Swim

July 7, 2012

Maximillian got clearance to head back to the pool this week.  We didn't actually have the opportunity to practice the approach logistics repeatedly and to perfection like we did with rowing, but we had a theoretically sound plan and we did cover the details to the nth degree.  This included two separate store runs to find the appropriate swim sock.  Who knew you had to choose the correct psi (Pounds per Square Inch) when buying compression socks?  Probably everyone but me.

Everything worked out, and his sock did not absorb enough water to sink him.   Here is proof--the last five seconds of a fifty-five minute swim:

He swam for 55 minutes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, bringing a much needed change of pace to his daily exercise routine.  Really, how many times would you get excited about rowing the circumference of a rapidly shrinking 25 acre lake?  At one lap every twenty-five minutes, three laps per day, seven days per week, I would imagine the scenery would run out of oomph and visual delights fairly quickly.


Even better than the change of scenery was the triumphal return to the TAMU Rec Center.   

There may not have been antiphonal trumpets, but after eight weeks mothballed at home, Maximillian was happy to get back.  You could tell all his buddies had missed him.  They may not be a talkative bunch and they may barely know each others' names, but they've had neighboring lockers, shared swim lanes, and spotted each other in the weight room for thirty plus years.


By the end of the week, Maximillian began experimenting with partial weight bearing.  He weighed his foot and figured out what about 40 pounds of pressure felt like (stepping on it, not wearing it as a sock).  Now he is working his way up to supporting that much as he walks along.