Broken 200’s are a great way of developing a swim set to build the aerobic capacity of longer reps but you can add a touch more intensity due to the short rest involved. This session 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.
I’ve written these sessions for a 33⅓ metre pool, but a lot of the older style pools are 33⅓ yards long (100 feet), so simply interchange the metres for yards and do the session.
Option A
- 400m WU;
- 6x 67m (33m Drill/33m Swim);
- 2x (200m, 30sec RI; 6x 33m 10sec RI)
- 200m CD (1,800m)
Option B
- 400m WU;
- 6x 67m (33m Drill/33m Swim);
- 4x (200m, 30sec RI; 6x 33m 10sec RI)
- 200m CD (2,600m)
Option C
- 800m WU;
- 6x 67m (33m Drill/33m Swim);
- 6x (200m, 30sec RI; 6x 33m 10sec RI)
- 200m CD (3,800m)
Start the workout with a Warm Up (WU) covering 400m (Options A and B) or 800m (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. There are six repetitions of 67m Drill/Swim, where you do a drill for the first 33m of the repetition and then normal swimming for the next 33m swimming. Feel free to use fins whilst doing the drill/swim set. Do the drills below once through:
I wrote an article about swimming drills previously. Click here to read and watch it.
Take the fins off prior to the next set.
The main set is made up of what is known as the Broken 200s. For this set, you will swim 200m (six lengths) and then break the next 200 up by swimming six reps of 33m. After the first 200m take a 30-second Rest Interval (RI) and then take a ten-second Rest Interval (RI) after each 33m rep. yes, that does make the next 200 toughs as you only get the short rest leading into it. If you are doing Option A do two complete reps of this: 200m; 6x 33; 200m; 6x 33. If you are doing Option B do four complete reps: 200m; 6x 33; 200m; 6x 33; 200m; 6x 33. And for Option C do six complete reps: 200m; 6x 33; 200m; 6x 33; 200m; 6x 33; 200m; 6x 33.
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 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.
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If you enjoyed this workout, I published a similar session 12 months ago.
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