by way of getting into things and getting my motivation back up, I've changed my programme and adjusted it, taking Angie's (a.k.a valkyrie_blue) periodization programme as a base. thanks for sharing that with us Angie, has been really helpful!
Yesterday I did 3x10 of:
leg press @ 135kg
deadlift @ 30kg
bench @ 20kg
lat pulldown @21kg (weight will go up next time)
military press @ 10kg
Biceps curls @ 10kg
straight arm pushdown @ 50kg, failed on 3rd set, 7th rep.
abs crunch 3x15
Any comments/feedback appreciated!
I was absolutely finished after that last night, and pretty sore today, but to me that's still the signs of a proper workout

Straight arm pushdown is an exercise I did for the first time yesterday, recommended by one of the few knowledgeable instructors in our gym. He'd watched us swim on Thursday, from behind the glass partition (hence the fact that he wasn't able to comment on the spot), and gave me some feedback on my front crawl, which apparently was a lot owrse than I thought. The exercise is meant to give me more strength when pushing down through the water. another thing he said, was that the only thing that helps improve endurance and efficiency in swimming is 'heavy weights'. I wonder if anyone thinks if the opposite would then also be true, i.e. that swimming would aid the ability to lift heavy?
See ya,
Billy