sawyl | Progress update: surprisingly tough swim

Todays swim was surprisingly tough, with a painfully long warm-up period before I managed to settle into a decent rhythm. Although I managed my usual Friday distance, I felt every length and, on the handful of occasions when I tried to raise my pace, my reserves definitely felt well below their usual indomitable levels.

I suspect my diet may be to blame. Over the last month or so, I've increased the amount of swimming I've been doing, switching from the medium to the fast lane and trying to swim more intervals. Consequently, along with my usual running and cycling loads, I've increased the amount of calories I've been burning substantially but without eating more and, beyond yesterday's tiredness, I've started to notice consequences: I've had to cinch in the chest strap of my heart rate monitor!

doctor_squale who is, let it not be forgotten, very much not a medical doctor, prescribed a remedy for my incipient eating disorder: instead of an NHS stomach staple, he suggested that I should see if I can't get a surgeon to insert something to artificially increase the size of my gut. Not a terribly appealing option...