Swimming 800m reps is a great way to develop your threshold pace of swimming. They are perfect for Ironman and Olympic distance triathletes or people doing longer Ocean Swims.
Each Saturday I will post a Swim Session, 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 WU;
- 4x 50m (25m Drill/25m Swim);
- 800m;
- 4x 50m 20sec RI;
- 200m CD (1,600m)
Option B
- 400m WU;
- 8x 50m (25m Drill/25m Swim);
- 2x 800m 45sec RI;
- 4x 50m 20sec RI;
- 200m CD (2,800m)
Option C
- 600m WU;
- 8x 50m (25m Drill/25m Swim);
- 3x 800m 45sec RI;
- 8x 50m 20sec RI;
- 200m CD (4,000m)
Start the workout with a Warm Up (WU) covering 200m (Option A) or 400m (Options 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.
Next up are four (Option A) or eight (Options B and C) repetitions of 50m Drill/Swim, where you do a drill for the first 25m of the repetition and then normal swimming for the next 25m swimming. Feel free to use fins whilst doing the drill/swim set. Do the drills below, once through for Option A and twice through for Options B and C:
I wrote an article about Swimming Drills a few weeks ago. Click here to read and watch it.
Take your fins off for the next sets.
Each option then moves onto a set of 800m reps. Option A only has one, Option B has two, and Option C has three. Take a 45-second Rest Interval after each rep. Try and keep your pace nice and consistent across all the reps.
Next up is a set of ’50s. There are four to complete for Options A and B and eight for Option C. These are sprints and after each rep take a 20-second Rest Interval (RI) prior to the next rep.
Then it is time for a 200m Cool Down (CD). Unlike the previous sets which have to be freestyle, the cooldown (like the warm-up) can be any stroke you wish to swim. You can also stop and rest after any length. I encourage you to stop and stretch during the cool-down.
If you would like further advice feel free to contact me.
I am the Head Coach & Director of Qwik Kiwi – Endurance Sports Consultant.
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. Make sure you sign up for my informative newsletter.
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If you enjoyed this workout, I published a similar session 12 months ago. It is based on the favourite workout of Elite Ironman distance athlete Chris Sanson.
Coach Ray is the author of the successful 12 Weeks to an Ironman Swim PB – Swim Faster with Smart Training eBook.