I am really enjoying my new coach. I met with him for the second time today. Like last week, he got in the water with me and paced and watched my form. He had me work a lot on my kick today, not as a means of propulsion as much as a way to balance my body better. And I got it! I found out (probably a DUH to you fish) that a small, fluttery kick is so much better than a big thrash. I could actually FEEL the improvement in my balance. Wow. Then he paced me 5 X 50 yds, with 30 seconds rest, at a pace that's 5 seconds quicker than my normal 100 yard pace. I forced it through the first 2, then discovered that if I relaxed and paced myself I could go the same speed without killing myself. Another epiphany. Seriously. I've been fighting the water to try to go faster. I learned today that if I relaxed and stretched out my stroke I went faster and easier. We did that 5 X 50 again and I was still able to hold the pace. We finished with a 200 yd cool down that almost killed me. I couldn't believe I was so gassed after only about 1200 yds. But it was a great lesson!