Practice

These swimming workouts can be tailored toward a swimmer who is looking to get faster and more fit or toward a novice swimmer simply looking to be able to swim longer distances. 

 Any of these sets can be adapted to suit your preferences. An advanced swimmer might progress each week by adding distance to the strong sets, or by reducing rest. A novice swimmer and simply looking to get comfortable at swimming longer distances might choose to swim everything at a comfortable pace and add more rest. Progression here might be to increase the longer swims by 50s instead of 100s. 

For the purpose of these workouts, think of the following designations of effort:

  • Smooth Swimming: Find a relaxed pace that you feel like you could hold all day, maintaining focus on your form.

  • Strong Swimming: This is a harder effort but not “all out”. Imagine an 85% effort, or your pace for a one mile race.

  • Fast Swimming: This is pretty straight forward - go as fast as you can maintain for the given distance.

Be sure to swim down a little at the end of any workout and remember that any water time is good time! Practice makes ease and comfort in the water.

Workout 1

WARM UP: 10 min of easy swimming

THEN:

  • 25 smooth swimming with 15 sec rest
  • 25 smooth swimming + 25 strong swimming. 15 sec rest
  • 25 smooth swimming + 50 strong swimming. 15 sec rest
  • 25 smooth swimming + 75 strong swimming. 15 sec rest
  • 100 strong swimming

MAIN SET (ADVANCED):

All on 10 sec rest. If you're time crunched, cut the smooth 100's down to 50's.

  • 100 smooth swimming
  • 100 strong swimming
  • 100 smooth swimming
  • 100 fast swimming
  • 100 smooth
  • 200 strong
  • 100 smooth
  • 100 fast
  • 100 smooth
  • 300 strong
  • 100 smooth
  • 100 fast
  • 100 smooth
  • 400 strong
  • 100 smooth
  • 100 fast

MAIN SET (NOVICE):

All on 15 sec rest

  • 50 smooth swimming
  • 100 strong swimming
  • 50 smooth swimming
  • 50 fast swimming
  • 50 smooth
  • 150 strong
  • 50 smooth
  • 50 fast
  • 50 smooth
  • 200 strong
  • 50 smooth
  • 50 fast

WORKOUT 2

WARM UP: 500 easy swimming

THEN:

  • 4 x 50 descend 1-4 (each 50 gets faster) with 15 sec rest
  • Extra 1 min rest
  • 4 x 25 descend 1-4 with 10 sec rest

MAIN SET:

  • 10 x 100 at a strong effort (~85%) with 7-10 sec rest in between

The goal here is to do a set number of 100s at a strong and challenging effort but not too hard on a shorter rest interval. This is a workout that you might repeat often and add to the number of 100s that each time.

WORKOUT 3

WARM UP:

  • 400 easy swimming
  • 300 smooth swimming, making every 3rd 25 fast
  • 200 alternating 25 smooth/ 25 fast
  • 100 fast swimming

MAIN SET:

All on 15 sec rest

  • 400 smooth swimming
  • 100 strong swimming
  • 300 smooth
  • 2 x 100 strong
  • 200 smooth
  • 3 x 100 fast
  • 100 smooth
  • 4 x 100 fast

WORKOUT 4

WARM UP:

  • 10 min easy swimming

THEN:

All with 10 - 15 seconds rest in between swims

  • 4 x 75 building each 75 from smooth to fast
  • 2 x 25 fast
  • 50 easy
  • 50 fast
  • 2 x 25 easy

MAIN:

  • 10 x 50 strong with 7-10 sec rest, right into:
  • 500 smooth swimming
  • 1 min rest
  • 8 x 50 strong with 7-10 sec rest, right into:
  • 400 smooth swimming
  • 1 min rest
  • 6 x 50 strong with 7-10 sec rest, right into:
  • 300 smooth swimming
  • 1 min rest
  • 4 x 50 strong with 7-10 sec rest, right into:
  • 200 smooth swimming
  • 1 min rest
  • 2 x 50 strong with 7-10 sec rest, right into:
  • 100 smooth swimming

Heather PerryComment