Lungs for Natalia?

Natalia, who has cystic fibrosis, has been waiting for a double lung transplant since August. She had to go back on a ventilator last week and has been hanging on by her eyelashes, with dangerously high blood CO2 levels.

Her father and brother are each undergoing rigorous tests at the hospital and preparing to donate part of a lung tomorrow. I didn’t know if I could do that, nor do I know if I would be willing to.

But today, she got the call! A pair of lungs became available and they are now being evaluated to see if they will do.  If they will, the operation is at 3:00 p.m. today. Wish the family good luck and courage and the doctors skill and stamina.

Swimming progress

I’ve been taking lessons and practising. The results are apparent in a slow but steady climb in the distance I cover per session.

Lately, I’ve made another breakthrough: my attempts to learn the whip kick for breast-stroke have finally gelled and I can put some power into it.

Swim practice, April 6

We are aiming for more distance now as triathlon season approaches. Today’s swim:

• 100 yd. breast-stroke, 100 side-stroke, 100 freestyle = 300 yd.
• 50 flutterkick with board x 6 = 300
• 50 freestyle + 50 flutterkick, 50 flutterkick + 50 freestyle , 50 freestyle + 50 flutterkick = 300
• 200 freestyle x 3 = 600

Total, 1500 yards or 1350 metres

Swim practice, March 30

Swim workout with Lizbot and LotStreetWiz, in 25-yard pool at the John Innes Community Centre, overseen by Coach Kelvin of Oannes Swims, about 1 hour. We did some sprints with diving starts. All freestyle (front crawl) unless otherwise noted:

• 300 yd.
• 75 yd. x 8 = 600
• easy 100 yd.
• sprints, 25 yd. x 4 = 100

Total, 1100 yd. or 1000 metres.

Sprints were negative splits, 1 second faster each time.

Swimming progress

For just over a year now, I’ve been taking swimming lessons and practising under the direction of a coach.
I’m still enjoying the training effect, which hasn’t yet levelled off: the more I practice, the better I get. I’m not racing, but just improving my endurance and aerobic fitness.

The chart shows distances swum on successive dates. Some of them are estimates. The times aren’t always the same; most of the sessions are 1 hour long, but some are longer and some are only half an hour. Some are in pools, either with lane swimming or maneuvering among swimmers, with or without a wetsuit, in smooth or rough water. Still, there’s a trend: on the average, I can swim farther and more continuously now.

How swimming improved in one year

Another Pilates season

It’s time to start another semester of Pilates training. with Coyne Pilates. Pilates is a stretch & strength system of exercise that concentrates on spinal flexibility and core muscle strength. It’s named after its inventor, Joseph Pilates, who went from being a sickly child with rickets to the model for anatomical illustrations because of his perfect body.

Pilates has become a popular form of exercise and the benefits are well known, so well known that I’m “borrowing” them from the Absolute Control Pilates site.

Benefits of Pilates:

• Develops longer, leaner muscles (less bulk, more freedom of movement)
• Improves postural problems
• Increases core strength/stability and peripheral mobility
• Helps prevent injury
• Enhances functional fitness, ease of movement
• Balances strength & flexibility
• Heightens body awareness
• Non-impact – easy on joints
• Can be customized for everyone from rehab patients to elite athletes
• Complements other methods of exercise
• Improves performance in sports (golf, skating, dance, etc)
• Improves balance, coordination & circulation

Swim practice, September 12

Swim workout in 25-yard pool, overseen by Coach Kelvin:

• underwater movement, flutterkick only 50 yd.
• stroke improvement: arm movement with flip at end, 50 yd. x 6 = 300
• cardiovascular training: freestyle, 150 yd. x 3 = 450

Total: 750 yd. or 675 m.

Concentrate on efficient arm movement with power throughout stroke, not rolling too much.

My first triathlon

I did my first triathlon on Sunday: a try-a-tri in Orillia. About 220 people took part. (Or maybe I should say 217.) The weather was lovely: sun, some clouds, nice breeze, water fine. The swim was 375 metres, the bike ride 10 km, and the run 3 2.5 km.

I thought I’d have an easy time of the swim and plod through the rest of it at my usual commuter bike pace and Clydesdale amble. Instead, I was terrible at it. I felt mysteriously panicked during the swim because I couldn’t get enough air. I did the sidestroke most of the way so I could pant. Much of the time was spent worrying that the swim wouldn’t be timed because I hadn’t crossed over a timing mat before starting. It took about 24 minutes to do the 375 metres.

I probably took three or four minutes at transition because everything stuck to me when I tried to put it on. Then I was slow at biking but that’s not surprising as I have no endurance and there were hills. I did about what I expected on the bike, about 40 minutes for 10 km.

Then another three minutes in the transition zone. I drank the rest of my Gatorade(TM) from the bike bottle. I finally figured out during the run that my new running bra, worn under my bathing suit, wouldn’t let me breathe deeply. Consequently, I did even worse than my realistic expectations. Once I undid it I could breathe better and actually run a few steps. I finished it dead last or “DFL” as they say.

I was last out on the bike course and last back, but not, I think, slowest; then I was last out on the run but I did finish at about 1:38:41 total time – probably 33 minutes for the run. On the run, the Gatorade crew were packing up when I got close to the 1.5-km 1.25-km turnaround, but they left a glass out for me to have on the way back. The announcer was still announcing and the clock was still running when I got to the finish line. I know my timing chip beeped. Then they went straight to handing out prizes. I picked up a banana, some cookies, and some cranberry pitas from the food crew, who were also packing up.

I’m still considering whether to do another one. I think so. It wasn’t fun this time but only because I mysteriously could not catch my breath. It’s a fast-growing sport, according to the organizers.

I Will probably do the 5K associated with the Toronto marathon in a few weeks with Andie while Richard does the half.

Andie did fine in the kids’ tri but took a spill on her bike yesterday, crossing some train tracks on a bike path, and hurt her shoulder. We were at the hospital getting X-rays until 11:00 p.m. and then got supper at McDonald’s and I drove her back to Hamilton.

more funny cat pictures

In fact, she did wear her helmet and properly at that.

“Massive” smog alert

smoggy Toronto

Smog caused by air pollution drifting in from the U.S., local pollution, and hot, sunny weather triggered a smog alert for large parts of Ontario. The alert covers “Toronto, Dufferin-Innisfil, the City of Hamilton, York-Durham, Halton-Peel and many of the surrounding regions in the southern, central and eastern parts of the province.”

Toronto is also under an extreme heat alert, so the city will extend the hours of several outdoor public pools until 23:45. For details about pool locations and operating hours, call 416-338-POOL (7665).

Swim workout July 2

Swim workout in 25-yard pool:

• warm-up: breast stroke 25
• freestyle with different focus each time 50 x 4 = 200
• freestyle 50 + 100 +150 = 300
• freestyle 100
• cool-down: sidestroke 25

Total: 650 yd. (565 m)
Concentrate on: freestyle catch, arm dig, reaching forward, push down, release, even strokes.