The Swim Workout
Warm-up1,2001 x 400 (:20 Swim and drill mix. Do drills for technique practice for one length, then swim for one length, then repeat.
4 x 100 (:20 Kick. Alternate easy effort and moderate efforts.
4 x 100 (:20 Pull. Alternate easy effort and moderate efforts.
Take some extra rest if needed, sip some water or sports drink, and get ready for the main set.
Main Set4 x 25 (:40 Swim. Very fast. If 40-seconds is not enough rest to get your breathing back under control, take more rest. This part of the set is to make sure you are ready to go fast.
4 x 50 (:40 Swim. Very fast. If 40-seconds is not enough rest to get your breathing back under control, take more rest.
1 x 200 (:30 Swim. Easy recovery swim.
=== Repeat the below 2 sets (1 round = 2x50 + 1x100) as many times as you can, up to 6 total times. If your time for the first and second 50 vary by more than about 5-seconds, do the set one more time, then stop the workout and cool-down - but not if that puts you over 6 rounds. Once you have done 6 rounds, that is it for the workout.
2 x 50 (:60 Swim. As fast as possible on each.
1 x 100 (3:00 Swim. Easy recovery swim.
1 x 100 Swim. Easy loosen to end the workout.
TOTAL DISTANCE = 3,000
Click on the "print" icon on the upper right to get a copy formatted for printing so you can print it and take the workout with you to the pool
About Swimming Workouts
This workout is designed to take between 75-minutes and 90-minutes. If that is too much time or distance, then cut things out, but do not always cut out the same thing every workout. And never skip the loosen at the end of the workout. Use that as one last bit of technique work before you leave the swimming pool at the end of the workout.
After the description of the set there is a number in a half-parentheses, like this - (:30 - that is how much rest you get after each swim. For example, 6 x 100 (:30 means you are to swim a 100 (yards or meters), rest 30-seconds, then repeat five more times.
There is nothing special about these swim practice sessions other than what you bring to them. Lots of freedom here. You control how hard or fast you swim and what swim strokes you want to use while swimming the workouts. Normally the amount of rest per swim will limit your top-end speed on a workout, but that does not mean go as fast as you can all of the time. A few guidelines:
- The more rest you get, the faster the swim.
- The early parts of a workout should always be easy to moderate and very deliberate.
- Use your best swimming technique.
- Stop the workout if you are too tired, go for it again in the future.You get to be a better swimmer by recovering from the workouts you do, not by doing more and more swimming without resting and recovering from that swimming.
- Have fun with the workouts.
- Change the strokes you are doing from time to time, try new things, and don't get caught in a rut.
Each workout has:
- a warm-up
- stroke drills or swimming technique work
- kicking
- pulling
- a main set
- a loosen or cool-down