Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Free Swimming Workouts, Sets, Ideas, and Dryland Exercises from Professional Coaches Around the World
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
As in “the sooner we are done, the better.”
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
Check out the Wizard’s Store for all of the books and tools to help make you a better coach.
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Ryan Woodruff
Broken 400 IM or Broken 500 free
+ @ ~16:00
Easy 500 Free
400s were broken 25-50-75-100-75-50-25 with :10 seconds rest between swims
500s were broken 25-50-75-100-100-75-50-25 with :10 seconds rest between swims
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Follow @WoodruffRyan
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
Check out the Wizard’s Store for books and tools to help make you a better coach.
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Follow @WoodruffRyan
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
Swimmers do fly continuously at first (for an unknown distance). When coach blows whistle, swimmers accelerate to the next wall (still butterfly) and then perform a 50 back at 200 IM race pace. Upon completing that 50, swimmers swim smooth breast until completing the 300. Concept could be used for any IM transition. I like working this fly-back transition because it is the one that is physically hardest to make. The coach can decide whether swimmers will do anywhere from 25 to 225 yards of fly.
Check out the Wizard’s Store for books and tools to help make you a better coach
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Ryan Woodruff
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
We did this set recently on a day where I was looking for some fast-ish swimming without an extremely high stress value. It seemed to do the trick.
Check out the Wizard’s Store for books and tools to help make you a better coach.
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
SCM. This fly set seems long at first glance, but the concept is to swim fly in relatively short chunks to get a fair amount of rest and keep stroke integrity high.

!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
Check out the Wizard’s Store for books and tools to help make you a better coach
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA Follow @WoodruffRyan
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
Check out the Wizard’s Store for books and tools to help make you a better coach.
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Brian Clark
Chico Aquajets
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
3x the following:
100 Free 1:20 1:40 2:00
75 back 1:10 1:20 1:30
75 fly 1:20 1:30 1:40
50 Breast 50 1:00 1:10
first time through and first column is swim, 2nd is drill/swim on 100 and 50, swim/drill/swim on 75’s, 3rd time is kick.
4×200 Free/2:45
1×100 Breast/1:50
3×200 Free/2:45 pull and descend 1-3, mildly
2×100 Fly/1:40 (25 right/25 regular/25 left/25 regular, please)
2×200 Free/2:45, fast in and out of turns
3×100 Free/1:25
1×200 Free/2:45 negative split
4×100 back/1:35 descend 1-4
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
Check out the Wizard’s Store for all of the books and tools to help make you a better coach
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Jake Magnan
Green Mountain Aquatics/Saint Michael’s College
Burlington, VT
Have you read these books that can help make you a better coach?
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
Tweet
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Ryan Woodruff
Follow @WoodruffRyan
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Have you read these books that can help make you a better coach?
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Mathieu Leroy
Chartres, France
If you want to download this workout in PDF form, click here.
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
Tweet
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
This is an old-school IM set from a ways back.
Ryan Woodruff
Follow @WoodruffRyan
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
The purpose of this set is to work some race pace for one of the strokes in IM while holding the technique of the other strokes together under fatigue. The instructions for the 200s were to hold 80-85% effort. We did this right after a moderately tough fly set, thus no fly in this set.
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Ryan Woodruff
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
HVO = High Velocity Overload (concept from Bill Sweetenham), an all out 25y swim from a dive. Cone on return 25 set at 10m from wall.
Ryan Woodruff
Follow @WoodruffRyan
Reading books and articles from outside my areas of expertise have helped make me a better coach. Here are some of my favorite non-swimming books that I recommend you check out, in no particular order.
Note: All links in this article are Amazon affiliate links, meaning that clicking on the link for the book titles and purchasing the book will kick some loose change to the Swimming Wizard without costing you a penny extra. Thank you for your support!
Ryan Woodruff
I love our weekly Friday Fly Day sets. Every week, the swimmers know to expect something that is going to make them better at everyone’s “favorite” stroke.
On the 200s, swimmers perform a set number of high-quality butterfly cycles and then swim freestyle to the next turn. The # of cycles progresses each 25 – i.e. our best flyers would do 5,6,7,8,5,6,7,8 cycles of fly on the successive 25s of the 200.
On the 25s, the focus is squarely on “finishing habits,” especially not breathing in the final 10m and hitting the wall on a full stroke.
The 100 serves as kicking practice with body awareness and giving the shoulders a rest from swimming fly.
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
The emphasis on this set was swimming at 400 IM race pace for breaststroke while under some fatigue from backstroke.
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
We did this set SCM, using small (approx 1 gallon volume) buckets towed behind swimmers on the blue parts of the set.
Editor’s Note: The Swimming Wizard’s goal is to publish at least one set, practice, or idea EVERY DAY for all of 2016! To keep it interesting, we need your help! Click here to help us achieve that goal by submitting one of your sets!
Raymond Keown
Head Coach
NRG Aquatics
Langhorne, Pennsylvania
Here is a nice set that we use to allow a variety of athletes to train together, and get some specific endurance training at the same time. This set is LCM:
150 free @color paces (see note) @:10 rest + 50 RACE! (see note) } rd- A= 5x@3:00, B= 4x@3:20, C= 3x@3:40, D= 2x@4:00
100 free @color paces (see note) @:10 rest + 50 RACE! (see note) } rd- A= 5x@2:15, B= 5x@2:30, C= 5x@2:45, D=5x@3:00
50 free @color paces (see note) @:10 rest + 50 RACE! (see note) } rd- A= 5x@1:30, B= @5x@1:40, C= 5x@1:50, D= 5x@2:00
5×50 RACE! A= @:45, B= @:50, C= @:55, D= @1:00
*Colors= Long Events- hold RED, Mid-range Events- hold pink, Short Events- hold white
*Race= Long Events- free hold p800, Mid-range Events- Prime hold p400 (IM), Short Events- Prime hold p200
Swimmers are assigned the appropriate send-off, color & stroke. Athletes are intermixed based on ability.
We had 2x lanes of each interval.
The A interval was mostly the Long Event swimmers.
Typical rest ranges were- Long Events- goal of :20 rest or less, Mid-range- goal of :15 to :30 rest, Short- :20 to :40 rest.
We did this tonight and it was fantastic & intense, with athletes hitting their paces.
This is how we tend to break sets up for specific training.
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js”;fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,”script”,”twitter-wjs”);
//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//popuri.us/assets/js/twitterwidget.js”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘popuri-jssdk’));
Lukas Mundelsee
SG Schwimmen Muenster
Germany
Psychology tells us that people are more motivated if they have the chance to be involved in decision making processes. I think it is a good idea to apply this principle to a certain degree to our swim practices. In this set the swimmers could choose on which they focus in particular for a block of 3 broken 400s. They liked it and I felt they are more motivated to really concentrate on what they have chosen on their own compared to if I had chosen a focus for them. ([P400]+4” means they should swim 4 seconds slower per 100m than their 400m race pace).