Today’s workout was supposed to begin the next phase of my Huntsman Senior Games preparation. After deciding yesterday to concentrate primarily on the 1500-meter freestyle, 800-meter freestyle and 200-meter breaststroke, today’s 2,500-meter workout was designed as a controlled endurance session rather than another race benchmark.
I completed the full 2,500 meters in 41:13, with an overall average pace of 1:39/100 m. The numbers were good, but today’s most important result wasn’t a time. During the workout I began developing discomfort in my right upper arm and shoulder. That is not normally the side that bothers me, and it caused me to modify portions of the planned freestyle work.
August 24 Workout Summary
| Metric | Result |
|---|---|
| Distance | 2,500 m |
| Duration | 41:13 |
| Average Pace | 1:39/100 m |
| Normalized Pace | 1:39/100 m |
| Average Speed | 60.4 m/min |
| Average Heart Rate | 120 bpm |
| Maximum Heart Rate | 152 bpm |
| sTSS | 63 |
| Intensity Factor | 0.97 |
| Calories | 552 kcal |
| Fitness / Fatigue / Form | 58 / 61 / -3 |
The Planned Workout
The workout was intentionally designed around my newly established endurance-event priorities.
| Set | Planned Pace | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| 200 FR Easy | 2:00/100 m | Warm-up |
| 100 BR Easy | 1:55/100 m | Warm-up |
| 4 × 50 FR Build | 1:40/100 m | Prepare for endurance work |
| 4 × 200 FR | 1:38/100 m | 800/1500 endurance |
| 4 × 50 BR | 1:48/100 m | Smooth breaststroke technique |
| 4 × 100 BR | 1:46/100 m | 200 BR endurance |
| 4 × 100 FR | 1:36/100 m | Strong freestyle under fatigue |
| 200 FR Easy | 2:00/100 m | Warm-down |
What Actually Happened
The workout began well. The opening 200-meter freestyle was completed in approximately 3:08, or about 1:34/100 m. The 100-meter breaststroke warm-up followed in approximately 1:41.65.
The 4 × 50 freestyle build set was considerably faster than prescribed. The four 50s averaged approximately 41 seconds, equivalent to roughly 1:22/100 m. In retrospect, that was faster than necessary for a workout intended to be controlled.
The Freestyle Endurance Set
The planned centerpiece was 4 × 200 freestyle at 1:38/100 m. The first two clean freestyle 200s were strong:
| Interval | Target | Actual | Actual Pace | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 FR #1 | 3:16 | 3:10.86 | 1:35.43/100 | 5.14 sec faster |
| 200 FR #2 | 3:16 | 3:13.59 | 1:36.80/100 | 2.41 sec faster |
Those two intervals were right where I want my endurance freestyle development to be. Both were faster than the prescribed 1:38 pace without becoming all-out efforts.
However, I did not complete all four 200s as pure freestyle. As the workout progressed I began developing discomfort in my right upper arm and shoulder. Rather than abandon the workout, I substituted breaststroke for portions of the planned freestyle. FORM consequently recorded the latter part of this section as mixed freestyle and breaststroke rather than four clean 200-meter freestyle repetitions.
Breaststroke Work
The 4 × 50 breaststroke set was productive. The four repetitions were approximately:
| 50 BR | Time | Equivalent 100M Pace |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | 51.02 | 1:42.04 |
| #2 | 52.46 | 1:44.92 |
| #3 | 53.82 | 1:47.64 |
| #4 | 53.16 | 1:46.32 |
The set averaged approximately 1:45.2/100 m, slightly faster than the prescribed 1:48 pace. More importantly, this was controlled breaststroke rather than the sprint-oriented work I had been doing during last week’s breaststroke-intensive training.
The later breaststroke work was slower, generally around the upper 1:40s to low 1:50s per 100 meters. With the shoulder issue influencing stroke selection and the cumulative workload from the previous two days, I don’t consider those slower repetitions particularly concerning.
Today’s Workout Compared With Yesterday
The comparison with yesterday’s 3,100-meter workout is interesting because the overall pace was essentially identical while the cardiovascular demand was considerably lower.
| Metric | Aug. 23 | Aug. 24 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Distance | 3,100 m | 2,500 m | -600 m |
| Average Pace | 1:39/100 m | 1:39/100 m | Essentially unchanged |
| Average HR | 133 bpm | 120 bpm | -13 bpm |
| Maximum HR | 151 bpm | 152 bpm | +1 bpm |
| sTSS | 78 | 63 | -15 |
| IF | 0.97 | 0.97 | Unchanged |
I don’t want to interpret the 13-bpm reduction in average heart rate as a direct improvement in efficiency because the two workouts were very different. Still, maintaining approximately the same overall pace at a lower average cardiovascular load is encouraging.
Three Days of Significant Work
The shoulder discomfort also needs to be considered in the context of the workload accumulated over the last three days.
| Date | Distance | sTSS | Primary Work |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 22 | 3,000 m | 72 | Breaststroke benchmarks + 800 FR |
| August 23 | 3,100 m | 78 | 1500 FR training best |
| August 24 | 2,500 m | 63 | Endurance / mixed stroke |
| 3-Day Total | 8,600 m | 213 | Three consecutive swim days |
That is enough accumulated work that I need to pay attention to what my body is telling me. The right shoulder discomfort is new, and it was significant enough that I changed strokes during today’s workout.
I don’t know that I am actually overtrained, but I do have a feeling that I am getting dangerously close to doing too much. There is no benefit to reaching an arbitrary August mileage target if doing so compromises the training that actually matters in September or my ability to race in October.
Current Training Bests vs. 2025 Huntsman Results
Today’s workout wasn’t intended to change any of my race benchmarks, so the current best-time table remains unchanged. These are the benchmarks that will guide the next phase of training.
| Event | Training Best | 2025 Silver | 2025 Bronze | 2025 4th | Current Target | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1500 FR | 24:04.84 | 23:39.43 | 25:04.75 | 25:06.88 | Silver | +25.41 sec |
| 800 FR | 12:40.25 | 12:16.56 | 12:32.85 | 12:56.76 | Bronze | +7.40 sec |
| 200 BR | 3:27.54 | 3:38.74 | 3:39.92 | 4:00.27 | Silver | -11.20 sec |
| 100 BR | ~1:42 | 1:28.57 | 1:32.97 | 1:37.95 | 4th | ~+4.05 sec |
The comparison continues to reinforce the decision I made yesterday. My strongest opportunities are in the endurance events. The 200 breaststroke training best is already faster than the 2025 silver time. The 800 freestyle is only 7.40 seconds from the 2025 bronze benchmark, while the 1500 freestyle is already well inside the 2025 bronze time and 25.41 seconds from silver.
The 100 breaststroke remains an event I will probably swim, but I am no longer going to build workouts specifically around it.
August Swimming Ledger
Today’s 2,500 meters brings my August total to 55,100 meters.
| Date | Distance | August Cumulative |
|---|---|---|
| August 2 | 5,000 m | 5,000 m |
| August 3 | 2,500 m | 7,500 m |
| August 4 | 2,500 m | 10,000 m |
| August 5 | 2,500 m | 12,500 m |
| August 6 | 3,000 m | 15,500 m |
| August 7 | 0 m | 15,500 m |
| August 8 | 0 m | 15,500 m |
| August 9 | 6,000 m | 21,500 m |
| August 10 | 2,500 m | 24,000 m |
| August 11 | 2,500 m | 26,500 m |
| August 12 | 2,500 m | 29,000 m |
| August 13 | 2,500 m | 31,500 m |
| August 14 | 0 m – Run/Dryland | 31,500 m |
| August 15 | 2,500 m | 34,000 m |
| August 16 | 2,500 m | 36,500 m |
| August 17 | 2,500 m | 39,000 m |
| August 18 | 2,500 m | 41,500 m |
| August 19 | 2,500 m | 44,000 m |
| August 20 | 2,500 m | 46,500 m |
| August 21 | 0 m – Rest | 46,500 m |
| August 22 | 3,000 m | 49,500 m |
| August 23 | 3,100 m | 52,600 m |
| August 24 | 2,500 m | 55,100 m |
The 75,000-Yard Goal
The 55,100 meters completed so far converts to approximately 60,258 yards. My 75,000-yard August goal requires approximately 68,580 meters, leaving roughly 13,480 meters.
There are still seven days remaining in August, so mathematically the goal remains attainable. Six additional 2,500-meter swims would put me at approximately 70,100 meters, or more than 76,000 yards.
But that calculation is no longer going to dictate the training schedule.
Tomorrow: Out of the Pool
I am currently planning to make Tuesday a dryland treadmill day rather than another swimming day. The objective is to maintain some aerobic work while giving the right shoulder a break from repetitive swimming.
Even if taking additional recovery means I don’t reach 75,000 yards this month, that is a trade I am willing to make. The monthly distance goal is motivational. Huntsman is the actual objective.
I am also not going to automatically schedule another hard swim for Wednesday. How the shoulder responds to a day away from swimming will help determine what comes next.
Today’s Takeaway
From a performance standpoint, today’s workout was good. The first two 200-meter freestyle endurance repetitions came in at approximately 1:35.4 and 1:36.8 per 100 meters, both faster than the planned 1:38 pace. The controlled 50-meter breaststroke work averaged approximately 1:45/100 m, and I completed the full 2,500-meter distance at an overall 1:39 pace.
But training isn’t just about deciding whether the stopwatch says a workout was successful.
Over the last three days I have swum 8,600 meters and accumulated 213 sTSS. Today my right shoulder began telling me that the workload may be catching up with me. Changing strokes allowed me to finish today’s workout, but continuing to pile swimming volume onto a new shoulder problem simply to reach a monthly mileage target would be counterproductive.
So tomorrow’s training objective is recovery.
The priority remains the same: arrive at Huntsman prepared to race the 1500 freestyle, 800 freestyle and 200 breaststroke. Everything between now and October—including when to rest—needs to serve that objective.
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