Core

    I was more than a little disappointed with myself today. After last night's fantastic distance swim (70 laps) I fully intended to swim tonight and focus on sprints. Why did I disappoint myself? I left my damned wallet on the desk at home. Not only did that mean no monies for swim, it meant no monies for gas. Curses. Not one to blow off a workout just because things don't go as planned, I opted for a vigorous upper body workout. Once again, using resistance bands, kettlebell, hand weights, weight ball, and slosh tubes, I worked chest, back, core and abs until I felt like a drooling puddle of aching, quivering muscle. I did my standard routine, except I went for speed and quantity. I performed each exercise quickly, with reps near to failure every set, and did not break between exercises. I also added a few new crunches to really work my abs and obliques. One thing I love about strength training is that it is easy to change things up merely by altering speed, reps, and weights. I worked for a solid 90 minutes, until I was making pathetic whimpering noises, and know I will be feeling this tomorrow.
    I am increasing my core and ab work. Having a strong core is vital to all sports; increasing balance, strength, and stamina, while reducing the risk of injury. A strong core translates to additional strength in the arms and legs, kind of important to a triathlete. Or any athlete. I know that if I plan on putting in better times next season, the work starts now, and the core is a good place to start.