Like a Fish

I LOVE SWIMMING!

I seem to have taken to it like a fish.

Perhaps it's my orca tattoo?

Or my marine biology degree?

Or the fact that I have big hands and feet that propel me through the water?   I mean really, with size 10.5 feet, who needs flippers?

I can say with 100% certainly that it's not the damn swim cap.  That thing needs a blog of its own so it can tell stories of all the things it did every day to make me crazy.  I've even got a name for the blog picked out.   What do you think of "Head Games"?

I have diligently tried all suggestions as well as a few MacGyver tricks of my own but nothing keeps it in place for more than two lengths of the pool.  One trip back and forth across the pool and my ears are uncovered and the cap has slid off my forehead and partway off the back of my head.  I have to stop and adjust every single time.  It's enough to drive me batty.

Other than my swim cap challenges, swimming is great fun and my body seems to love it.

After three weeks of swimming, I feel taller.

Does that make sense?

I'm even kinda sorta starting to like the chlorine smell.

Last week, I swam on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  Each time, in addition to pool running, I swam 40 lengths.  Forty lengths equals one kilometre.

Yesterday morning, I swam 50.  My arms were a little floppy by the last few but I did it. Looks like 50 is this week's distance of choice.

It's so crazy how little after effects I feel when I swim.  I'm not tired. I'm not sore.  In fact, by lunch on Monday I was thinking back and wondering if I had really swum that morning at all.

Then I sniffed my hands and found the unmistakable smell of chlorine.  Yep, I swam that morning.

The weird thing is that swimming also seems to have very little effect on my blood sugar.  Some people (Lindsay and Katie I think) told me that this is how it works with some people.  I've now got to the point where, unless my blood sugar is 7.0 or below, I don't eat anything.

No carbs at all before a 60+ minute full body workout.

How is that possible?  A 30 minute run would have me dropping from 7.0 to 4.0 in no time.

Swimming has absolutely no lingering effects on my blood sugar.  There are no mid-afternoon lows.  No rebound highs.  It's like I didn't do any exercise at all.  I do not adjust my basal or bolus insulin at all either before or after a swim.

After the diabetes roller coaster that is running, not having to worry too much is quite refreshing.  I still diligently place two juice boxes at the side of the pool but I don't even check my blood sugar when I finish a swim.  I just shower, hop in the car and head home for breakfast.  How nice.

On a running note, it has been exactly three weeks today since my last run.  I am now halfway through my estimated recovery period.  I say estimated because I have to brace myself for the fact that it may take more time than that to get back out there.  That being said, it's been three weeks off and so far, so good.  I haven't lost my mind.  I haven't gained 20 pounds.  My ankle feels better all the time.  A few twinges after I spend too long on my feet (oh, like Sunday when I photographed runners for hours on end) but otherwise, it's definitely getting better.

Soon I'm going to have to figure out how to fit running into my swimming schedule.

How quickly life changes.