Wednesday’s Masters Swim Workout

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

WARMUP
400 FREE SMOOTH SWIM
4 X 100 IM DRILL OR SWIM @ :10 REST
4 X 50 KICK WITH A BOARD DESCEND 1-4

600 PULL BREATHING 3/5 BY 100, DESCEND YOUR 200s

9 X 200 @ 3:30 WORKING ON COMING-HOME-SPEED FOR FREESTYLE
#1 & #7 – 175 SMOOTH@ :10 REST, 1 X 25 SPRINT
#2 & #6 – 150 SMOOTH @ :10 REST, 1 X 50 SPRINT
#3 & #5 – 125 SMOOTH @ :10 REST, 1 X 75 SPRINT
#4 – 100 SMOOTH @ :10 REST, 1 X 100 SPRINT @ 1:15
# 8 – ALL SMOOTH
#9 – FAST FOR TIME

12 x 50 @ 1:00 ANYTHING BUT FREE SPRINT 1 CYCLE ON #1 ( 2 CYCLES ON #2, UP TO 6 ON #6) OFF BOTH WALLS GET YOUR HEART RATE UP BRIEFLY HERE TO ENHANCE THE RECOVERY EFFECT

200 EZ SWIM DOWN

4200 YARDS

Teammate Slingshots

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Ryan Woodruff

This exercise builds off of the Teammate Drag. It is best done for a 25 at a time. Here is how it works. Swimmers are partnered, with one swimmer pulling (sprinting) and the other being pulled. Somewhere between the 15m marks, the trailing partner pulls the leading partner’s leg, attempting to slingshot to the lead. They then sprint to the wall. The kids love this exercise, and it really got them going pretty fast.

Here’s a video example:

Power Hour at SwimMAC Carolina

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Chris Webb, SwimMAC Carolina

Goal of set is promote sprint power/endurance and to bring it all together with measurable data at the end of the set for 100 speed. Using real stroke #'s and kick counts from meets are encouraged. Training at race #'s and speeds can really help athletes take ownership.  Using this set and variations ( or different equipment) during heavy volume periods can prevent losing touch with relevant speed and measure fatigue.  

60×25 on 1:00 fr/bk/or fly as follows:
 
4×25's  build to overspeed!
4×25's w/T-shirt MAX sprint
4×25's w/T-shirt & paddles MAX sprint
8×25's  running dive MAX sprint no equipment focus on carrying speed to surface and  your length of stroke

12×25 underwater Body dolphin (dolphin kick) w/fins  MAX sprint
8×25 running dive 12.5 – 15m underwater BD then swim MAX sprint

20×25 ideal BD off each wall with a stroke count and time  CPT (concentration, precision, and Technique) (you must know your kick and stroke #'s)

Practicing Race Habits

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Ryan Woodruff
@WoodruffRyan

You can use this set to build up race habits and teach the desired race pattern. We put a watch only on the 4th 200, 100, and 50.

4 x 200 @ 3:30
#1 – 50 fast/150 ez – make the 2nd turn as good as the first
#2 – 100 fast/100 ez – hold tempo steady from 1st to 2nd 50
#3 – 150 fast/50 ez – work the 3rd 50 faster than the 2nd
#4 – 200 for time – put it all together!

100 easy

4 x 100 @ 2:30
#1 – 25 fast/75 ez – work breakout and hit the first turn dead on
#2 – 50 fast/50 ez – work 2nd turn as fast as the first
#3 – 75 fast/25 ez – strong kicking on the 3rd 25
#4 – 100 fast for time

100 easy

4 x 50 @ 1:30
#1 – 15m fast – work on the breakout
#2 – 25y fast- be aggressive into the turn
#3 – 40y fast then cruise to a perfect finish
#4 – 50 fast for time

Partner Relay Kicks

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

This set got some good kicking intensity out of our kids.

3 x 400 kick. Swimmers are paired together to make even teams. One swimmer kicks the first 50 and then tags off to the second swimmer. Alternating 50s, they do the set at maximum speed. The team that is in 1st place after a 200 may stop to rest for the remainder of the 400. At the 250, the fastest remaining team may stop. At the 300, the fastest remaining team again may stop, etc. The last few teams will kick the entire 400, while those who earned the rest are rewarded for their kicking prowess and effort. With each 400, change the prescribed kick. For #1 – everyone does flutter kick with a board, for #2 – everyone does breaststroke kick, for #3 – everyone does 25 underwater dolphin kick and 25 dolphin kick on your back. These are just examples. Mix it up however you wish. The point is to encourage and reward fast kicking and have your swimmers working together as teammates.

9 Ways to Train I.M.

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Ryan Woodruff

We all know that I.M. is a great way to put some variety into your training. Here are some ways to put a little variety into your variety.

#1 – Reverse I.M. A commonly used version, simply swim the strokes in reverse order.
#2 – Free I.M. Good for masters swimmers who are fly-reluctant or for any time that you want to get good back, breast, and free training without the butterfly. Simply substitute freestyle in for the butterfly portions of the I.M.
#3 – Inside-out I.M. Swim the strokes in the order Back-Fly-Free-Breast
#4 – Fat I.M. – Do these for lengths that are 25% longer than your standard I.M.-125s, 250s, 500s, etc. Double up on one of the strokes (this is the Fat stroke). A 250 Fat I.M. (Back) would thus be 50 Fly/100 back/50 breast/50 free.
#5 – Lemon I.M.
#6 – Emily I.M.- For swimmers with knee injuries/pain or whose breaststroke is not a focus of your efforts for improvement. Swim backstroke double the normal distance and leave out breaststroke altogether. Yes, this is named after a swimmer.
#7 – Baltimore I.M.s
#8 – Skinny I.M. This is the opposite of Fat I.M.s Swim distances like 175s, 350s, etc. Cut the distance of one stroke in half.
#9 – Gator I.M. Alternate stroke and free. A 300 Gator I.M. would be 50 fly/50 free/50 back/50 free/50 breast/50 free.

Do you have any other interesting or creative ways of training I.M.?

Carolina Quality Set

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

This is a good straight-forward quality set to challenge your swimmers. Every swim is race from a dive except the last 3 x 25s (go from a push)

1 x 200 @ 4:00 Goal: within 12 sec of personal best
2 x 100 @ 2:00 Goal: within 6 sec of personal best
3 x 50 @ 1:20 Goal: within 3 sec of personal best (free) or within 1 of P100 dive split
4 x 25 @ :40 Goal: at P100

Use the Determining Race Pace Spreadsheet for SCY to determine your goal times for the 50s and 25s.

Other Race Pace Sets:
Another P200 Set
The Ohio Mile Set
The 25 x 50 Challenge Set
The P500 Challenge

Twenty Ways to Do 20 x 25 – #18

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Chris Plumb, Carmel Swim Club

#18 – P100 All the Way

Set the Tempo Trainer for your 100 pace using this chart.

Take as much rest as needed to make the pace. Beat your 100 pace to your feet every time.

Other Swimming Wizard Tempo Trainer Posts:
Aerobic Tempo Set
Sub-Threshold Tempo Set
The Whatchamacallit
Twenty Ways to Do 20 x 25 #9
Find Your Threshold Tempo

The Near-Race-Pace Set

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

This set is designed for the swimmers to achieve near-race-pace speeds and progress in intensity through the set.

4 x 175 @ 3:30 Beat your best 200 time
400 ez swim
6 x 90 (float the last 10)@ 3:00 Beat your best 100 time
400 ez swim
8 x 50 @ 2:30 Be within 2.0 sec of your best 50 free time or within 1.0 of your dive P100 time (see the Race Pace Calculator to determine this time).

Done correctly, the athlete will be swimming at 88% of 200 race pace on the 175s, at 90% of 100 race pace on the 90s, and at least 90% OF 100 race pace on the 50s.

More Fun With PVC Pipes – Kick Sticks

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Chad Onken, YMCA of the Triangle Area

Here is another “fun” thing we do at YOTA. We have a 4 foot piece of 1/2 inch PVC piping that we drilled holes into on each side. We strung through a mesh bag on both sides. We use these “kick sticks” to focus on proper body position and core stability while kicking. The resistance of the mesh bags adds a bit of a challenge. We'll do a series of fast and moderate kicking, with a majority of the kicking underwater (no breath) or with a snorkel (proper head position). It breaks the monotony of using a kickboard or kicking on your back. You can kick with fins, shoes, snorkels – the possibilities are endless. It's a great tool to focus on strong, fast legs…..

500 Tempo Trainer Pace Set

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Chris Plumb, Carmel Swim Club

Set the tempo trainer to half of the desired 25 pace time.

5x
500
400 easy swim

Rd 1) 500 is 20×25 set tempo trainer to 500 pace on 1 beep rest
Rd 2) 500 is 10×50 tempo trainer to race pace on 3 beeps rest
Rd 3) 500 is 5×100 1 on 1:30 1 on 1:20 1 on 1:15 1 on 1:10 1 on 1:05
Rd 4) same as Rd 2
Rd 5) same as rd 1

Other Swimming Wizard Tempo Trainer Posts:
Aerobic Tempo Set
Sub-Threshold Tempo Set
The Whatchamacallit
Twenty Ways to Do 20 x 25 #9
Find Your Threshold Tempo

The Distance Freesyle Eternity Set

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

The swimmers decide when it is over. Well, sort of.

? x 500 Free @ 6:00 (Interval should be 1:00 to 1:30 from swimmer’s best time)

Lifetime best time = Get out and go home!
1 – 10 sec off of lifetime best time = 5 points
11 – 20 sec off of lifetime best time = 3 points
21 – 30 sec off of lifetime best tiem = 2 points
31 – 40 sec off of lifetime best time = 1 points
41 – 60 sec off of lifetime best time = 0 points
61 seconds or more off of lifetime best time = -1 point

Each swimmer keeps going until he or she achieves 30 points or goes a lifetime best time. Of course, if a swimmer is really up against a wall on the set, deals can be made with the coach for extra points (i.e. negative splitting by a certain amount, dolphin kicking further off the wall consistently, etc.)

Underwater Kicking Test Set

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Ryan Woodruff
Lynchburg YMCA

Here is the set that I used to define the underwater kicking speeds in The Swimming Calculator:

10x through @ 3:00 per round:
12.5 Fast UW kick/ 12.5 ez kick – Timed to the tenth of a second to the athlete’s head crossing the line.
75 – 25 kick/25 drill/25 swim

Do 3 rounds dolphin kick face down, 3 rounds dolphin kick on back, 3 rounds dolphin kick on side or breaststroke pullouts, and the last round is choice.

We do the UW kicking in lane 1 with an athlete leaving every 10 seconds. This allows the coach to rapidly time every athlete to 12.5 yards. Upon completing the 25, the swimmer moves to lane 2 or 3 for the 75. This helps the keep the lane clear for the underwater kickers. For purposes of the The Swimming Calculator, I have defined the levels of kicking ability for senior swimmers as the following times to 12.5 yards.

For Men:
4.6 seconds or faster – World Class
4.7-5.2 seconds – Elite
5.3-5.8 seconds – Great
5.9-6.6 seconds – Good
6.7-7.4 seconds – Average
7.5-8.2 seconds – Poor
slower than 8.3 seconds – Awful

For Women
5.4 seconds or faster – World Class
5.5-6.0 seconds – Elite
6.1-6.6 seconds – Great
6.7-7.4 seconds – Good
7.5-8.2 seconds – Average
8.3-9.0 seconds – Poor
slower than 9.1 seconds – Awful

Tempo Trainer Pace Set

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Chris Plumb, Carmel Swim Club

Here is an idea that can be used anytime you are doing pace and we call it “Beat the Beep.” Set your Tempo Trainer (TT) to whatever pace you want to hold. For example, if you wanted to go 30 seconds for a fifty – here is what you do:
30 seconds per 50 is 15 seconds per 25 and is 7.5 seconds for 12.5 yards
Set the Tempo Trainer for 7.5 and then leave on the beep and you will hear the beep at the 12.5/25/37.5/50 yards.

Click here to see the tempo trainer pace sheet we use.

Negative Split Work

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Greg Johnson, CCA Marlins

 
Here is a set we did focusing on negative splitting.  To get good quality negative splitting, we did these broken so the kids could read the clock and make sure they are hitting the split goals.  I set the intervals somewhat loose to give them rest and allow them to read the clock.  It really helped motivate them to swim fast.  I saw some good splits.  We did round 1 freestyle and round 2 prime stroke (+10 on the swim and 15 on the pull). 
 
2 x
 
    4 x 150 NEG SPLIT WITHIN 3 sec.  broken 10 sec at the 75 @  2:00  2:10
 
    P 1 X 200  BP 5  @  2’40  2’50
 
    4 X 100 NEG SPLIT WITHIN 2 sec.  broken 5 sec at the 50  @ 1’20  1’30
 
    P 2 X 100 BP 5/7 BY 50  @  1:20  1:25
 
   4 x 50 NEG WITHIN 1 sec broken 5 sec at the 25  @  55
 
    P 6 x 50  dec. 1–> 3 BP 7   @ 50
 

For Sasquatch

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

Warmup
400 free swim
4 x 100 RIM Drill
4 x 50  4 sprint cycles off both walls  all @ :10 rest

Main set:
7x through @ 11:00
Rounds 1-4 are free, rounds 5-7 no free    
400 for time    
6  x 50 descend cycle count 1-3 @ :50

Kick set:
? x 50 kick w snorkel1 @ :50
1 @ :48
1 @ :50
1 @ :46
1 @ :50
1 @ :44
and so on, until you miss the interval, then go:
1 x 100 all out for time

YOTA Kick-Out Sticks

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Note: These “Kick-out Sticks” or “Streamline Sticks” have been a topic of discussion since Streamline Sticks was published. Coach Onken has the best design we’ve seen so far presented below.

Chad Onken, YMCA of the Triangle Area (YOTA)

Picture #1 – pic of the end of the PVC pipe, with the male end super glued onto the edge of the PVC pipe. A divot was drilled into the male end to allow a slit where the lane rope cord will be.

Picture #2 – pic of the female end (male/female part is bought together)

Picture #3 – the three components of the kick-out stick: the PVC insulation (black), the female piece which is threaded to fit the male piece that is super glued to the top of the PVC pipe.

Picture #4 – picture of the female/male pieces screwed on together (with PVC insulation around the rest of the PVC pipe

Picture #5 – the final product at work (very close to the wall).

What makes this (soon to be patented – hahaha) product so great is that it allows for two way swimming in and out of walls and it is also completely moveable to different differences from the wall. You can make it as easy/challenging as you want it. The sticks are designed to take a beating, we have a few kids that consistently run into them all the time. And the best part is that they are very cheap – we were able to buy the supplies needed for a 6 lane pool for around $16.





Age Group Habits

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Abby Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachabby@ncacswim.org

Here's an age group practice emphasizing good habits with some fast
100's freestyle at the end:

600 (100 Free – 50 Breast)

8 x 100 (25 Fly – 50 Back – 25 Free) on 2:00

#1:  5 dolphin kicks off each wall
#2:  6 dolphin kicks off each wall
#3:  7 dolphin kicks off each wall
#4:  8 dolphin kicks off each wall

10 x 50 with fins on 1:00

Odd:  UW dolphin kick as far as possible, then sprint fly or back to wall
Even:  Streamline dolphin kick on back

3 x 300 Free – breathe every 3, no breaths off wall – on 5:00/5:15/5:30

2 x 100 Free on 1:40/1:50/2:00 Free FAST

2 x 300 Free – breathe every 3, no breaths off wall – on 5:00/5:15/5:30

4 x 100 Free on 1:50/2:00/2:10 Free FAST

1 x 300 Free – breathe every 3, no breaths off wall – on 5:00/5:15/5:30

6 x 100 Free on 2:00/2:10/2:20 Free FAST

100 Easy

The Rocket Tower

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

Check out the Rocket Tower:

Sunday I was at the pool in Huntersville, NC for our Senior Champs and watched Nick Brunelli training on this beast. I had been looking at it sitting in the corner all weekend, wondering if it really was what it seemed. It’s a Power Tower on steroids, with the capability of providing assistance or resistance over 50 meters. Brunelli was eager to tell me about it when I asked. Apparently there are only 3 in existence right now–this one, one in Fullerton, CA with Sean Hutchison’s Center of Excellence group, and one at Arizona State (Brunelli’s alma mater and the home of the inventor). Brunelli said that it is vastly improved over the Power Rack, Power Reel, and Power Tower for a few reasons:

1) You can use it over 50 meters. Brunelli said it can pull him to a 21-second LCM 50 free.
2) It is made of military spec hard-anodized aluminum and FAA-Approved pulleys. The inventor is a metal fabricator in Tempe. Believe the hype when it comes to quality. The cable glides so smooth and with so little apparent friction, it makes the Power Tower look like someone’s 5th grade science project.
3) Very constant resistance and assistance. Unlike previous power training equipment, Brunelli said he feels very little “bounce” in between strokes. The forces are very smooth and steady. I am guessing this is due to the quality construction and the number of pulleys involved (I counted 15).

A few other observations:
1) The rocket on top is just for show. It houses the top pulleys, but those fins are merely for coolness.
2) The blue tube you see is the draining hose. The bucket is 60 gallons (HUGE!) yet drains easily through this and a secondary smaller tube.
3) There is an Inertia Safety Clutch built into the lower pulley system. This comes in handy if the belt happens to come off, and it can also be manually locked if you are 50m away and simply want to rest without clinging to the wall.

So I was impressed initially with the Rocket Tower. It is still in its infancy, but you can check out their website.

Twenty Ways to Do 20 x 25 – #17

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

#17 – Racing A Teammate

You’ll need a teammate who is generally about the same speed as you. Do your 20 x 25 @ :30, swimming side-by-side and racing to the finish each time. The winner of #1 receives 1 point. The winner of #2 receives 2 points, and so on, all the way up to 20 points on #20. The winner of each 25 chooses the stroke for the subsequent 25, but must choose a different stroke than the length just completed AND the one before that. In other words, if you swim free on #1, back on #2, and swimmer A wins them both, then swimmer A must choose between breast and fly for #3. Done this way, there are a total of 210 points, so the first person to 106 points is the winner. For an extra wrinkle, allow each swimmer one “steal,” i.e. one occasion during the set where he can choose the next stroke even after losing the previous 25.

The Swimming Calculator

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Coach Ryan Woodruff

Ever wonder how much faster your swimmer would be if he would just fix his turns? Curious about the combination of tempos and cycle counts that will lead to the fastest time for your swimmer?

This is the tool for you.

The Swimming Calculator (click to download the excel sheet)

Toy around with it a bit and let me know what you think. I am interested to hear any suggestions, and if anyone knows how to set this up in an html format, I would love to be able to put it on the web to eliminate the cumbersome excel download.

The Swimming Calculator can also henceforth be found in the Tools for Coaches section in the menu above.

Back and Free Sprint Set

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

WARMUP W/ SNORKEL – FREESTYLE

30 X 100 @ :10 REST

                #1 – 50 STREAMLINE FACE DOWN KICK/50 FISTS DRILL

                #2 – 50 KICK ON SIDE/ 50 CATCHUP

                #3 – OVERKICK AND CATCHUP

 

BACKSTROKE

50 – 3 SCULLS/3 STROKES DRILL @ :10 REST

3 X          200 SWIM RACE PATTERN (FOCUS ON UNDERWATERS AND TURNS) @ :20 REST

                4 X 25 @ :30   12.5 YDS SPIN DRILL/ 12.5 YDS EZ SWIM

 

 

POWER TOWER SET –

 

6 X 75 BACKSTROKE  @ 1:45  FAST GOING OUT, EZ COMING BACK IN

200 EZ FREESTYLE B3– NO BELT

6 X 50 BACKSTROKE @ 1:15  5+ YARDS KICK, 20 YARDS BUILD/25 EZ BACKSTROKE

200 EZ FREESTYLE B3 – NO BELT

6 X 25 ALL OUT SPRINT BACKSTROKE @ :40

200 EZ FREESTYLE B3 – NO BELT

The ? Set

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Ryan Woodruff, North Carolina Aquatic Club
coachryan@ncacswim.org

Here’s a workout for when you only have 30 minutes.

300 smooth swim for warmup

? x 50 @ :50
Using a dry-erase board, give the swimmers a different set of instructions for every 50, erasing the old instructions and writing the new one while they swim. Mix it up, changing speeds, strokes, drills, breathing patterns, etc. Don’t let the swimmers know what is coming beyond the next 50. All swims are choice unless the stroke is specified. Here’s an example:
#1- P200+5
#2- P200+3
#3- P200+1
#4- P200-1
#5- EZ free B3
#6- Free B5
#7- Free B7
#8- At count
#9- Race!
#10- At cycle count -1
#11- 25 underwater dolphin kick/ 25 sprint
#12- 25 sprint/25 underwater dolphin kick
#13- 25 race/25 ez kick
#14- Fly B 1 up/1 down
#15- Fly B 1 up/2 down
#16- Fly B 1 up/3 down
#17- Fast fly
#18- EZ breaststroke
#19- Race!
#20- At cycle count -2
#21- 12.5 fast/12.5 ez of same stroke as #20
#22- At cycle count
#23- Breast with dolphin kick
#24- Backstroke 12.5 spin drill/12.5 swim
#25- P1650
…
The set could go on for as long as you like. The changing up speeds and instructions every 50 keeps the swimmers alert and the set fresh and interesting. What other interesting instructions can you come up with?