BETWEEN SEASON WORKOUT

WARM-UP

400 m choice (mix of front crawl, backstroke as desired)

PREP SET 4 x 150 m as 50 m kick, 50 m drill, 50 m swim

Kick can be with or without a kickboard; drills can be your choice, but, if looking for recommendations, then try fist, bear claw, catch-up or one pull six kicks – see glossary for explanations.

MAIN SET 400 m swim “perfect stroke”

Use this 400 m to really focus on swimming your best front crawl. We all have weaknesses and common mistakes we slip into, so take the time on this 400 m to focus on “perfect” swimming. Some of the items to think about might include: your catch, elbow position, pull phase, body position, hip rotation, the timing of your breathing and kicking from the hip. It’s important to stay present and focused here. If you have a coach or friend/training partner on the pool deck, ask them to capture some video footage. This is one of the best ways to identify and correct mistakes.

4 x 25 m drill

Try the fists drill, which means swimming with your fists clenched. This helps improve feel for, and catch of, the water and helps use your forearms to propel you through the water. When you return to swimming with your fists open, you should notice the difference.

300 m pull buoy

After the 4 x 25 m drill, use this 300 m pull to isolate the arms and focus on your catch and pull. The buoy will also help bring your legs up and improve your body position, so really maximize this.

4 x 50 m kick, with or without kickboard

Ensure you are kicking from the hip and focus on the upbeat as well as the downbeat of your kick.

200 m swim, stroke count

Count your strokes each lap and try to reduce them as you progress through the 200 m.

4 x 75 m

Breathing every 3, 5, 7 strokes by 25 m (e.g. in lap one, breathe every three strokes; lap two, every five; lap three, every seven).

100 m swim, relaxed

After a lot of focused drills and swimming, just switch off here and give your brain a break.

4 x 100 m

Descend 1 to 4, so first 100 m is easy, then easy-moderate, moderate-fast, fast. Take 10 seconds of rest between each 100 m.

BONUS SET 8 x 50 m breath control, descending breaths per 50 m

On the first 50 m you can take eight breaths, ideally four per 25 m, but as you progress through the set you “lose” one breath each time, so on the second 50 m, you aim to take seven breaths, third 50 m, six breaths, fourth 50 m, five breaths and so on, until the eighth 50 m, where you attempt to breathe just once.

It can be done! It does, however, require patience and practice if you’re new to this type of work. The key to it is remaining calm, employ trickle breathing and perhaps, most importantly, swimming efficiently, which should be your primary goal during a technique-oriented workout like this one.

COOL-DOWN

100 m easy choice swim Just relax and unwind.

Total Workout = 3,500 m