The opening leg of an Ironman 70.3 is an important part of the event. If you swim well you can set yourself up for a good bike and run. Being able to swim efficiently and smoothly will enable you to stay fresh and get onto the bike in a good position. This series of workouts will set you up for success.
Normally 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. This series of workouts, the sessions are all targeting athletes looking to improve their Ironman 70.3 swim with limited time. There are three sessions, and I encourage you to do two to three of them each week.
Read this article here for an explanation of Swim Intensity.
Session 01
- 400 WU;
- 8x 50 Drill/Swim;
- 8x 25 Pick Up 10RI;
- 400 TT;
- 200 Easy;
- 200 TT;
- 200 CD (2,000)
Start the workout with a Warm Up (WU) covering of 400m. During the warm-up feel free to stop and stretch as needed. It doesn’t need to be a continuous swim.
For the drill set swim 25m doing an appropriate drill prior to continuing on with regular or normal swimming to complete 50m continuously. Pause prior to conducting the next repetition for a total of eight reps.
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 wee 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:
- Kick On Side (KOS) (both left and right sides)
- 6/1/6
- 6/3/6
These drills have been popularised by Swim Smooth which offers a number of excellent coaching resources.
Next up is a Pick-Up set. This set simply means that you pick up the pace as you swim through each repetition. Start each rep nice and slow for a few strokes, then swim a few strokes at a moderate pace, then a few at a fast pace, a few faster, then getting faster still, finishing the rep at a maximum sprint as you lunge for the wall. Complete eight reps of 25m. After each repetition have a Rest Interval (RI) of 10 seconds.
Next up is a 400m Time Trial. Swim as fast as you can completing the distance at a nice steady pace. Record your time.
Over the next ten minutes swim a minimum of 200m. Do this at a very gentle pace as its purpose is to keep the arms moving to clear lactic acid out of them.
The final set is a 200m Time Trial. As per the 400m Time Trial, swim as fast as you can at a nice consistent pace, recording your time.
Complete the workout with a 200m Cool Down (CD). Feel free to pause and stretch when needed and/or include stretching as part of each break until the distance is covered.
The concept of T-Time has been developed by a number of authors with a number of different names utilised (the most popular would be Swim Smooth‘s CSS or Critical Swim Speed). There are various versions of the test (i.e. 1,000m TT, swimming 200m & 100m TTs, 3x 300m or 3x 100m) that all approximate the same thing. My preferred method is the 400m & 200m TT.
The results are critical to ensure that they are recorded correctly and accurately. Make sure you have a stopwatch of some description that you can easily operate in the water whilst swimming or have someone poolside record your times for you.
To determine your T-Time, subtract your 200m time from your 400m time and divide by 2.
T-Time = (400m Time – 200m Time ) / 2
Here is a real-time example:
T-Time = (7:19 – 3:31) / 2
= (3:48) / 2
= 1:54
Read more about T-Times here:
Session 02
- 400 WU;
- 8x 50 Drill/Swim;
- 6x 200 30RI;
- 8x 50 15RI;
- 200 CD (2,600)
For the Warm Up (WU) start with a 400m swim. 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 eight 50m repetitions made up of 25m Drill, then straight into 25m normal swimming. Feel free to use fins whilst doing this set. Do the drills below twice through:
There are two main sets. The first is made up of six, 200m reps. Take a 30 second Rest Interval (RI) after each rep.
The second main set has eight, 50m reps each with a fifteen second Rest Interval (RI) after each rep.
For the Cool Down (CD) swim 200m. Unlike the previous sets which have to be freestyle, the Cool Down (CD) (like the Warm Up (WU)) 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
Session 03
- 400 WU;
- 8x 50 Drill/Swim;
- 15x 100 20RI;
- 200 CD (2,500)
For the Warm Up (WU) start with a 400m swim. 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 eight 50m repetitions made up of 25m Drill, then straight into 25m normal swimming. Feel free to use fins whilst doing this set. Do the drills below twice through:
The main set is made up of fifteen, 100m reps. Take a twenty second Rest Interval (RI) after each rep.
For the Cool Down (CD) swim 200m. Unlike the previous sets which have to be freestyle, the Cool Down (CD) (like the Warm Up (WU)) 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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