Just Do It

Sunday August 25 830PM

Today at the lake it was sunny and not so hot. Sort of a perfect day. I checked the water temp before I left – 69 F – so I wore a wetsuit. New rule: wettest if it’s under 70.

The lifeguards were winding down their shift as I arrived, and the swim area was empty. I saw a few paddle boarders here and there in the deep water, but it looked like I wouldn’t have any trouble with traffic today. There were big waves and wakes from the motor boats, but I didn’t mind that. 

I entered the lake in the shallow area once I got my wetsuit on, but I quickly slipped under the rope to swim outside the swim area. They don’t allow snorkels. 

I swam south for a little while, while greeting my peeps in the sunbeam tunnels. “T, R, A, H, E.” I like the first part of my swims because I go from pebbles underneath to sand filled with milfoil plants. The stalks were curly and bright green today, and so many were topped with winding, reaching tendrils. Always growing. Taking over. 

It seems funny now that I used to get icked out by the weeds. Now I swim over them, through them, around them. Today the water was dark in places where the shoreline trees blocked the sun. I was about a foot above the tallest weed, so I thought that was a good place to swim. 

I turned around and swam north, parallel with the swim area boundary rope. That space has so much milfoil It’s dense and never-ending. I swam past the cement dock, then adjusted myself so I could find that sweet spot where there isn’t much milfoil and the water feels more spacious. 

Just as I found it I saw a huge fish. He was at least 18 inches, maybe more. He swam off. I I wanted to follow him, but I didn’t because I was too tired. I kind of had to drag myself to the lake today. I’m stressed out, exhausted, and have been having lots of headaches. I was glad to be in the water. Things were dissipating, and I was enjoying seeing the soft tangle of green plants on the lake floor. I cdoul’t tell if they were trampled milfoil or some sort of ground cover. I kept heading north, enjoying this little oasis of a lot less milfoil 

There were still big wakes in the water, but I tried to absorb and ride them. I didn’t have the energy for doing much crawl stroke today. I tried putting my arms at my sides and kicking to work my leg muscles, but when I seemed like I wasn’t moving forward at all I went back to swimming. 

I saw two paddle boarders with their dogs. I didn’t get a good look at them because I was just trying to make sure we didn’t collide. The next time I looked up they had passed me, heading south. 

I could see that the swim area was empty, so I turned around and swam south. When I reached the cement dock I did three sets of 10 pull-ups. It’s not the same as a real pull-up, but it’s better than not doing any. I criss-crossed under the dock to switch sides for each set. Then I swam across the swim area until I reached the middle. I was really tired, so I put my arms over my buoy and just floated around, looking at the outlines of the mountains on the horizon. 

I had a nice chat with a guy in the showers. I’ve met him before but couldn’t remember his name. Then I got dressed and went to the benches to meet my friends. 

Glad I made myself swim today. I’ve been feeling disconnected and stressed out, so it was nice to feel the silky water against my hands. It was helpful to breathe and move. Seeing my friends is always awesome. I checked my GPS tracker, and my swim trail formed a Nike swoosh. How perfect. “Just do it” was exactly my attitude about exercising today. 

The ducks and geese are starting to get on my nerves. They just wander around near the benches, mooching food. Little pigs. 

Thank you, lake.