semi-intentional yardage increase

I have trouble keeping track of laps, so I try different tricks to keep count. Lately, I've been counting down instead of up and reminding myself at each lap whether the number is odd or even. For some reason, that seems to help.

Yesterday, I started my countdown for the main part of the swim at 30 (to do a 1,500), which is the distance I swam Monday to make sure I got in the full workout (I was running late and didn't think I'd have time to warm down for 100 meters).

I'd been doing 1,400 and hadn't planned to go up yet, but I found there was time for 1,500. But - yes, I'm a tad neurotic - I wanted to go up in 200-meter increments, just to push myself a little. So when I got to 19 on the countdown, I just did it three times, to get the main part of the swim to a mile.

And there I stand - 2,200 meters a day. Which is not tons, but I've really only got an hour unless I start swimming at 0530, which is certainly not in the cards. Or start swimming elsewhere, which I'm not going to do either.

I'm hoping to move up to 2,400 in the next couple of weeks. I'm also hoping my technique/fitness improve enough to make the yardage increases work in the alotted time. I could certainly swim much farther, but not much faster as of yet, so that's a small pickle. But hey, it's only been five months and a few days :)