Training for meet at high altitude

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Tue, 25 Jun 2019 08:22:57 GMT

Here's a blog post I wrote about my experience at the National Senior Games: elainestravels.com/.../

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Tue, 25 Jun 2019 08:21:36 GMT

Thanks Elaine! I was really happy about surviving it again. No legs left! I’m coming out of this focused on Ft Lauderdale in 2021 where there’s a lot of air. :banana: There’s a plan... See you another time Elaine! You WILL succeed in Ft. Lauderdale! You GO girl!

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 12:03:53 GMT

As a side note to my earlier post, I did survive my 200 fly; however, I was way off my seed time due to wall rests after the 100.:drowning: Many of the swimmers in both heats did the same, including Samantha who followed me in Lane 5 for the fastest heat. We encouraged each other and cheered each other on; however, it was more like, "It's ok, just catch your breath, you'll be ok, you just need to finish!) The goal was to finish and not get DQ'd by having to stop in the middle of the pool! Oh well, there were only three in our age group. Samantha won silver after going 15 seconds over her seed time, and I won bronze after going 24 seconds over mine. :whiteflag: You have to show up to win, so I will take my bronze and be proud of myself for making the effort. :wiggle:

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 11:53:02 GMT

Nice to finally meet you. Congratulations on your swimming. See you next time. Stay gold :) It was great finally meeting you, too! I really enjoyed our conversation. Man, you rocked the pool in your races! You were all about GOLD! :bow: Good luck in your 500 free today. So great to meet you in person,Elaine, and see that all your positivity online is the same in person. Man, this has been fun with people from all across the country. I’d loved to have met a few others too. My 200 free on Sunday suuuucked!! And I Man sucked wind. Goggles filled up on the dive and my brain got the best of me. Tried to keep up with some speed demons that I could se and it was too fast. I hit the wall hard on the last 50 and was based. Still managed to get 3rd AG. The 100 free today went much better., wind-wise. I knew I wasn’t going to make my seed time, but was very happy with what I did do and still took 3rd. I wonder if I’d have breathed left to peek at my competition at the 75if I could’ve hit another gear! Hmm... 500 free tomorrow... now we’re getting to the fun longer stuff! My teammate, Rich, has been killed it tho. He went home with a lot of hardware and improved on his seed times by at least 2seconds in every event! I am so glad we finally met! You were just as I thought you would be in person- nice and positive! You, too, are always so encouraging to other swimmers on the forums, and I have always appreciated that about you. Thanks! I'm sorry to hear about your 200 free, but you have been AWESOME! Winning medals in every race is something to be really proud of, Kari. Good luck in your 500 today! As for me, I was off my seed times in both the 200 IM and 200 *** yesterday and missed out on a ribbon in the ***. After both races, it took me several minutes to catch my breath back. I trained really hard for my distance races; however, nothing prepared me for the altitude. I had no idea my body would have such a hard time dealing with it. USRPT training really paid off for my 50 *** and 100 fly, though, and I'm happy with getting my best times since 2013 for those two races. Today is relays, and I feel ready to RACE! 50'S altitude? Peace of cake! :bolt:

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

flystorms — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 11:14:42 GMT

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 01:04:03 GMT

CONGRATULATIONS to Flystorms for winning GOLD in the 500 free! :applaud: :cheerleader:

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

flystorms — Tue, 18 Jun 2019 11:15:04 GMT

So great to meet you in person,Elaine, and see that all your positivity online is the same in person. Man, this has been fun with people from all across the country. I’d loved to have met a few others too. My 200 free on Sunday suuuucked!! And I Man sucked wind. Goggles filled up on the dive and my brain got the best of me. Tried to keep up with some speed demons that I could se and it was too fast. I hit the wall hard on the last 50 and was based. Still managed to get 3rd AG. The 100 free today went much better., wind-wise. I knew I wasn’t going to make my seed time, but was very happy with what I did do and still took 3rd. I wonder if I’d have breathed left to peek at my competition at the 75if I could’ve hit another gear! Hmm... 500 free tomorrow... now we’re getting to the fun longer stuff! My teammate, Rich, has been killed it tho. He went home with a lot of hardware and improved on his seed times by at least 2seconds in every event!

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Kurt Dickson — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 08:54:09 GMT

Congratulations to all the Forumites (Glenn Gruber, Kurt Dickson, Ann Guins, Flystorms, Smiley92407, and anybody else I forgot to mention who are here at the National Senior Games and rockin' the pool! Good luck in the rest of your races! :cheerleader: Nice to finally meet you. Congratulations on your swimming. See you next time. Stay gold :)

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 02:36:36 GMT

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 02:17:24 GMT

Elaine, There is not much you can do to increase the amount of hemoglobin in your system although three weeks is better than nothing. BUT, don't lose hope because this was my experience from 1994. I attended the Breadbasket Zone meet in Denver in 1994. I got there a couple of days in advance - mixed a business trip into the fray. The first 2 practice days absolutely sucked - no other word for it. BUT, come the weekend and the racing - everything from 50s to 500s and I was on track and not slower than at meets in Minnesota (700 ft elevation). I was pleasantly surprised. With a year to plan, the snorkel might help although I would personally opt for training harder instead of restricting your airway. You might try adding an iron supplement in an attempt to increase your hemoglobin and red blood cell count. Normally this is a suggestion for people suffering from anemia (like me), but it might be marginally beneficial in your case. That is my experience. I suspect, you will do just fine. Windrath Greetings from 5311 ft. here in Albuquerque! Your were right-- until you weren't about me doing just fine. I raced the 100 fly, 50 br, and 400 IM yesterday, and I swam my fastest 100 fly and 50 br since 2013! I haven't broken a :44 in the 50 br since then, so when I saw 43.82 on the clock, I was shocked! My start was too deep, and I catched a wave and gulped water in the last 15 yards. I thought for sure I had choked, both literally and figuratively. I guess the USRPT training paid off. I just wonder what my time would have been had I had a better race... Then, there was the 400 IM. On Thursday, I did a practice 200 fly (which I race later today), and I literally had to stop after 100 to catch my breath. Today should be interesting... In the 400, I figured I would be able to catch my breath during the backstroke; however, I was wrong. I literally had to take two breaths FOR EACH STROKE. Usually, when I'm in the zone, I can breathe in on the right arm, and out on the left arm recovery. At worst, it's one breath per arm. By the breaststroke, my turns sucked-- literally. I had to grab extra air :eek:; and, by freestyle, nothing worked :drowning:. I never felt so miserable in the pool in all my life!:whiteflag: I came in at + 19.30 over my seed time, and I wasn't the only one. Out of eight of us in my age group, only once beat her seed time-- and, she is from-- NEW MEXICO! Several of the swimmers did worse than me with how much over their seed times they swam. Oh well; I came in 6th, and I still got a ribbon.:wiggle: I talked with Penny Noyes (5-time All American), as well as several other top swimmers, and they all said they could really feel it at the 75 yard mark in their 100's. Everybody seems to be hitting the wall at the 100 mark like I did in my practice 200 fly. It's a fast pool, though, so the sprinters are doing great and breaking some records. The level of competition at this meet has soared since Birmingham. There are some amazing swimmers here in all age groups. Forumite Kurt Dickson beat his seed time in the 400 IM and broke the record. (Did you come out early and go to Santa Fe first, Kurt? I should have done that; it's 7,000 ft elevation there!). Forumite Glenn Gruber broke the record in the 200 free and won gold. Of the 470 women here, only 19 of us (across all age groups) are racing the 200 fly today. I will be curious to see how we all do! It makes me think of that song, "I Will Survive," by Gloria Gaynor. :D

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 01:40:44 GMT

Which restaurants are on your list! Vintage, we found a great local dive that has been around since the year I was born: 1962: Mary & Tito's at 2711 4th St. NW. It's our favorite so far; Monroe's our least favorite. We decided against Ranger, and we haven't been to Padilla's yet.

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Mon, 10 Jun 2019 10:57:20 GMT

Elaine - hope to catch up with you. Also, if you want a good NM breakfast/lunch, go to Weck's. There are several locations around town. They have great breakfast bowls and the best BLT with green chile. Yum!! Thanks for the tip! I'll see you at the pool!

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

flystorms — Mon, 10 Jun 2019 09:16:56 GMT

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

flystorms — Mon, 10 Jun 2019 09:13:17 GMT

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

flystorms — Fri, 07 Jun 2019 09:53:16 GMT

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Fri, 07 Jun 2019 04:15:31 GMT

Which restaurants are on your list! Padilla’s Mexican Restaurant (Dive/cheap)- #9 ranking of 1,447 restaurants in ABQ 4-1/2 of 5 stars ( 8 min/5.3 miles from arena) 1510 Girard Blvd NE The Ranger Café- #4 – Mexican 4-1/2* 2200 Menaul Blvd NE Monroe’s Restaurant- #6 - Mexican 4-1/2* 1520 Lomas Blvd. NW Mariscos Altamar- #48 4-1/2* (near hotel and pool) 1517 Coors Blvd NW Mexican, Latin, Seafood

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Fri, 07 Jun 2019 03:55:06 GMT

Ha! yes, remember we said that there shouldn't be many expectations of PRs or any other records. Just survive! I'm so excited to get good Mexican food!! Since moving to Memphis, i haven't dared get any. :) Growing up in SoCal, NM and living in TX gets you spoiled on the really good stuff. Ha! I grew up in Long Beach, graduated from SDSU, and stayed in San Diego for 24 years. When my husband retired, we moved to San Antonio, and then on to Georgia 4-1/2 years later. I hear ya on the Mexican food! As you know from living there, the Mexican food in New Mexico is a lot different than the Baja-Mexican food in SoCal. It is FABULOUS! I did some research on Trip Advisor, and I have our restaurants all planned out, including a (very) early dinner before the Celebration of Athletes at "The Pit." Then, it's on to Santa Fe for more great New Mexican food! :dinner: Kari, I have your number in my phone, so I will be in touch with you in ABQ!

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Elaine Krugman — Wed, 05 Jun 2019 03:53:32 GMT

I am going to look into portable oxygen canisters. Check out this thread: forums.usms.org/showthread.php The responses to my question about it were negative. I guess we'll be stuck gasping for air. In my case, the 200 fly, 400 IM, and 200 breaststroke are going to be, uhhh, interesting... :whiteflag:

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

smiley92407 — Wed, 05 Jun 2019 03:08:10 GMT

I too am going to the Senior Games in Albuquerque and after reading the posts here I am resigned to the fact that I will be gasping for breath. Another swimmer I met this weekend at the Pasadena Senior Games who is also going to Albuquerque told me to do open turns on the longer events. My coach told me this morning that I might have to do that if the altitude becomes a factor. I am going to look into portable oxygen canisters.

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Former Member — Fri, 27 Apr 2018 11:25:28 GMT

Yeah, Albuquerque is all right I guess. If you can spell it. And keep your car from being stolen. Oh, and not get shot. Then it's real nice. Mostly kidding. I don't know if I'll be there. I haven't entered swim meet since 1978. Don't have fond memories of age group swim meets either. I know it's all different now, just haven't taken the plunge. I was going to do the NM State games this year. But I'm getting my shoulder fixed in June and won't be able to. If you come here, swim with us at LOBO. Vintage, I'm not too far from you. Just 90 min away and "up on the hill". Elaine, I've been told it take 1 month for every 1000 feet in elevation gain to adjust. I've been at 7200 for over 2 years and I'm still adjusting some days. Drink lots of water for the week or so prior to arriving and get here as early, before the meet, as you can. ABQ isn't as high as I am so I actually would enjoy this meet but I miss the age requirement by 1 year. Maybe I'll drive down and see you, though!

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Former Member — Fri, 27 Apr 2018 11:24:35 GMT

Sadly, true. We hosted a dual-sanctioned meet last summer and had 1 master from CO come down. Were closer to CO than AZ. Sadly, that dual-sanctioned meet was cancelled this year due to low registration.

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Former Member — Fri, 27 Apr 2018 10:46:17 GMT

Its a small populated state. New Mexico swimmers go to meets in Arizona. I competed against a New Mexico Masters swimmer at the Tucson Senior Olympics meet.

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Former Member — Fri, 27 Apr 2018 10:20:26 GMT

Keep it up, Elaine! I'll try to come down to ABQ during the meet, once they announce the exact dates. I so wish I could compete as we don't have many meets in NM. As in, we have 1 per year!

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Former Member — Fri, 27 Apr 2018 08:12:36 GMT

Hi there! I've been doing fine and love living in NM now. When is the meet? I may head down there to watch a bit. I can't believe you are still doing the 400IM and 200 fly. You are an animal. A few days here will help along with the water intake. Lack of water can cause a headache quickly here.

RE: Training for meet at high altitude

Former Member — Fri, 27 Apr 2018 07:36:14 GMT

Elaine, this is swimshark (darn new forum wouldn't let me log in with my old name). I live about 90 min north of ABQ now. I train at 7200 every day. I've been told it takes 1 month per 1000 feet in elevation gain to adjust but there are days I still feel like I'm adjusting and I've been here for 2 years. Drink plenty of water for about a week before arriving and get here as far in advance as you can. I wish I could swim in the meet but I miss the age limit by 1 year!