The Spoils of War!

 

 

“The Fifth, I Give You” Rand al’Thor from Robert Jordan’s “The Fires of Heaven”

“To the victor go the spoils”  - Proverb

The Fifth is a custom among the Aiel. It states that after they conquer a place, they are entitled to take a fifth of all that the conquered hold has, save food.  Who are the Aiel; they are only some of the coolest creations of Robert Jordan.  In all the reading I have done I think they might be the coolest race I have come across.  They are skilled warriors both men and women.  When the go to war they cover their faces with black veils and the y are bad asses, so when you see a black veiled Aiel you better run.  When they conquer a people they get the fifth, or what others call the spoils of war.  When Sherman marched on the south his people took spoils.  Throughout history winners have helped themselves to rewards of their victories.  Therefore, if I am fighting a war and winning, do I not deserve the spoils of war?  Do I not deserve the fifth? I think I do!

My spoil is simple.  I think it is fit for a man of the pool.  It is the Garmin Swim:

Strap It On and Dive In

Garmin Swim is ready to go right out of the box – just tell it the size of the pool you’re swimming in and begin your workout. Its sleek profile allows it to cut right through the water, so it won’t slow you down. And you can easily replace the battery yourself whenever needed (about once a year), instead of sending it in to the manufacturer – so you're always ready to go.

Focus On Your Training

With Garmin Swim on your wrist, you can focus on your technique instead of what lap you’re on. It automatically knows the stroke you’re using and tracks your lengths, strokes, distance, pace and more. With a few button presses, you can also log drills or start timed intervals without constantly monitoring the pool clock. It even calculates your swolf score to help you gauge your swimming efficiency, making it ideal for lap swimmers of all levels. The intuitive interface utilizes 6 exterior buttons, so each and every function can be accessed quickly and easily.

Stay Motivated

Slim and attractive enough to be worn as a daily watch, Garmin Swim serves as a personal reminder of your goals. To help you stay motivated, it displays your weekly accumulated distance under the time of day. Watch features include dual time zones and alarm.

Analyze and Share Workouts

 

After your workout, upload your swim data to Garmin Connect™, our website for free online analysis. Here, you can view your detailed metrics and track your progress over time. You can also share your workout data with your coaches, workout buddies, or friends and family. Through the magic of ANT+™ wireless technology and the USB stick that comes with your Garmin Swim, your workout data automatically transfers to your computer when in range. Garmin Connect is Mac® and Windows® compatible.

 

For a man who loves to track his swim stats, this is going to be perfect!  However, we all know in the past I have put together brief periods of greatness.  Stayed motivated for a month and then fallen apart and gained another 20 lbs.  So, I am adding another dimension to this in order to earn the Garmin Swim, I must continue to swim.  I must be as good in December as I was in November.  I must keep up the obsession with getting better in the pool.  Always, working harder and harder trying to get my head right and beat my addictions.  They are after all still there.  They haunt me.  I want to eat.  I want to be bad.  I have had a relatively good Thanksgiving weekend.  However, eating garbage is in the back of my mind.  I am lucky the roommate made pulled pork for me before she left and smoothies.  I have weight watcher meals to also help get me through the week.  So we are in good shape.  I totally believe I am going to lose weight this holiday season and got into 2014 on a high note.   Believing in myself, now that is something I don’t think I have ever done before.   

Anyway, the way I see it in order to earn my spoil, I need to swim.  The original plan was to swim more in December than November.  However, I am concerned about the holiday break and being gone for 5 days.  I only am speaking from a swimming perspective.  We will get into the nightmare of the eating monster I become the minute I step foot in Indiana later.  Now, we speak only of victory and spoils of war!

I have marked 22 Days I am available to swim in December.  In November I swam 23 and averaged 2300 Meters per swim.  So If I take 22 days and multiply it be 2300 that should allow me to swim 50,600, which is almost equivalent to what I did in November, by 400 meters.  Ok, fuck it we swim 51,000 meters in December and when I do I get my garmin swim.  Not only that I think I will swim 51,000 meters in 20 swims. 

Ok… of to work on something about thanksgiving now and changes I have made… well gotta walk the dog first…. We are on the Path Folks!  The Path of the Beam and the Tower is closer!