Fairly often I tell somebody that 32 degrees and sunny and calm is a better paddling day than 10 degrees warmer and windy and overcast. The last two Tuesdays have provided a perfect case in point. When Joe and I put our boats in the water back on January 30, the temperature was right at the freezing point, but because of the bright sunshine and calm conditions it turned out to be a lovely day to paddle. On this past Tuesday the temperature was up around 42 degrees, but a stiff north wind and overcast skies gave the day a more hostile winter feel. But neither day was less satisfying than the other once our boats were put away and we were walking up to the parking lot with dry clothes on and another good paddling session under our belts.
Yesterday I enjoyed the best aspects of each of those Tuesdays. The temperature was rising into the 40s when I arrived at the river, and the sun was out and the north wind was light. I warmed up and did three 8-stroke sprints in the harbor and then paddled up the Mississippi a ways before coming back. As I was heading back toward the marina, on a whim I decided to time myself from the monorail bridge to the Hernando DeSoto Bridge, a distance of about 450 meters. I was paddling not all-out, but maybe at 85% or so intensity, and I was trying to take the best strokes I could as I have been practicing them this winter. The north wind was strong enough that it was probably slowing me down some. In any case, my time was right about 2 minutes, 30 seconds--pretty slow considering that last summer I was doing sets of four of these sprints at or below 2 minutes each. Oh well... there's plenty of time to get faster.
I did the current strength routine on Monday, Wednesday, and today. For pushups, I'm trying to do all the different kinds I know: regular pushups, Hindu pushups, decline pushups, and so on.
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