12 days of Christmas workouts

If you have been swimming awhile you have probably seen the 12 days of Christmas swim sets.  However, some of you may be new to this idea.  It's normally an extended set that builds according to some design that follows the 12 days format in some fashion.  I've seen workouts that go as high as 10000 yds.

Today I did 3200 meters in 1:06.  I only had about an hour to spare since it's Christmas Eve and I still have presents to wrap and things to take care of.  But it was a great workout and I was happily tired at the end of it.

I've included my workout today and several others from around the net.  I hope you enjoy one of them.  It's a really nice challenge to go for a longer swim and the variety is interesting but easy to recall if you don't have the workout with you.  Whichever one you complete, I guarantee you'll feel a great sense of accomplishment.  The idea isn't necessarily speed but completion here.  Doing a really long workout gives you the confidence that you can complete a significant challenge.  I still remember the day I completed 5000 yds.  Three years later I know where I did it and how I felt afterwards.  When you're done, treat yourself to a great breakfast if you swim early and celebrate your athleticism.  You deserve it!

Merry Christmas Happy Chanukah Happy Kwanzaa Happy Holidays.
Happy Swimming Athletes!
Terri

What I did  
(I had to shorten the set but ostensibly you would keep going until you had done 5000 yds for the full set)
2 X 100 W/U
4 X 75 swim buoy focused on stroke
6 X 25 kickboard and skills
8 X 100  easy medium, easy, all out (by 25)
10 X 75 swim buoy focused on counting strokes
12 X 25  kick board and skills
4 X 25 kickboard and skills
4 X 100 C/D

Some Other Workouts

“The 12 Days of Christmas” Swim Workout 
(all sets, about 20-seconds rest)
12 x 75 Swim, steady, every 3rd repeat = no freestyle
11 x 50 Swim, steady, alternate free/stroke
10 x 25 Steady, alternate 25 kick / 25 swim
 9 x 75 Swim, last 25 always best effort
8 x 50 Swim, steady
7 x 25 Swim, fast
6 x 75 Swim, steady
5 x 50 Swim, fast
4 x 25 Kick, fast
3 x 75 Swim, fast
2 x 50 Swim, fast
1 x 100 Swim, big finish! Cool down as desired
TOTAL DISTANCE = 4,100
This swimming workout is a holiday special, counting down from 12 repeats to 1 repeat. Swimmers do a set like this the day before Christmas. This workout is designed to take between 75-minutes and 90-minutes. If that is too much time or distance, then cut things out, but do not always cut out the same thing every workout. And never skip the cool down at the end of the workout.

Swim Blogger Set 

Ad Naseum Swim set 

This 5,850-yard swim set (all 75s) may be the cheesiest—or best?—workout idea yet. Carve out a good chunk of pool time and prepare to create a deficit for all those cookies you’re about to eat.

Here’s how it works: Each “day” is one 75, broken up in a different way. You’ll swim day 1. Then you’ll swim day 2, day 1. Then day 3, day 2, day 1. The idea is to keep adding on to the set and work your way back to number one. Choose a comfortable interval that will give you about 5-8 seconds rest every 75. (Note that some 75s, such as those with breaststroke will be slower than others.)

Sung (at least somewhat) to the tune of “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”

On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a 75 free!

On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, one free-drill-free and a 75 free!

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me, one hypoxic 3/5/3, one free-drill-free and a 75 free!

Print this out and bring it to the pool deck.

1. Freestyle

2. Freestyle-drill-freestyle

3. Hypoxic, breathe every 3/5/3

4. Backstroke/freestyle/backstroke

5. Freestyle

6. Drill-freestyle-drill

7. Hypoxic, breathe every 5/7/5

8. Breaststroke/freestyle/breaststroke

9. Freestyle

10. Breaststroke/backstroke/breaststroke

11. Hypoxic, breathe every 7/9/7

12. Pull

Lords Dancing on the Swim Deck Workout 

12x100s warm up 

3 EZ, 3 K/S, 3 IM, 3 build

11x 11-second sprints

3 kick, 3 swim, 3 with fins

10 “Lords of Leaping” during a 200 pull

*hop out on deck and do 10 squats in between each 25*

9 x “Ladies Dancing” 25s underwaters to 15M or better

*Everyone must sing a chorus of a christmas song in between each 25*

8x 75s Indy IM

(Pattern: FL/BK/BR, FR/FL/BK, BR/FR/FL, BK/BR/FR)

7x 50s best stroke

6 minute kick

*tossing around a candy cane pullbuoy, the lane that has it must sprint kick*

5x50s progressive build (gear 1-5)

*style this your own way, fly doesn’t hurt!*

4x25s @R5 seconds 100 Pace

*essentially a broken 100*

3 minute recover

*my age-groupers loved to stand in the showers, but it’s your call*

2x50s ALL OUT from blocks

1 FR, 1 choice of stroke

1 “Santa’s Sack” Relay

*mesh bag, snorkel, 2 fins, kickboard, paddles* Every lane has a person swim a 25, retrieves the item, and swims a 25 back with it, filling the bag as it goes along the lane. First to fill the bag and finish wins!

Swim it Straight

On the first day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

1 x 100 easy free 

On the second day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

2 x 75s drill

On the third day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

3 x 50s descend

On the fourth day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

4 x 100s IM

On the fifth day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

5 x 50s sprint ALL OUT!

On the sixth day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

6 x 100s pull

On the seventh day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

7 x 50s alternate IM/IM transition 

On the eighth day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

8 x 25s no breath freestyle 

On the ninth day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

9 x 75s build to 90% effort

On the tenth day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

10 x 50s kick alternate 3 build/2 fast

On the eleventh day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

11 x 25s alternate 1 free easy/1 stroke fast

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my workout gave to me…

12 x 100s hold best average

Race Report Challenge Daytona

December 14-15, 2019

THE OFFER
At the last minute, I got an offer from a friend that she'd use her airline points to help me fly down and do this race if I wanted and I could stay at her place which is 20 minutes north of Daytona Speedway.  It wasn't that helpful financially since the race cost $300 and the ticket with bike transport was nearly $300 again and the car rental was $260 but still, it was a great offer and I accepted since I was looking forward to seeing my friend's new place in FL on the beach!  (I also have a house in central FL and needed to visit it to prepare it for renters in 2020 so part of the trip cost would be tax-deductible)  So sure, I'll bite, why not?

THE CHOICES
This race site has a listing of the racers signed up so I checked on my age group for the various race choices.  They have short course, relays, aquabike, duathlon and mid-course choices so there were a lot of ways and costs to racing.  I chose the midcourse (70.3 miles) because I like that distance and it could lead to a championship in Slovenia (top 6 racers) and there were only 4 signed up when I checked so it appeared highly likely I'd receive an option to go to the championship.

RACE SCHEDULE
The check-ins were on Friday and Saturday (short course raced Sat and long course was Sun)  and in order to spend more time with my generous friend I chose to be with her on Friday and check-in on Saturday.
The Base Performance Team was there enforce and a team dinner at Catfish Annies was our evening dinner plan.  She came with me and we had a lovely conversation with my teammates Jay and Danny.  The dinner was nice.  Lovely salad bar with lots of choices plus a warm bar with cheese grits and cornbread and few other items.  I got shrimp and she got a chicken sandwich.  It wasn't too expensive.

PRE RACE PREP
On Saturday I got up and assembled my bike.  I have a soft side bag for shipping my bike and it was still in the bubble wrap from my trip to Dun Laoghaire Ireland race.  I was a bit worried about the bike condition but I moved just after that race and hadn't had time to reassemble or even check it.  It all went together well until I tightened the screw on the seat post.  The screw on the tightening ring sheared off leaving the seat loose.  I wasn' too worried since I knew there were bike mechanics at the race and I was hours early for the check-in, but I decided to stop at the LBS and get help since it was possible I'd end up waiting behind a crowd.  The LBS sold me a new ring and installed it and I picked up CO2 and an adapter for my emergency kit.

I tooled down to the race and as I entered to check in I found some good friends I had known from Chicago who were doing the 5K that day.  I was excited to see them and stood and talked for about 30 minutes before heading to the check-in tent.  Picked up my envelope but due to latex allergies, I always have to ask about replacement caps.  Some races have their own silicone and prefer you use those, but normally I carry a cap in the right color if I know it (I have a rainbow of colors) but that day I only had a lime green IM cap.  They said to use that but to please turn it inside out.  I agreed to do this.  I knew Base has red silicone caps and thought perhaps I could get one at the Base tent but they had not brought any.  Kristin offered hers and said she'd try to find me in the morning to hand it over.  I told her not to worry if she missed me, I'd have my green one.

Challenge Daytona as optional bike check-in so I checked my bike knowing it saved a lot of time on race morning.  Bib # 1408.

RACE MORNING
I got to bed a bit later than I wanted but still got a good amount of rest and for up about 5:15 AM, left for the race venue at 5:30AM and arrived between 6 and 6:15. Parking is spacious and close to transition so that's very nice.   I got my transition set up pretty quickly. Met my fellow AG competitor Alex #1407 and headed out to find the portapotty.  Instead, I found warm restrooms which was awesome.  I got my wet suit on but had forgotten that HUUB suit I have has a detachable zipper at the bottom and this is a challenge to get on alone so I went looking for help.  Finally found a couple from Romania and the woman was a seamstress who understood zippers and she finally got me zipped up after others made some false starts and gave up.

THE SWIM
In the swim wave, I met Bob from central FL who was excited to race.  We chatted about everything and then headed into the swim.  You swim in the lake inside the arena which is a rectangular spring fed lake.  It was 70F so warm and calm.  Nice OWS!   I had a 42 min goal for this swim and made it even with several stops to wipe out foggy goggles and get my bearings after swallowing a mouth of water as one of the aquabike racers flowed by.  I got a cramp on the ramp as I tried to walk out and yelled at a young volunteer who told me "Keep coming!" that I had a cramp.  I felt bad later but had no way to know who he was an apologize later.  I finally got out  and managed a jog to my bike where the other racer had just arrived.  I followed her out with my bike  4 minutes later.

THE BIKE
The first 6.5 miles are on the Daytona Raceway.  It's smooth as glass and fun to ride on but hot.  You go 2.5 laps and head out onto the streets eventually going onto 92 for a long out and back.  That was fine but windy.  The course had one lane closed for riders.  We were instructed to ride to the right and pass left there but the traffic whizzed by on the right side so I was quite nervous on the ride.  Especially when I got to feeling a bit sleepy (dehydration symptoms).

Alex and I traded places on the course several times, exchanged names, talked about our age group etc with each pass.  Eventually, she sped up and I lost her.  What I didn't know was that my bike seat was sinking each mile.  I finally figured it out about the end of the first hour.  That was quite frustrating since my hips were sore and aching and I was feeling like I couldn't' spin another mile.  Once I got it fixed (of course I was talking to myself about should I stop now, or wait until the turnaround?) and got back on, everything eased up.  Clearly, a good bike fit is very important!  I got a bit faster for a while but the wind was very tough on the backside of the course.  I also began to notice a squeaking in the gears on certain gears which annoyed me.  I think I needed some lube pre-race and was going to do that but forgot!  I managed to stay in aero for most of the ride and I knew I'd be a bit slower since I was on my older, heavier road bike but I was happy that I posted a 3:35 time for my bike.  My goal was 3:30 so I was happy.  (Especially since my ride was slowed by the mysterious sinking seat and the stop to fix it...I might've had a PR if I hadn't had mechanical issues!  woot!)

THE RUN
I had been trying to pre-hydrate with electrolytes and freshwater for days.  Between several plane rides, the cold and cold weather in Chicago, the congestion and phlegm were all working against me being fully hydrated pre-race.  I rode into transition feeling pretty good but bronchitis like cold all week prior and the wind combined to have me pretty dehydrated I think.  I tried to keep up with hydration on the bike.  I used my "magic elixir" formula with electrolytes, Base aminos, UCann starch and the IM accelerator formula which kept me going pretty well, plus 2.5 bottles of water, 1 sport beans, and 1 gu.  I felt pretty good, no stomach issues and energetic.  However, my legs were very heavy so I knew I'd be walking at first at least.

My new shoes had not arrived before I left for the race so I was in my old Altras which felt comfortable but were pretty beaten down.  I got myself going in 4 minutes and headed to the raceway.  You run two laps.  These laps include the raceway which is not shady and very hot and around the access roads to the raceway which are also not very shady.  About mile 4 I was getting blisters on the bottoms of my feet.  Go figure, this is the same thing that happened to my friend I saw on Friday..he had told me about that.  I have NEVER had this happen so it was weird to have the same thing going on.  Anyway, I toughed it out but thought about quitting about mile 6, 7, 8 and 9 and finally said.."nope I'm finishing" at mile 9 and soldiered on.  I tried to run occasionally but it really wasn't working.  My legs were not only heavy but told me they would cramp if I tried to run at all.  I could feel the danger signals as I jogged along.  I wanted to do my 2 min run 1 min walk pattern and did this a bit but eventually, I had to give in and just walk.  I was disappointed.  I had been hoping to a PR with the other two times coming out so well.  I knew my time would be no faster than 7:30 (3:15 run) if I had to walk and my best time was 7:39 for a 70.3.  Oh well, another day.

THE FINISH
I ran across the finish line feeling better than I expected at 7:59, just under 8 hours.  I took my medal and went to join my Base Teammates and someone gave me a beer.  As I sat I saw Alex going by and hollered at her.  She came over and said, "you got second place!"  OMG What?  "Yeah, we're the only two in 60-64 AG so we got 1st and 2nd place!"  I limped with her to go find our podium awards and get our golden ticket to the Championship!

LESSONS
Check your bike carefully.  It's one of the things you do have control of and can fix on a race.  Spin the wheels to make sure they are freely rotating and not dragging.  Check the tires to be sure they are pumped up and in good condition.   Check the chain, lubricate it!  Check the screws on the handlebars and seat if you have recently made any changes to them.

Update your running shoes regularly.  Running 13.1 miles on old shoes is not advisable.

Don't give up. Just goes to show you should always try to complete no matter how you feel or what's going on.  That finish, no matter how disappointing, slow, or painful, brought some rewards I wasn't expecting and that was thrilling to receive!

Now I have to decide if I want to spend the money to go to Slovenia!

Cramping: How do I make it stop? I share my secret to ending cramps!

Cramping:  How to stop it, why it happens

(Consider adding Magnesium to your electrolyte mix) 

This week was the IMAZ race.  IMAZ tends to have very cold water swims and I read several reports of DNF due to cramping on the swim this weekend.  The science is unclear about why they happen but not unclear about what they are. 

 It got me to thinking about cramps and prevention.  I used to have a lot of cramping on the swims in particular.  If anyone touched my foot, my leg would immediately begin to cramp...not a good thing!  On longer races, at about the last 400 yards when I wanted to amp up my finish speed, my legs would often cramp.  I struggled my whole life with calf and hamstring (Charlie Horse) cramps.  I'd wake up in the middle of the night with them, my leg and foot stuck in a permanently flexed position.  Afterwards my leg would be sore for hours.  I was a gymnast, a bodybuilder, and a martial artist in my teens and 20s.  Cramps were a regular frustrating issue.  

At 52, when I began doing triathlons, the cramps became a regular issue again.  For 8 years I struggled with cramps.  I tried all the "remedies" of salt, hydration, etc.  Here's a couple of articles that are from the popular press ACTIVE and TRAINING PEAKS 

Most people believe that Sodium depletion and fatigue combine to create the problem.  Thus stretching and consuming extra sodium are suggested remedies. I tried these things and never found them to be all that helpful.  So I started doing research on sweating and biochemistry of human exercise.  What I found helped convince me that other electrolytes were more important for this issue than sodium.   Even medical research appears to be stumped by this problem. 

Before I go on, I'm not suggesting anyone consume less sodium.  Sodium is highly important to human exercise and body chemistry.  It has the highest concentration in our electrolyte mix and loss of sodium can cause serious health issues.  So keep using your sodium protocol.  What I'm suggesting is that you need other electrolytes to keep a balance.  Below I walk you through my logical process.  You can decide if I'm right.  

What's in Sweat? 

Perspiration consists of water, minerals, lactate, and urea. On average, the mineral composition is:

• Sodium (0.9 gram/liter)
• Potassium (0.2 g/l)
• Calcium (0.015 g/l)
• Magnesium (0.0013 g/l)

Trace metals that the body excretes in sweat include:

• Zinc (0.4 milligrams/liter)
• Copper (0.3–0.8 mg/l)
• Iron (1 mg/l)
• Chromium (0.1 mg/l)
• Nickel (0.05 mg/l)
• Lead (0.05 mg/l)

Note that Sodium is the largest component of sweat and therefore a high priority for replacement.  Gatorade contains a great deal of sodium, as do most nutrition products for athletic competition.  

But somehow, athletes are often unable to completely reduce cramps, even when they are consuming appropriate levels of salt.  My conclusion was that something else was happening.  

Pickle Juice 

One clue came when people starting claiming that pickle juice was effective against cramps.  Check out the components of pickle juice compared to electrolyte drinks and water:

Source: Electrolyte and Plasma Changes After Ingestion of Pickle Juice, Water, and a Common Carbohydrate-Electrolyte Solution

Notice that pickle juice has Magnesium (Mg) and other electrolytes that electrolyte drinks do not contain.  It also contains some carbohydrates which provide immediate energy and probiotics which could help with gastric issues.

Why is Magnesium Important? 

Magnesium is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. It helps to maintain normal nerve and muscle function, supports a healthy immune system, keeps the heartbeat steady, and helps bones remain strong. It also helps adjust blood glucose levels. It aids in the production of energy and protein.

Well, that sounded pretty dang important to me! 

Age-Related Issues
In addition, magnesium absorption from the gut decreases and renal magnesium excretion increases with age. Older adults are also more likely to have chronic diseases or take medications that alter magnesium status, which can increase their risk of magnesium depletion.  

So how do we get Mg normally?  Diet is one way (this link tells you what foods are high in Mg) but Mg is not readily absorbed through digestion. 

Magnesium is absorbed principally in the small intestine, through a saturable transport system and via passive diffusion through bulk flow of water. Absorption of magnesium depends on the amount ingested. When the dietary content of magnesium is typical, approximately 30-40% is absorbed. Under conditions of low magnesium intake (ie, 1 mmol/d), approximately 80% is absorbed, while only 25% is absorbed when the intake is high (25 mmol/d).


The exact mechanism by which alterations in fractional magnesium absorption occur has yet to be determined. Presumably, only ionized magnesium is absorbed. But transdermal absorption is better.  The molecular structure of Magnesium Chloride is much more easily absorbed into the body than that of Epsom Salt. ... Transdermal magnesium (also called topical magnesium) has—through a growing number of trials and studies—proven to be more effective than oral supplements such as tablets and capsules in delivering magnesium to the body.

So clearly Mg is a very important electrolyte that we lose in our sweat but is not replenished by most electrolyte drinks on competitive racing courses.  In addition, if you are an older athlete, you are far more likely to be normally rather depleted, even with a good diet, because your ability to absorb declines with age.  But, the good news is that absorption through the skin is very effective and using Epsom salts (which are great for recovery) and Mg infused lotions can help improve Mg levels in our body.  Finally, the form of Mg is important.  We don't just digest Mg, it's normally in a compound with other molecules.  Some forms are more "bioavailable" (the body can use them) than others.  

Magnesium oxideWith lower levels of bioavailability than its other iterations—that is, it scores only 4 percent, while magnesium citrate has a bioavailability of 90 percent—magnesium oxide is found in Milk of Magnesia and similar products, and, as such, organically encourages improved digestion.Conclusion:  Look for Magnesium Citrate in ingestible products. 

Products that contain MagnesiumBelow are a few of the products I have used, but the link in the header above lists a lot more options.  Ingestible, Race Day Products

Base Performance Salt VialsSodium regulates fluid balance, blood pressure and acid-base balance in the body. It also facilitates the transmission nerve impulses in skeletal muscle, brain and heart tissue. Since it is lost in sweat, it must be replenished during strenuous or prolonged exercise to prevent potentially life-threatening hyponatremia.
Potassium also plays an important role in fluid and acid-base balance, and it is particularly important for cardiac muscle contraction. It is also lost in sweat. Low potassium causes muscle weakness and severe depletion can induce heart arrhythmias.
Magnesium actives the enzymes required for energy production. It also plays a role in skeletal muscle contraction and bone structure. Even small deficits impair performance and increase damage from exercise. Magnesium facilitates potassium absorption from the gastrointestinal tract and helps balance electrolytes.
Chloride helps regulate fluid and acid-base balance in the body. Combined with hydrogen, it comprises the primary digestive acid in the stomach required to break down and absorb nutrients, and it may help the liver clear toxins. As the prominent negative ion in the body, it is commonly coupled with sodium and lost in sweat.
Calcium in addition to promoting bone structure and repair, calcium enables heart muscle contraction, nerve transmission and regulates certain hormones. When depleted, the body usurps calcium from the bone, so supplementing helps protect bone health and integrity.

Pickle Juice 

Salt Sticks INGREDIENTS FOR SALTSTICK (CAPS): VITAMIN D3 (CHOLECALCIFEROL), CALCIUM (AS CALCIUM CITRATE AND CALCIUM GLUCONATE), MAGNESIUM (AS MAGNESIUM CITRATE AND MAGNESIUM GLUCONATE), CHLORIDE (AS SODIUM CHLORIDE AND POTASSIUM CHLORIDE), SODIUM (AS 550 MG SODIUM CHLORIDE), POTASSIUM (AS POTASSIUM CITRATE AND POTASSIUM CHLORIDE), HYPROMELLOSE (VEGGIE CAPS), MAGNESIUM STEARATE AND STEARIC ACID.*Magnesium stearate does not provide Mg to the body. 

Gatorade Endurance GatorlytesINGREDIENTS SALT, POTASSIUM CHLORIDE, CALCIUM LACTATE, MAGNESIUM OXIDE, CALCIUM SILICATE*Magnesium oxide


UCan Hydrate UCAN Hydrate is a great-tasting way to stay hydrated with no sugar and zero calories! Our clean, natural electrolyte replacement has 5 essential electrolytes to prevent cramping and dehydration. Formulated by an Olympic dietitian to replenish the mix of nutrients lost in sweat.2x more magnesium per serving compared to other popular electrolyte products; magnesium aids energy production.  No artificial ingredients like acesulfame potassium or sodium benzoate.

Skin Absorption ProductsFor skin absorption, you can buy Epsom salts at any pharmacy for very low prices.  However, I also like Mg products from Ancient Minerals. You can also buy magnesium lotion or oil for topical application.  Recently a new spray product has been sold at Race expos that appears to work well. 

ConclusionSo perhaps I've convinced you to pay more attention to the Mg in your diet and your training nutrition.  I hope it helps you reduce your cramping.  It has significantly reduced the cramping I deal with but not 100%  I'm still hunting for answers, as are researchers and athletes around the world!  Good luck and Happy Racing!