Progress?

This weeks training went well, Co2 tables increased 15secs on each hold which is becoming easy already, I'll stick to them for another week and increase another 15secs again the week after. I went to the pool on Friday with www.baildonsubaqua.com and settled down to some statics.

2min hold - no breath up

2min hold - no breath up

1min empty lung hold - no breath up

2min slow breath up 2/4/2 for 1min - 3min 15sec hold

2min slow breath up 2/4/2 for 1min - 4min 15sec hold

I breathed up in-between holds using the snorkel (no goggles) to try and engage the dive reflex a little quicker, but i was really unhappy with the final hold time, tables have been going well and i thought I'd get an easy 4min 30sec but fell short and found it tough going. I may try longer warm up holds, drop the empty lung hold and see what happens in the next couple of weeks.

Dynamic session went really well, i targeted 100mtrs and completed it with no real problems, i'll keep to the 100mtrs for the next 3 sessions and then move up to 125mtr sessions.

Pool Training

Friday night was my first proper pool training session for a long time and also an opportunity to see if the Co2 tables and training schedule were working? I didn't eat from 3pm and entered the water at 8:30pm for static session.

2min hold no breath up

2min hold no breath up

Empty lung hold 1min no breath up

2min breath up + 2/4/2 breath up for 1min - 3min 30sec hold

2min breath up + 2/4/2 breath up for 1min - 4min hold

I only targeted a 4min hold, it felt fine and no issues with contraction strength, i always target lower than what I'm able to do as it leaves a more positive feeling after the session. Dynamic was more of a try out in terms of weighting, gliding and technique as it been a very long time, i targeted only 75mtrs and done this with ease, i was very tempted to carry on to 100mtrs but again i wanted to keep things positive. Over all a great session and happy with the outcome of my first pool session in a long while, another two weeks of tables before hitting the pool again to see what's what!

Long Time No Speak

After an extremely long break from the world of freediving i decided that I'd try another bite at the cherry next year! Why did i stop after the Great Northern Comp this year? I had no intention to stop and entered the Double Dip depth comp but this was unfortunately canceled due to lack of interest, i guess i was a little disappointed with British Freediving for withdrawing this great opportunity to qualify in UK and that i would of had to travel abroad to gain any chance of points for a go at the worlds. Lack of money and time played their part also, new job etc. I started the triathlons so i would keep my fitness and general well being intact and i also love competing and triathlon was such an easy, accessible sport, everything freediving wasn't at the time for me. Anyway i digress!

Training has started once again and onto the dreaded tables, the bread & butter of our training. It was also great to get back in the water whilst in Cyprus last week and also give the ears a bit of a check over, all good! Last week a completed 2min tables with repetitive rounds of 15sec rests at the end, ouch! By the end of the week i was only having one contraction so i decided to mix it up a little this week before i increase my normal tables to 2min 30sec. This week i have been doing repetitive 2min holds with 15sec breaks and then a crazy table of 4mins at the end, starting off empty and taking small sips of air until fully packed over the 4min time frame. These will increase to 5min crazy tables in the next 4wks.

It was great to get down to the www.actionunderwaterstudios.com on Friday night for some deeper statics with Tim my safety diver, at almost 6mtrs deep its great to sit at the bottom and chill out after a stressful week at work. www.basildonsubaqua.com continue their amazing support in all my training needs, big thanks guys!

3wks to Triathlon

With only 3wks to go for my first triathlon at www.velocity-events.co.uk i really up'd the training this week and took full advantage of a few days off work. I carried out some pretty consistent 400mtr swims around the 8min 30sec mark and some consistent 5km run times. I decided to go out yesterday and complete the full triathlon in training to see how it felt, cardio wise my body was fine but i got my fueling wrong and felt slightly fatigued at the end. So a good lesson learnt on that one. I felt great today and have recovered with no problems so i know i can push harder on the day to be a little bit more competitive.

Friday night freediving at the pool went well, i haven't done any statics since my last competition in March so thought I'd just go through the motions and completed a very easy 4mins hold. Nothing great in terms of the time but happy with the result after being away from statics for so long.

Basildon Sub-Aqua Club

On Friday I'll be giving Basildon Sub-Aqua Club a lecture on freediving. The club give me valuable pool time every week and are a great (inquisitive) bunch so they asked me to tell them what all this "holding your breath lark" is all about? I'll be talking to them about the basics of freediving from the Mechanics of Breathing / Dive Reflex / Disciplines / Relaxation / Equalising & Safety. Its a great chance for me to share my passion for the sport and hopefully add some fun & interest to the club.

The triathlon training has been going well, Ive been noticing some pain during the cycle rides and after going into Evan Cycles this week, i got some great advice on how to set up my bike better and also great advice on what gearing to be using for the majority of the ride. I found that my saddle was too far back causing me to over stretch and i have been using the higher gears too much and putting pressure on my knees. I've set the bike up now and will give it a test in the week. I've managed to shave more time of my run now but haven't done too much in the pool so I'll hit that next week a couple of times,

TRIATHLON

Seeing as the Salt Free Triple Depth Comp is cancelled I've decided to put some energy into doing my first triathlon http://www.velocity-events.co.uk/ they say life begins at 40!! I've been working hard on my cycling and running (without injury until last week) and thought I'd leave the swimming part out of my training as I'm very comfy in the water. After trying to swim freestyle for the first time a couple of weeks ago i found out i made a huge mistake and actually cant swim for toffee! After a few coaching sessions from Tim, i got the technique better and completed the swim in 10min 04secs. An ankle injury as stopped my cycle & running training for the time being but the swimming is going well. Today i completed the swim in 9min 45sec so making some progress. I'm thinking i can make some time up during the cycle leg which will hopefully cover up my poor swim times over 400mtrs. My first 5k run was in 24min 57sec (slow i know!) and my bike times are not really relevant as i have 4 massive hills to climb which are not on the actual course, this means that my training is great interval training (train hard and race easy)

I'm hoping the ankle is getting stronger and i can get started on getting my 5k run times down and then string all three together a few times before the big day (31st July 2011) Its a sprint triathlon so I'm confident i can complete it, it just depends on how hard i want it to be...