs. Oura (68/FAIR): Your overall sleep duration was solid (ranging from 7h to 8h 10m). The difference is likely how Oura penalizes early-morning interruptions or deep/REM stage metrics. Your Oura is flagging slightly lower recovery (22% REM), which explains why the set felt so heavy—your nervous system was still likely in a deeper sleep phase when you hit the wet pavement at 4 AM.

3. Training Plan & Progression Strategy

• The SCM Schedule Shifts: It’s great that you are proactively scheduling! The LCM setups changing means Wednesday SCM distance workouts will be crucial.
• Mon/Wed/Fri Swim Plan: Setting this consistency will build the heavy yardage base required for those ambitious multi-distance meet schedules.
• The Lift Ahead: Love the targeted structure.
  • Tues Chest / Thurs Back + MOSSA R30: Keeping your pulling and pushing muscles balanced while giving your joints a break from high-impact sports on land.
  • Dry Land vs Recovery: Perfect strategy to allow your nervous system to catch up on the weekends so you don’t burn out before your Taper phases.
• The Goal: That 3-day Rowdy workload (including an 800, 400, AND 1500 Free) is incredibly heavy. The “STRENGTH” phase (80-100%) you are in right now is essential for carrying that much load.

💡 Gemini AI Coaching Tip of the Day:

On days when “it isn’t pretty” and “dread” is high, don’t grade yourself on standard pace—grade yourself on consistency. Today, you took a day that was an easy “DNS” (Did Not Start) and turned it into 3,000 yards.

Good luck with Rowdy Registration at 10 AM! Take a deep breath, get those event slots locked in, and keep tracing your “Keep Swimming” progression. Let’s conquer the dry land cycle and chest workout tomorrow! 🏊‍♀️🌧️💪