This session will develop both your stamina and your swimming speed.
Each Saturday I will post a Swim Session, and most weeks I will load three options up for you to do. Option A is for swimmers who are after a workout between 1,000 & 2,000 metres. Option B is for swimmers who are after a workout between 2,000 & 3,000m and Option C will be greater than 3,000m.
Option A
- 200m Warm Up;
- 6x 50m (25m Drill/25m Swim);
- 3x
- 200m, 30sec RI;
- 4x 50m, 10sec RI;
- 200m Cool Down (1,800m)
Option B
- 400m Warm Up;
- 8x 50m (25m Drill/25m Swim);
- 4x
- 200m, 30sec RI;
- 4x 50m, 10sec RI;
- 200m Cool Down (2,600m)
Option C
- 600m Warm Up;
- 8x 50m (25m Drill/25m Swim);
- 5x
- 200m, 30sec RI;
- 4x 50m, 10sec RI;
- 400m Cool Down (3,400m)
Start the workout with a warm-up covering of 200m (Option A), 400m (Option B), or 600m (Option C). During the warm-up feel free to stop and stretch as needed. It doesn’t need to be a continuous swim.
Drill Sets
Swim 25m doing an appropriate drill prior to continuing on with normal freestyle swimming to complete 50m continuously. Pause prior to conducting the next repetition for a total of six (Option A) or eight (Options B & C) repetitions.
The pause referred to above is a stop of about 10 seconds. It’s a chance to grab a drink, review the programme, and think about the next drill you will do. If you need 15-20 seconds or longer, you are welcome to take it because the rest duration isn’t physiologically critical to the aim of this set. Having a quick break is neurologically critical though, so make sure you don’t just roll straight from one rep to the next.
Some examples of drills can be found by clicking on the name below:
After the drill set, we are into the main sets. Each of the main sets involves a set of Broken 200 which is similar in concept to the Broken 400s from a few weeks ago.
The set is made up of three (Option A) or four (Option B) or five (Option C) repetitions. Each repetition involves swimming 200m as fast as you can, then resting for 30 seconds. After this Rest Interval (RI) you go straight into a mini-set of 4x 50m and also swim as fast as you can with only 10 seconds of rest between them.
Complete your workout with a 200m cool-down (Options A & B) or 400m (Option C). Feel free to pause and stretch when needed and/or include stretching as part of each break until the distance is covered.
If you would like further advice feel free to contact me.
I am the Head Coach and Director of Qwik Kiwi Coaching.
I specialise in assisting first-timers and recreational athletes to achieve their sporting goals. I can be contacted at coachray@coachray.nz and 021 348 729.
Share this post so your friends can benefit as well.
Download the Garmin (.FIT) files for this workout for FREE
Get my 4 weeks to a Faster 1,500m Training Plan with 25% off
As you follow the programme you will find yourself swimming 1,500m faster. Now whether that is a PB or not will depend on how fast you have swum in the past, but it will definitely be faster at the end of the 4 weeks than it is now. With this programme people improve on average by nearly 2 minutes, with some people improving by over 10%.
Designed for triathletes who have limited time to train but can squeeze in two short 2km sessions each week. The primary goal of this training plan is to prepare you to swim 1,500m faster than you did at the start of the programme.
Starting whenever you want, this plan starts off with a 1,500m Time Trial and then sets your intensity for the following few weeks so it will work regardless of what your ability is. Each week involves swimming two 2km sessions, with space in the programme for you to complete running and cycle training as well.
When purchasing, use the discount code “web25” to claim your 25% discount.
Prior to using this plan, you should be able to complete a 1,500 metres continuous swim, 2,000 metres total within a workout.
Purchase of this plan gives you access to my fortnightly coaching calls where you can ask me any training or racing-related questions.
When purchasing, use the discount code “web25” to claim your 25% discount.