A Day in the Life: Andrea Hupman, Day 3

HONOLULU, Hawaii, December 12. IF we all thought we couldn't get any more jealous of this week's "A Day in the Life" series writer Andrea Hupman of Northwestern, she reminds us just how nice it must be to train in Hawaii. Hupman writes about spending time at Waikiki Beach in between sessions of intense training in this entry. She also relates one of her favorite sprint sets.

Monday, December 11, Day 3
Aloha again! It was a beautiful day in Hawaii. Our hotel is only a few blocks from Waikiki Beach, so we spent some time between practices relaxing on the beach. Having lots of time to relax is wonderful to say the least. I would go on to describe how wonderful the beach is, but I don't want to make too many people jealous.

One thing fun to watch for is people hobbling. There was a big marathon in Honolulu yesterday. There are lots of people walking funny today, stepping gently from foot to foot or trying not to bend their knees. I have never been a good runner; I think that's part of why I swim. And, seeing all these people hobbling around makes me thankful I chose the right sport.

Morning practice today was a lot of fun. We did one of my favorite sprint sets:
20×25 @ 1:30, resist cords, 5 without equipment, 5 with paddles, 5 with fins, and 5 with fins and paddles. My coach, Jimmy Tierney, is great about recording all our times. We'll repeat this set a few times throughout the training trip so we can track our progress. My teammates and I love to race each other on this set. It helps push us a little harder, which is especially important on a sprint set like that where every little bit counts.

Our afternoon practice (short course yards) focused on kicking. The main set was 24 x 100 @ 2:00, odds moderate, evens all hard. It was important to keep the intensity up throughout the entire set. Our coaches were great about cheering us on. They somehow manage to motivate us without going over the top and becoming annoying. My teammates are great also. I was kicking next to Haley Fry, a breaststroker, who had something positive to say every several 100s. I think having a positive attitude is one of the most important things in swimming. It helps you (and even people around you) finish sets well and makes practice more fun.

I'm going to get to sleep early tonight, so I'm ending this blog here. But don't worry, there will be more tomorrow. Good-bye for now from Hawaii!

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