To develop your top-end speed in this session short fast reps are used with a good amount of rest. This workout is 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;
- 8x 50m Drill/Swim;
- 8x 25m on ¼T+5sec;
- 8x 25m Pull 10sec RI;
- 8x 25m on ¼T+10sec;
- 8x 25m FAST 20sec RI;
- 200m CD (1,600m)
Option B
- 400m WU;
- 12x 50m Drill/Swim;
- 12x 25m on ¼T+5sec;
- 12x 25m Pull 10sec RI;
- 12x 25m on ¼T+10sec;
- 12x 25m FAST 20sec RI;
- 200m CD (2,400m)
Option C
- 1,000m WU;
- 16x 50m Drill/Swim;
- 16x 25m on ¼T+5sec;
- 16x 25m Pull 10sec RI;
- 16x 25m on ¼T+10sec;
- 16x 25m FAST 20sec RI;
- 200m CD (3,600m)
Start the workout with a Warm Up (WU) covering 200m (Option A), 400m (Option B), or 1,000m (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 is a drill set of eight (Option A), twelve (Option B), or 16 (Option 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 twice through for Option A, three times through for Option B, and four times for Option C:
I wrote an article about swimming drills previously. Click here to read and watch it.
The next set is made up of eight (Option A), twelve (Option B), or 16 (Option C) reps of 25m. These repeats are done on one quarter of your T-Time plus five seconds. The faster you swim these reps the more rest you’ll get. For more about T-Times have a read this article:
T-Times for Swimming
The next up is a set of eight (Option A), twelve (Option B), or 16 (Option C) reps using a Pull Buoy over 25m. Take a ten-second Rest Interval (RI) after each rep.
The next set is made up of eight (Option A), twelve (Option B), or 16 (Option C) reps of 25m. These repeats are done on one-quarter of your T-Time plus ten seconds. As with the first set of 25’s the faster you swim these reps the more rest you’ll get.
The final set is made up of eight (Option A), twelve (Option B), or 16 (Option C) reps of 25m. Swim these as fast as you can as you get a full 20 seconds Rest Interval (RI) after each rep.
For the Cool Down (CD) swim 200m. 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.
Saturday Swim Session: Descending Session
Coach Ray is the author of the successful 12 Weeks to an Ironman Swim PB – Swim Faster with Smart Training eBook.