Long swim set failure... and some perspective!

Today was my long pyramid set.  I waited until Craig came back from his long ride and then I headed out to Jindalee Pool to do my session.

As I was getting myself organised there was a guy that rocked up on crutches and started swimming in the lane beside me.

We were pretty similar in pace - me with my pool buoy and paddles, him on his own.  I felt OK in the water and I was using Craig's paddles which are smaller than mine. 

I was conscious of my shoulder early on in the set and was trying to concentrate on my stroke and figure out if I was doing anything to antagonise it.

3/4 the way through the set I was limping and my shoulder was sore, so I ditched the paddles, continued on and it was still giving me grief.  So, I decided to finish the lap I was on and call it quits.  I ended up breast stroking to the end with my pool buoy.  I felt like a tug boat that was being towed in to shore!!!

Anyway, I was down the end of the pool stretching my shoulder this way and that to try and help it out and the guy on the crutches started chatting away to me.

He had just finished his set and was telling me how he had broken his heel falling two stories off a building site on to the concrete below.  He has been on crutches for 3 months and had at least another 1 month to go.  He has had a plate and some screws inserted and you could see that his calf had all but atrophied away.  I asked him if he used to swim prior to his accident and he said that not since school had he swum and that he was absolutely loving it.  He only feels 'normal' when he is swimming and it has given him a new lease on life.  It was really uplifting seeing the joy that swimming gave him.

Chatting to him completely turned my session around.  I had gone from being a bit frustrated and demoralised from not completing my set to feeling really grateful that I have the capability to even contemplate taking on an event such as an Ironman. 

lt is people like this that reinforce my thankfulness that I do have my health and the physical capabilities to do what I do.