This core stuff sure is hard on my arms

Missed blogging about Friday. I guess I'm getting old and senile, with entire days dropping out on me. I did the core work that was scheduled for Thursday, then did a very nice run around the neighbourhood. It was a perfect crisp fall day. This was supposed to be an easier run, and I timed the 5K loop at exactly 35 minutes, breathing easy, nice running stride. So it seems now that a 6 minute K is quite fast, and a 7 minute K is a nice relaxed pace. That's improvement, but doesn't leave much space for "progressive builds".

I was crushed by the pool staff when I tried to go in for a swim. They had a school group using the entire pool. Darn kids! How long can it take to tie a concrete block to their feet and throw them in?? Oh wait, I guess fishing them out again after takes more time. So I missed my swim, and I wasn't about to go on Saturday. The pool turns into a zoo shortly after opening. There's a couple Sat regulars I don't want to swim with.

I want to live in a house that has a 25 m pool in the basement. The only problem is that such homes are usually so big you need a GPS to find the fridge, and they usually come with a ride on vacuum cleaner. At the best of times I have trouble with normal sized vacuum cleaners and can only imagine what would happen with a bigger one. The cats would live in terror. But to be able to go for a swim any time? Without having to put up with the floaties that show up to the public pools? I'd guess in short order I'd be the most popular person in the triathlon community.

The spin with Katie today featured pumpkin muffins. The only problem is that the core session killed my arms so that I could barely get the muffins to my face. I seriously contemplated peeling it on the store counter, then eating it off the paper like a dog chowing down on breakfast. Then it occurred to me that the store staff might not want to use their counter after that, so I was good and ate it like a normal person, only I should count that time as additional core workout.

The spin was good, very good. Just a few minutes under 2 hours, with lots of cadence work. Lots. I sweated a puddle onto the dusty floor. The wind was howling, but most of us went for a run anyways. Heading west was tough, but coming home again was very nice. That was 29 minutes, since back was faster than out.

Then the dreaded core. We started with 50 pushups. That's right. Five Zero. At least they weren't all in a row. Let's see, I think it was sets of 5, 7, 8, 10, 8, 7, 5 and we could rest while our partner did theirs. My partner got lots of rest. Consider that my pushup record is 11 without stopping. So this morning probably tripled my lifetime push up count. Part way through the 8 set on the way up, I gave up and started doing them from my knees. Even so, on the last ones I had to rest in the middle, then finish. Yes, I felt like a weenie. Then there was an eternity of plank, in 3 sets. I'm told my butt is well on the way to downward dog, but that's because my arms were trashed. I kind of cheated through the last 75 second plank. So that was front plank. Just to keep us balanced, or to maintain her standing in coachland, Katie put us through some side plank, same times as the front. That did me in. Everybody else in class is doing side plank, AND waving their upper leg in the air. Some of them are ALSO touching their hips to the mat. I collapsed in a heap and whimpered to myself. I'm glad my partner didn't laugh at me. You think I'm kidding, but I was having difficulty getting my water bottle or muffin up to my mouth. Even now, hours later, I can still feel my arms complaining. I guess since I'm still alive it will only make me stronger.

Weekly Summary
Swim .75 hrs
Bike 5.0 hrs
Run 1.5 hrs
Walk 1.0 hrs
Core 2.0 hrs
Total 10.25 hrs.