I know how it feels, remember military tanks driving on the streets of the city I lived in Ukraine a while before I left... And now people were shot already! They use gas against peaceful demonstrants!
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- Author: Lena Nechet
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I started studying Yoga when I was 17 with Patanjali Yoga Sutras in various translations, and then read tons of book on various traditions in Yoga (Hatha, Pranayama, Kundalini, etc). First, I would like to present to you my personal compact version / interpretation of the 8 limbs of Yoga योग.
Yoga Sutras are based on atheistic philosophy Samkhya, an orthodox (Astika) and atheistic Hindu system of dualism.
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Swimming in UCSD pool, I started to count laps like in running, by rounds, to make it easier. So now, I touch the lap button on my watch on the start point only. I mostly swim a mile or so, in breaststroke, almost daily. Today I made 33 rounds (50 yards or 45.7 meters each, 25-yard laps x 66). It is 1650 yards, or ~ 0.94 miles, or ~1509 kilometers.
My times stopped improving: the time for 1.5K on the watch is one of my best times - 41 minutes and 14 seconds, often I am 1-2 minutes slower.
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Happy about my first time swimming 1500 meters in under 41 minutes! Today I got to swim very late because of traffic and waiting in a post office (no Sunshine for my new sundress), but I was faster than yesterday by 1 minute: 1.5K in around 40:42 minutes vs 41:59. Not so tempted to switch from breaststroke to freestyle anymore.
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After yesterday's 45 minutes swim in the cold and seaweedy Pacific ocean, in a restrictive wet suit, today's flat blue water surface seemed unreal.
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Suddenly, my time on one swimmer's mile (66 short laps/lengths of this open air pool) has improved by 3 minutes! After making that 6 km swim I went back to 1.5 km a day to the same time as before: around 45 minutes, and today it was under 42!
Additionally, for the first time I made a couple of lengths (25 yards) in 34 seconds, my best time before was 36. Additionally, I had several 35-s in a row.
No idea why. I did not sleep well for two last nights because of the troubles in my private life, and the last night I slept on a rather soft surface, not on my usual double yoga mat, and my back was aching.
On the other hand, my style gets better, effortlessly (still breaststroke).
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I did not want to stop swimming, and wanted to check whether I could double my usual these days distance. I did not care much about the style and speed, I just wanted to move forward in water, because nothing better waited for me outside on this emotionally excruciating day.
264 length (25 yards), 6 km total, in almost 3:07 (187 minutes). Six kilometers should constitute 4 swimmer's miles. First 200 I made in 2:20, first 5 km - in 2:35 (155 minutes).
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Today in the pool I repeated yesterday, made 132 of 25 yards (3K or 3 km) in 1:29 (89 minutes vs 91 last time), then swam till 148 (3.7K). Started with most lengths in 36 seconds, in 50s went down to 38-39, by the end I was already over 40.
Yesterday I read more tips for better Breaststroke, and today I tried a few things:
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This Summer I was swimming in the ocean as usual, and also in a bay a few times, but today I went to a University pool (UCSD) not far from here.
Wow, that was so great: I could concentrate on swimming itself, rhythm and pleasure of moving in the water, and there were no waves splashing in my face from all directions, no crazy surf like the other day on the Torrey Pines beach that you need to cross with some beating to get to deeper calmer waters, and no sharks, - man, I learned yesterday that pretty much every time you enter the ocean there is a shark more or less 100 meters away from you, I woke up at night thinking about it, - and no people on your way (especially disturbing for me were the boaters lately).
It was an amazing time! I did close to 1 kilometer, 40 laps, in under half an hour.
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I like to swim in open waters. In Europe I did it mostly in seas or lakes, and here in California, San Diego County, I risk to go into the Ocean despite sharks sometimes attacking people. Here are a few of my routs near La Jolla, CA.
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Today I did one of my longest swims in open waters: over 3.5 km (3.5K), not counting curves, waves, zigzag swimming to avoid kelp, kayakers, fishermen, birds, and even one big seal.
This is my 3rd consecutive day swimming in the ocean, ~ 2 km (2K), ~ 2.7 km (2.7K) in two previous days, plus brisk walks up and down the hills (~ 110 m slope) 5 km (5K), 7 km (7K), and 10km (10K) today. Earlier this Summer I swam 3-4 times a week, but not regularly.
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A sandy path along the Pacific Coast, direction South, towards La Jolla Cove, early morning, June 2013.
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