New Year

I hope everyone has a great weekend!  Be Safe!

For those of you that are attending practice on New Years Eve @ 7:00am.....

Here is a hint for your last official Holiday Madness Practice, as its back to business starting next week:

20
11
20
12

Happy New Year
Coach Steve

Festivus for the Rest of Us

Tonight we will be celebrating Festivus in our own way.  For those of you that don't know what Festivus is, you can watch the video below.  The main principles of Festivus are:

1. The Airing of Grievances
2. Feats of Strength

We will be doing a "normal" workout in the shallow end and maybe a few lanes in the deep end, but for those of you up for the challenge.....come celebrate Festivus with me.

Happy Holidays!

Thanks everyone for all your generosity and kindness this year!  It was great to see you all this morning.  I hope you have a wonderful weekend, but be prepared for Tuesday.

Holiday Madness continues!

We will be celebrating another Holiday, one maybe not so familiar to you.  I hope you are up for the challenge!  Stay tuned for details after Xmas!

What a Team!  Here is Today's Practice for those that missed:

Ho Ho Ho!

The Madness Continues!

Tonight will be the following:

Shallow - A lot of 100's
Deep = Deep End Torture!

Don't forget we are going to Kenny's tonight for a "second" practice

REMEMBER - We have practice from 7:00 - 8:00 am on Xmas Eve!  Any volunteers to bring some coffee and/or donuts for a quick after practice social gathering??  If you are interested in bringing something....email me.

Next week will also be the same schedule.......Details for next week coming soon....

And so it begins

With the Holidays quickly approaching.....

Stress levels continue to rise.....

as does your Holiday cookie consumption....

It is time to declare that our 2 weeks of
Holiday Madness Begins!

-------------------------------------------------------

Tuesday Night's Practice is:

50 x 50's on the :50

That's all you need to know right now.  See you tonight!

---------------------------------------------------------

HOLIDAY PARTY!

On Thursday Night @ 9:15pm we will be bringing our Holiday Madness to Kenny's Tavern.  Come.  Be Social.  Be Merry.  If, of course, you have any energy left from the madness.....
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We will be having normal practice times for the next 2 Saturday workouts.  7:00am-8:00am 

 
 


 

Announcement - NEW EQUIPMENT

I have put in my request for a new piece of training equipment. Lets keep our fingers crossed that we get one!

Back to Breast Transition

Week of Dec 13th

Hello All,

We are welcoming a new coach to the team this week, Mark.  Please be nice to him for at least the first week!


Deep End Workout Tonight, get ready!

For a downloadable/printable copy of the workout click HERE


WeekofDec13th

Choose your own adventure

For those of you that are coming to practice tomorrow am @ 7am, here's a hint as to what to expect:

Warm Up for all lanes

Then each lane has these "adventures" to choose from:

1 = "Weber Mile"
2 = "IM Goodness"
3 = "Katy's Crossfit Swim"
4 = "Race Simulation"

Good Luck to All

See you in the Morning!

Week of Dec 6th

See you this week!



For a downloadable/printable copy of the workouts, click HERE

WeekofDec6th

Week of November 29th

Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving weekend, but its time to get back into the swing of things.

See you at the pool!

For a downloadable/printable copy of the workout, click HERE



Week of Nov 29th

ThanksGiving Week

 

Hello Everyone!

Please note that our practice schedule is different this week:

Tuesday = REGULAR TIME 8-9pm

Thanksgiving morning = 8-10am That's right.....2 hours people!

Saturday practice = Sleep in! We do not have practice!!!

FOR THANKSGIVING:

All registered Lyons Master's swimmers are allowed to attend practice on Thanksgiving morning. We are going to break the workout into two(2) one hour sessions essentially. We will have a normal practice going on in the shallow end and a Holiday Deep End Extravaganza in the deep pool. After these practices are completed, you are free to leave and go home to your families, or you can stay and either continue to get some training time in or work on stroke work or racing skills. We might even do a relay or two, just for fun.  I am hoping that some of you "advanced" swimmers will be willing to lend a hand to help with that part of the practice. I can only be in so many places at once.....remember I only have one good thumb!

There are no posted workouts this week.  Just show up mentally prepared to work extra hard!

See you Tuesday!
Coach Steve

Week of Nov 15th

Tonight we will be doing a DEEP END WORKOUT.  I hope you have been doing your homework!  You have one more week of the same assignment:

2x this week:

3 x 10 push ups
3 x 10 air squats
2 x 20 second planks

Saturday's practice is at 7:00am - 8:00am

A downloadable/printable copy of the workout can be found HERE

 

Week of Nov 15th

Week of Nov 8th

I have heard through the grapevine that a lot of you are sore from Saturday's Deep End workout.....Sounds like a lot of you haven't been doing any dryland training on your own. Here is your homework.

Do this 3x this week:

3 x 10 push ups
3 x 10 air squats
2 x 20 second planks

More Deep End workouts are coming........prepare your self!

IMPORTANT NOTE: SATURDAY'S PRACTICE IS AT 6:00AM due to LTHS hosting the Sectional Meet.

For a Downloadable/printable copy of the work out click HERE


Week of Nov 8th

ILMSA/USMS Registration

The 2012 Illinois Masters Swimming Association (ILMSA) forms are here.  We need you to fill out the form and return it this week. 

DO NOT INCLUDE A CHECK !  The ILMSA/USMS registration fee was included in your Lyons Masters Swim Team registration (i.e., $320).

Forgot your USMS number?  Find it here.  
Club/Team (workout group) Designation:  LYON

Please return the form by...

Mailing to:  PO Box 61 Western Springs, IL  60558
Emailing to:  rules3k@aol.com
Giving to:   Coach Steve

Week of Nov 1st

Time to burn off all the candy you ate!

See you at the pool!


A downloadable/printable copy of the work out can be found here

Week of Nov 1st

The power of streamline

This is one of the coolest things I have ever seen in swimming.

Week Of Oct 25th

Remember, Tonight we are having a social gathering at Kenny's after practice. Its a perfect way to recover from a few 500's

Saturday practice is back to our normal time of 7:00am

Here you go:

For a printable/downloadable copy of the workout click HERE

Week of Oct 25th

Post-Practice Practice

Bring your "real" clothes to practice on Tuesday and join us post-practice at Kenny's.

Catch up with your teammates and see what they've been up to...

Don't worry - We'll have name tags so you won't have to remember anyone's names.

Saturday Practice - 6 am

Don't forget practice is at 6am tomorrow morning.

Hope to see you early tomorrow.

In case you need some motivation...

Practice CANCELED

Tonight's practice has been canceled!

Coach Steve had an accident at work today and cut his thumb.  Don't worry - he and his thumb are going to be okay.  He will be going in for a little tendon surgery around 3pm and won't be able to make it to practice. We tried to find some replacements but the notice was just too short.

This means we'll all have to reconsider that 6am Saturday morning practice.

Enjoy your evening off!

P.S.  Don't forget to email the numbers of rounds you swam on Tuesday.  Email to:  lyonsmasters@gmail.com
P.S.S.  Surgery was a success.  Thumb will make a full recovery.

Week of Oct 18th

Hey All,

**Important Note - Saturday AM practice is 6:00am-7:00am due to an Age Group Swim meet.

Here are the workouts for the week.

See you in the pool

Coach Steve

For a printable/downloadable copy of the workout, click HERE


Week of Oct 18th

Open Water Swimmer - Alex Meyer

Week of Oct 11th

Sorry for the delay guys, I really am going to try to be doing the weekly posts on Monday nights.

This week, or at least just tonight is going to be a little crazy.  Due to the pool closure at North Campus we are going to be sharing pool time tonight with some of the off season High School Boys until 8:30.

They are going to be in Lane 1,2 and possibly 3 of the Deep End.  For all you ladies down there, I am going to temporarily relocate you to the shallow end and will secure a lane for you.  I'll let you know where tonight.

Hopefully this will all get resolved soon, but keep in mind that we may need to be accomodating this week.

See you tonight
Coach Steve

For a downloadable/printable copy of the workout, click HERE

Week of Oct 11th

Catch Up

Start the weekend off with a splash!

Practice is from 7-8am tomorrow.  If you don't have to run off right away - plan on grabbing a quick breakfast after practice with the team.

Where:  Great American Bagel or Honey Bee Cafe
When:  October 8, 8-8:15am

South Pool Still Open

Tonight's practice will NOT be impacted by the temporary closure of the North Pool.

Get ready for some individual medley (aka IM) tonight.

See you tonight.
Coach Steve

Week of Oct 4th - WEEK 1 !!

For tonight, we are going to have a quick meeting just to say hello and answer some questions and then any returning swimmers can begin the workout while I discuss more details with our new members.
 
See you soon!
Coach Steve

A downloadable/printable copy can be found here.
Week of Oct 4th

Less than 48 hours away!

Hey All,

I am so excited that our new season starts up in about 48 hours!  I will post the weeks workouts tomorrow, but first we need to go over a few things.

If you have NOT registered, please do so immediately!  Registration info can be found here.

Our first practice I expect to be pretty chaotic, FYI.  We have a bunch of new people joining the team.  WELCOME!  and its going to take a few days to get the lanes figured out.  I know a lot of you are creatures of habit and I encourage you to go to your usual lanes of choice for Day 1.  PLEASE KEEP IN MIND......I will be eventually placing you in a lane, which may or may not be your usual location.

Since we have a lot to do on Day 1, I want to share with you now what has been going on in my life recently.

A little over a week ago my niece (Brother's daughter, 16 months old) came down with a simple cold that quickly spiraled out of control.  She has been in critical condition since last weekend and is fighting so bravely for her life right now.  This has been the hardest week of my life to date.  She is getting better, but the road to recovery is going to be incredibly long and difficult.  Life for our family is going to continue to be a struggle for longer than any of us would like.

I have to be completely honest, I am tired.  I am tired mentally, physically and more than anything emotionally.  We have found strength however through each other and the community we live in.  The outpouring of prayers and caring thoughts has been over whelming to say the least.

In the midst of all this horror and disbelief, I have been looking forward to reuniting with my Masters family.  You may think that sounds crazy (you newbies will understand soon enough, I promise), but I am inspired every time I see you guys discover what you are capable of.  You guys give me so much strength!

You can find out more about my dear niece, Emmy, here:

http://emersonroessler.blogspot.com/

She has been receiving wonderful emails from people we know and even from complete strangers across the globe (I am not kidding).  One such email contained this quote:

What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies inside of you.


                               -Ralph Waldo Emerson

I know that many of you are scared of how out of shape you have gotten.

I know that some of you haven't been in the pool for a very long time.

I also know that I witnessed many of you dig deep last year and fight through those fears and obstacles and transform your life for the better.

This week I have been watching this beautiful 16 month old girl fight harder than anyone I have ever seen before.

The time has come for you to find out how strong and tough you are.

See you on Tuesday

- Coach Steve

Thinking Ahead

Our new season starts on Tuesday so it's time to start thinking about your goals for the season.  How about competing in a postal or a meet?

Here are two upcoming events to consider:

2011 USMS 3000-yard and 6000-yard Postal National Championships - Individual or Relay Team.
Must be swum in its entirety on or between September 15 and November 15, 2011.

What's a Postal?  Swimmers swim a distance in any 25-yard or 25-meter pool during the sanctioned dates.  You record your time and submit the results electronically (formerly mailed thus 'Postal') to USMS so you can compare yourself to other swimming doing the same event.  Postals were originally developed so that swimmers in areas without nearby clubs and sanctioned meets could still compete.  

Sink or Swim Classic - November 6, 2011 - Vernon Hills, IL
$5 entry/event + $5 fee

Free - 400, 200, 100, 50
IM - 400, 200, 100
Breast - 200, 100, 50
Fly - 200, 100, 50
Back - 200, 100, 50
Mixed Male Relay - 200
Mixed Female Relay - 200

13 Days until our Season begins!

For more info on registering, click here

Please contact me if you have any questions: lyonsmasters@gmail.com

See you VERY Soon!

Coach Steve

Red Bull Trail Daze

Anyone have any interest in joining in on the fun?  Its a trail running race in Palos.  I did it last year and it was SPECTACULAR!  I've got a small crew already committed.  Don't miss the fun!

Red Bull Trail Daze - Dec 10th

Let me know if you sign up!

Trail Run

What:    Trail Running
Why:      Fun, Exercise, Team Building
Where:  See Below
When:   Saturday @ 8:15am
How Far:     Roughly 3 miles
Whats it like:    mostly "singletrack" with a lot of ups and downs



Email me if you are going to go, so I can have a rough head count.  There may be only 2 of us(Katy and I are going).  There may be 10 of us.



THIS IS NOT AN OFFICIAL MASTERS EVENT......just a fun activity among friends.  All are welcome.


Directions:

Willow Springs Road south to 
Archer Ave(right) to 95th st (soft left)
Take the first right turn into the woods.
Go straight all the way to the last parking lot on your right.
Get ready to run.
Cambr Palos Map

Official Sponsorship

I am excited to announce that the Lyons Masters Team has been officially sponsored by:

I will be sending out an email with specifics on pricing, etc... once Fall Registration is completed, but if any of you are looking to purchase one soon, please email me directly.

This is a great opportunity to get a new wetsuit, just in time for one of my new favorite activities; COLD OPEN WATER SWIMMING!  It's a lot more fun than you might think!  Dominik and I are getting ready......You should be too!

ITU World Championships

While a lot of us were competing in Big Shoulders over the weekend one of our Lyons Masters swimmers was competing in the ITU World Championships in Beijing.  Tom Kaptur finished 8th in the WORLD for his age group.

Tom, we are very proud of you!  Its an incredible acheivement!  We look forward to a race report in the near future.

For his race results, you can click here

Big Shoulders was a success!

I have to say, I couldn't be happier with how everyone did today!  Big Shoulders is not an event that most people would choose to do.  It's pretty difficult and can be quite scary, but you guys handled it very well!

Today really was a beautiful day for the swim! 

This is how my shoulders feel right now!

I think it speaks volumes to how hard all of you worked this season to prepare for it.  You should all be proud!  We also learned today that possibly the only thing that can stop Katy is hypothermia!  BTW, thanks to everyone for helping my lovely wife warm back up!

See you all on October 4th!  Pay attention to the bulliten board for some fun outdoor adventures!  All are welcome......if your tough enough!

Thanks again for all your hard work,
Coach Steve

A few last things

You are all champions in my book!

A couple quick things to mention:

Katy and I are going to be heading down around 6:00-6:30 and should get there between 6:30 and 7:00am.

Bob is hosting a post swim party starting around 3:00pm at his house. You can email me for directions if you need them.

Get hydrated today! Get a good night sleep tonight!

YOU ARE READY!

Good Luck,
Coach Steve

Big Shoulders Race Day Information

2011 BS Safety Plan Map

Fall Registration Reminder

Registration is now open for the Fall Season.  Please keep in mind that registration INCLUDES your membership to USMS for 2012. 

USMS forms will be made available soon.  You will need to fill them out and submit them to me at swim practice.

See you soon!

Register Here

Race Day Nutrition

I have been asked to talk about my thoughts on nutrition on the day of your event.  First off, I am no expert, not even close!  However, I have tried a bunch of different strategies and can tell you what I have found out that works for me.

The more I researched, the more I realized how hard it was to find a definitive answer on what you should be doing.  So this is how I think about things now, as simply put as possible, I break my training/racing into two categories:

• less than 3 hours

• more than 3 hours

For either "category" I focus on starting the event properly hydrated, which to me means starting the day before.  I consciously make sure I am consuming plenty of fluids and even start taking electrolyte supplements through out the day before.  That night, before I go to bed, I drink a pint glass of water with about 2TB of chia seeds in the glass.  Chia seeds are a pretty cool thing, you can learn more about them here.

For events lasting up to 3 hours, I have no set routine for my caloric needs.  I usually just use what ever I have laying around which typically is a few Gels, apples, some type of bar ( I have been making my own "larabars" lately ).  Sometimes I will even make a few tortilla roll ups with peanut butter and honey in them.  I generally am not to worried about my exact nutrition needs during a 0-3 hour training session, but for a race I try to consume about 250 calories per hour(based on my weight).  A product like Hammer Nutrition's HEED is perfect for this.

Where I have really struggled in the past is how to fuel myself for long duration workouts which in the last few years have been on the bike and have lasted 6-8 hours of a steady effort.  I use to follow my same game plan as I previously stated of just using what I had laying around, but most of the times I would be a mess by the time I finished the ride.  My legs would have no power left in them and I would come home almost nauseous with hunger.  The next day typically I would be sore in the legs which I believe to be my muscles being cannibalized from insufficient caloric intake. 

This year for the first time I have found a system that I love.  A friend of mine told me how he had been fueling during his endurance cycling events and I gave his advice a try after a little research.  I have used it now on a hand full of rides lasting 6+ hours and have finished the ride feeling great and not even hungry when I got home.  I also experienced no muscle soreness the days following.  I now swear by Hammer Nutrition's Perpetuum.  I think the best flavor is Strawberry Vanilla, fyi.

I wish I was a Hammer sponsored athlete!

They are a pretty incredible company to check out.  Their website is a wealth of information on how to fuel properly for events.  Sign up for their catalog and literature via email about endurance fueling.  They are a tremendous resource.  For more information on nutrition from Hammer Nutrition, click here

The system I follow is this:

I break up my efforts into 3 hour blocks and consume the following during each 3 hour block:

• (3) 22 oz water bottles
• (1) 22 oz "multi-hour bottle" of perpetuum
• I mix a 3 hour bottle, which means I use 6 scoops of perpetuum and fill the rest of the bottle with water
• which equals a 270 cal per hour intake; slowly sipping the bottle every 10 minutes or so
• I also use their "Endurolyte" tablets and I really enjoy Cliff Bar "Shot Blocks" which give me a little burst of flavor to break up the boredom of everything else.

So after 3 hours, I stop and refill my water bottles and mix up another batch of perpetuum (6 scoops(based on my body weight) which I keep in a ziplock bag).

Whats important to note is that I consume NO other foods than what I listed above.  It was a hard thing to grasp in the beginning, but I have found that keeping it a liquid diet the whole time, my stomach has been a lot more stable and I am not even hungry when I finish my ride.

So back to where it really matters for right now.  Big Shoulders.

My plan is to rehydrate the day before and in the morning I am going to consume a bottle of HEED before I get down to the lake and another bottle in the thirty minutes or so before the swim starts.  I am not much of a race day breakfast eater, which is why I think I like the whole concept of a liquid diet.

You may think differently, but this is what works for me.

Does anyone have their own opinions on nutrition?  I would love to hear about your experience and methods!  Please comment below.

Good luck Everyone!

Coach Steve

Chicago Triathlon Results

From the reports that have been filtering in all day today from you guys, it sounds like Lake Michigan choose to not cooperate today.

I am impressed with all of you guys today for sticking it out!  Great Job!

I can't wait for more feedback from everyone!  Please let me know how you felt during and after the event.  I hope those post race beers tasted good.  You deserved them!

Your Proud Coach,
Steve

FALL REGISTRATION IS OPEN

Registration is now open for our next swim season which runs from October 4, 2011 to April 29, 2012. The season costs $320 for 89 practices ($3.60 per practice).

Come Join the Fun!  *Register Here*

Chicago Triathlon

I just wanted to wish those of you who are competeing in the Chicago Triathlon this weekend, Good Luck!  You guys have worked hard and are READY!  Have fun and please give me full race reports when you get a chance!

Relays

Congratulations to Lori and Team Switchblade.  They came in 1st place at the Woodridge Mini Sprint Triathlon with Lori destroying the other swimmers by 0:15 seconds.

Want to brag a little?  We'd love to hear about it - send your story and pictures to lyonsmasters@gmail.com. 

Stay active!

Air & Water Show

Don't forget that this weekend is the Air & Water Show.  If you're planning on swimming in Lake Michigan, be sure to plan accordingly.

The show starts at 10 am at North Avenue Beach.

Saturday's practice will be at the South Pool.

Saturday AM - OHIO ST BEACH

Saturday's practice will be at the Lake.

Location:  Ohio St. Beach
Date:  Saturday, August 13th
Meeting Time:  7:30 - 7:45am

Please note that we are meeting early to avoid the Swim Across America crowd will be making-up their swim at 8:30am.

*THERE IS A CHANCE OF RAIN OVERNIGHT AND INTO THE MORNING.  IF IT IS RAINING OR RAINED HARD ENOUGH TO RAISE CONCERNS ABOUT WATER QUALITY, WE WILL HOLD PRACTICE FROM 7-8am at SOUTH CAMPUS.  CHECK HERE IN THE MORNING FOR RAIN UPDATES.

Saturday - Group Swim

Without getting wet, this year's Swim Across America (SAA) team was a great success. 

We'd like to thank everyone who supported our effort.  Together we raised $4,734 and helped SAA raise over $160,000 for cancer research. 

As many of you know, this year's SAA swim was canceled due to a Chicago Park's District swim ban.  Although it won't be an official event, several SAA swimmers will be meeting this Saturday to make-up the SAA swim.  

This is a great opportunity for you to come swimming and show your support for your fellow team members and a great organization. 

Meet-up

Date:  Saturday, August 13th

Time:  7:45-8am

Place:  Ohio Street Beach
After-Party:  Fox & Obel

Disclaimer:  This group swim is not an official practice or SAA event.  Swim At Your Own Risk.

If you're interested in carpooling, please contact Nicole @ adventuregoers@gmail.com.  Hope to see you on Saturday!

Another tough week for us - TUESDAYS WORKOUT

Well as it turns out, North Campus is having its complete plumbing and filtration system revamped which is why it is still down.

South campus pool opens on Wednesday so we are good to go for Thursday.

Stay tuned for the game plan for Tuesday.......

Game plan for Tuesday is to find a pool whether tonight or tomorrow night and do the following:

400 swim

6/4 x 100 count your strokes on the first length and reduce by 2 on the rest of the swim  RI = 20 secs

8 x 50 IMO on 1:15

3 rounds of:
200 free  RI=20 secs
200 pull   RI=20secs
100 kick  RI=20 secs

200 easy swim, focus on hand placement

***THURSDAY WE WILL BE BACK AT THE SOUTH CAMPUS POOL

103 mile open water swim

Diana Nyad is currently attempting to swim from Cuba to Florida.  Quite an undertaking at any age, but she is 61 years old.

Best quote from the article:  Nyad is undaunted. "I am a better athlete today than I was at 29."

progress as of 9:15pm

More Info on Diana Nyad's Swim. Track Her Progress in REAL TIME.

BREAKING NEWS *** Training Update

For those of you that are enrolled in the current training session, we DO NOT have a pool this week.  North Campus is still evidently empty, so since our back up plan failed for South Campus's pool closure, we need to create a new plan.

Tuesday Night: Is a choose your own adventure.  I have to see if I can get down to the Lake on Tuesday night, but if you can't get to the lake then try to find a pool in the beginning of this week, you can do the following workout there:

500/400 swim
300/200 pull
3 x 100 drill/swim
4 x 50 build free
---
6/4 x 200 count your stroke on the first length and then try to reduce your number by one or two for the rest of your 200.  RI=20 secs

4/2 x 50 kick, swim RI=20secs

Thursday:  We are meeting at Ohio St. beach @7pm for a lake swim of about one hour (ALL ARE WELCOME! This is a meet up, not an official practice)

Saturday Am: We are meeting at Ohio St beach @ 8am for a lake swim of about one hour (ALL ARE WELCOME This is a meet up, not an official practice)

Please comment on this post if you will be attending any of the lake swims or if you will be swimming at a pool and you want a partner to swim with.

Stay strong,
Coach Steve

Big Shoulders Training Session Begins this week!

This week marks the start of the Lyons Master's first ever training session dedicated to those of you that have taken on the challenge of competing in the open water.

Are you registered for Big Shoulders 5K/2.5K?

Are you registered for any number of the triathlons that are offered later this season?

If you answered "YES!" to either of these questions than you are eligible to join our Big Shoulders Training Group, which follows our normal practice schedule.  Stay tuned to our Masters website for more updates along the way.  Workouts will NOT be posted in advance.

Why not?

When it comes to race day in open water, there are a lot of unknown variables.  What is the water temperature?  Is the lake calm?  How deep is it?  Are there any fish that could eat me?  etc.   So to answer your question on why I am not posting the workouts.....mental training.

You can REGISTER HERE.

See you at the pool!

Coach Steve

Final Week of Summer Session!

Hello Everyone,

This is the last week of our Summer swim session.  Its been a GREAT season, with hopefully some more exciting changes coming in the Fall. I just want to thank everyone for your commitment and hard work.  I continue to be impressed with everything you guys do!

Stay tuned to the blog for updates on the Fall season.

Since the Lyons Masters team's creation, the program's season has run from October to the end of July.  This is not going to change.  However, Lyons Masters is going to be offering a competition specific training program, available to only those who are competing in an Open Water Event,  that will run through Sept 8th.  It will follow our normal practice schedules.   This is the first time we are offering this and there is a chance that we will have to be very adaptable depending on LTHS pool closures to prepare for the upcoming school year.

For more question on this please contact me directly at lyonsmasters@gmail.com.

The registration for this training program can be found HERE.

VERY IMPORTANT INFO:

Due to Swim Across America and many Summer Swim conference meets our FINAL practice will be on SUNDAY not Saturday from 7-8am.  Please make note of this.

Sunday July 24th from 7:00-8:00am is the FINAL PRACTICE

A printable/downloadable copy of the workout can be found HERE

Week of July 18th

Support A Swimmer

Swim Across America is next week and some of our swimmers need help to raise the minimum $300 to swim. Any donation would be greatly appreciated ($5, $10, $20, etc.). Please help us ensure everyone can swim! Thanks!

Click here to donate: http://www.swimacrossameri​ca.org/goto/lyons

Week of July 11th

I have found a power supply and internet connection.  I hope our power comes back on soon!

On Thursday evening, Coach Scott Walker will be filling in for me, enjoy yourselves and behave!

You can find a printable/downloadable copy of the workout HERE

Week of July 12

Ohio St Beach on Sunday

Where: Ohio St Beach
When: This Sunday @ 8am
Who: Anyone who wants to practice swimming in the lake

Katy and I will be there unless the weather is stormy.  A little rain doesn't scare us away....

Open Water Meet Up

Who is interested in a Sunday morning swim at Ohio St Beach?  Comment below and lets talk about it on Thursday PM/Saturday Am

I went yesterday morning and it was incredible conditions.  Smooth like glass with water temps in the mid to upper 60's.  I swam in my normal suit with cap and goggles.  It was fantastic!

Wednesday Morning!

Week of July 5th

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July! Since I know all of you had TOO much fun this weekend, it's time to refocus and get to work!

A downloadable/printable copy of the workouts can be found HERE

Week of July 5th

Big Shoulders

I got this via email today, better hurry if you want to swim:

"Just a friendly reminder - price jumps up after tomorrow from $60 to $70 to participate in Big Shoulders 2011. As if that's not incentive enough to get you registered, we are rapidly approaching our sellout number - 1,000. Get registered today at www.clubassistant.com/bigshoulders

Remember, this year's motto (it's an evolving motto): No Waitlist, No Late Entries, No Favors from the race director to slip you in the back door, No Refunds, No Deferrals, No Transfers, and of course, NO WHINING!"



- Posted using iPhone

Week of June 28th

Here are the workouts for the week.  I am taking requests for Saturday's practice since it is a holiday weekend.  Please comment on this post with your suggestions.

A downloadable/printable copy of the workout can be found HERE

Week of June 28th

Alcatraz Swim

On Saturday, while we were "pretending" to be swimming in open water, Jay was in CA swimming the Alcatraz swim.  He finished 1.5 miles in 35 minutes and placed 74th in the male wetsuit division.  There were 900 swimmers total that participated in the event.  It sounds like the currents probably put the swim at about 2 miles when it was all said and done.

Pretty impressive Jay!  Nice Job!

Indoor Open Water Training - Saturday AM

I just wanted to share with those of you who missed practice this morning what we were up to.   There will be more of this in the future, so don't worry you didn't completely miss out on the fun!

Warm Up
10/7 laps

Main Set
6/4 x 2 laps - focusing on corkscrew buoy turns RI=20 secs
8/5 x 1 laps - drill down/swim back  RI=15 secs

Cool Down
2 laps with "pier start"  in 2 waves

 

 

Never Stop Exercising People......Never Stop

While not swimming related, this is more proof that "There is no such thing as Old"

Social Gathering

Thursday Night after practice we are going to have a "social gathering". Anyone interested? Where do you want go??? Comment below!


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Week of June 20th

Thanks for all the feedback on your lake swim availability.  I'll be posting more on that soon.

A printable/downloadable copy of the workouts can be found HERE


Week of June 20th

Lake Swim??

We need to start thinking about getting a few lake swims in soon.  Please leave a comment on this post with what times/days work best for you and we can try to put some kind of a schedule together. 

Coach Steve

SAA - A great way to get open water training time in!

We still have plenty of room on our roster for Swim Across America!  Please consider supporting your teammates and joining our team!  We all have friends, family and even teammates that have been affected by cancer. 

I know there are a lot of you who are planning on swimming Big Shoulders or a Triathlon this summer, why not help a great cause and get some great open water experience in at the same time!

Click Here For More Info

Thanks
Coach Steve

More Race Results!

I received some more news on another great triathlon performance! 

Lori participated in the Batavia Triathlon in a relay, filling in for thier swimmer who could not participate.  I have yet to have these results verified, but the rumor is that they got second place overall!  Nice job Lori!

Note to everyone:

If you compete in an event of any kind, please send me results so we can brag about how great we are!!

Go Lyons Masters, In and Out of the water!!!

Week of June 13th

I just want to give a shout out to Sara L!  Rumors are flying around about your recent triathlon performances!!  First place and Second place in your age group in the last two triathlons?!?!  I also heard you had really fast swims!  I can't wait to hear all about it!

Nice Job Sara!  Way to represent our team!!

Here are the workouts for the week.  A downloadable/printable copy can be found here

Week of June 13th

More proof that our Team motto is accurate!

Ted Erikson

I just read an article in Discovery News about Joe Locke, who is attempting to swim across the Red Triangle.  While I found this article to be really interesting, as I love reading about people pushing their limits, what really caught my attention was this paragraph:


"Locke crossed the English Channel last year, but plenty of people have done that. If he succeeds on this challenge, he'll become the second person ever to solo-swim the Red Triangle route. The last time someone pulled and kicked across the whole thing was in 1967, when swimmer Ted Erikson finished with a time of 14 hours and 38 minutes."


It immediately reminded me about my Big Shoulders swim in 2007.  It was my first(and only) time I have swam that event and while I was reviewing the race results, I was shocked!! to see who placed 4 places AHEAD of me.  I finished 64th overall, but a man by the name of Ted Erikson finished at 60th overall.  Why is that shocking you may be asking yourself??  Well at the time, Ted Erikson was 79 years old.  Yes you read that correctly!  I was in the best swimming shape I have been in in over 15 years and a 79 year old man beat me.  So I started researching and discovered that Ted Erikson is one of the greatest open water swimmers ever.  You should take the time to read about the accomplishments of Ted and his dog, Umbra.  They are absolutely amazing!

Team Work

Katy ran her first 5K since Teddy showed up on Friday Night.  It was a pretty great 5K race called the LaGrange Rocks 5K which Karin C helped organize.  During her race she got a high five from Karen P and with about a 1/2 mile to go Deanna, who was spectating in flip flops and a backpack saw her and said something along the lines of "I'll run you in".

We are a team in and out of the water and I think that is one of the coolest things about being a part of Lyons Masters!

Teammates

No Fear! You can do anything you set your mind to!

source: http://www.mirror.co.uk

 "Until a few weeks ago, Mr Akinwolere was unable to swim a length and was terrified of open water."

"It's an absolute triumph to have completed this swim, after having had just over 10 weeks of swimming training I still cannot believe how far I've come"

Read what happened here.

Swim Across America

We have an opportunity here people.  An opportunity to make a difference.

Let's show Cancer and Lake Michigan NO MERCY!

I know a lot of you are training for an open water event or triathlon.  Why not get some great open water practice in and at the SAME TIME help raise money for cancer research!

Check out the letter that our SAA Team Captain, Nicole wrote.  I hope it motivates you to swim with your teammates OR at least show your support by donating to help fight cancer! 

Hope to see you in the Lake!

Coach Steve

Week of June 7th

A printable/downloadable copy can be found here.

Week of June 7th

Open Water Swim Clinic

There is an open water swim clinic being held in Noblesville, IN on June 12th if anyone is interested.  Sounds like a nice opportunity to learn a lot of valuable skills from some very knowledgeable people.  I will not be attending but if you go please do some recon for me on the 25k race, anyone interested in doing that in 2012?  I might be!

For more information, click here

Breaking News!

I just received word that the bulkhead has been officially moved for the summer. That means we now have 6 lanes of 50 yards to work with.

Tonight is going to be a little tricky to split up since this is our last night of sharing the pool with the age group kids. Be prepared for some controlled chaos.

This also means that on Saturday we can no longer have a deep end workout, FYI.

See you at the pool
Coach Steve.




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Week of May 31st

I believe this is the last week we will have the pool set up as 25 yards, so on Saturday am we will have our final "deep end workout" for a few months, you can of course always choose the 1000 swim for time instead!

A downloadable/printable copy of the workout can be found here


Week of May 31st

Week Of May 23rd

This week you will see that our workouts are going to start transitioning thier focus towards more distance work to begin developing a deeper endurance base, but that doesn't mean we are going to be eliminating our high intensity work!  Good luck this week!

ALSO PLEASE NOTE:

Saturdays are now back to 7:00-8:00am

Why not start Memorial Day weekend off right with Saturday's practice and a Group Breakfast at Honey Bee Cafe. 


See you at the Pool,
Coach Steve

A downloadable/printable version of this weeks workout schedule can be found here.


Week of May 23rd