The Swim Workout
- 1 x 400 Swim as desired
8 x 25 (:20 Drilling - Focus on swimming technique work.
6 x 75 (:20 Pull - focus on the arms/pull. Options: use a float between legs.
8 x 50 (:20 Kick - focus on the legs/kick. Options: hold a float/kickboard with arms, wear flippers.
4 x 25 (:45 Swim Fast efforts
Take about 60-seconds extra rest now, but no extra rest between the 100's.
3 x 100 (:30 Moderate Effort, Even Pace
1 x 50 (:30 Easy Effort
3 x 100 (:20 1st 100 Moderate, 2nd 100 Faster, 3rd 100 Fastest (called descending)
1 x 50 (:30 Easy Effort
3 x 100 (:10 Moderate Effort, Even Pace
1 x 50 (:30 Easy Effort
1 x 300 (:30 1st 100 Easy to Moderate, 2nd 100 Moderate to Faster, 3rd 100 Faster to Fastest
1 x 100 (:30 Easy Effort - Nice Work!
TOTAL DISTANCE = 3,000
The first set of 3 x 100's you should try to go the same time on each one. On the next set of 3 x 100's you should try to go each subsequent 100 slightly faster. The next set is done as even efforts again, then the last set of 100's is actually done as a straight 300 swim, but your aim is to go each 100 within that 300 slightly faster as you proceed through that 300 swim.
About's 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.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
- drilling (swimming technique work)
- kicking
- pulling
- a main set
- a loosen or cool-down
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 six times.
Swim On!
Mat
More Reading for Swimmers on Swim Workouts:
