Tag: Breaststroke

Fartlek Fun. Is that redundant?

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Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA

This is 8:00 of continuous swimming with 1:00 rest.  Each time there are slightly different instructions.  “Deep” refers to deep practice, where I ask our swimmers to focus on one technical element and try to improve it.  On #4, they swim continuous backstroke until they hear me bang the wrench on the side of the pool. When they hear the bangs, they sprint br 2 walls (25-50m) and then return to swimming steady backstroke.

Snake Fly plus Back-Breast-Free with Coach Chris Brookover

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Chris Brookover
YBCC Phoenix – Head Coach
Director of Competitive Swimming

Snake Fly – Use all 6 lanes
3 x 3 x 150
Each set of 3 is comprised:
#1 – Fly/Free by 25’s @ 2:00
#2 – 50 Fly 25 Free @ 2:15
#3 – All Fly @ 2:30

 ———————-
Bk/Br/Fr Set
2x through the set below…
1st   75 = 50 Bk / 25 Br
125 = 25 Fr/50 Bk/ 25 Br / 25 Fr
2nd  75 = 50 Br/ 25 Fr
125 = 25 Fr / 25 Bk / 50 Br/ 25 Fr
6 × 75 @ 1:00 / 1:05
1 × 125 @ 1:45 / 1:50
4 × 75 @ 1:00 / 1:05
2 × 125 @ 1:45 / 1:50
2 × 75 @ 1:00 / 1:05
4 × 125 @ 1:45 / 1:50
R: 1:40

Above  2 X
1st   75 = 50 Bk / 25 Br
125 = 25 Fr/50 Bk/ 25 Br / 25 Fr
2nd  75 = 50 Br/ 25 Fr
125 = 25 Fr / 25 Bk / 50 Br/ 25 Fr

The Big Descend

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Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA

This set went really well for our team.  I like that it forced them to really pay attention to their pace and demanded exceptional effort for the last few rounds.  We did 150s instead of 100s or 200s because there is less “mental baggage” attached to that distance — swimmers’ don’t have well-defined expectations of what their times for 150 should be.

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Breaststroke challenge set

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Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA

We did this set recently in SCM as a group challenge.  Everyone starts off with a 200 breast @3:30 on the first round.  Swimmers that make it and continue to make the interval keep doing a 200 breast as the interval descends.  If a swimmer misses an interval (let’s say 3:00), then on 2:50 that swimmer goes 150 breast/50 free.  If he makes it on 2:50, he does the same on the next round on 2:40.  If he misses it again, then he would do 100 breast/100 free on 2:30.  We continued until the last swimmer could no longer make the 200 breast on the interval.  Potentially, the set could be done until everyone is doing a 200 free which would lengthen the set by a few rounds.

Back and Breaststroke Set

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Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA

Our swimmers seemed to really like this set.  One thing sets it apart from many of the sets we do — the interval.  Typically, I write a highly structured practice with everything tightly interval-controlled.  This set had every swim @ ~:20 rest.  This allowed the swimmers to feel less interval pressure and the freedom to just do a good job, pay attention to the clock, and challenge themselves rather than feeling dragged along by the set.

1st round backstroke, 2nd round breaststroke with changes to the drills so they were suitable for br.

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The "Add One" Breaststroke Set

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Delano Ducheck
Summerland Orca Swim Club
orcaswimclub.net
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For Age Groupers, 11-14 

5×200  add one Br  continuous Fly @ 
Swimmers start with Pullout + 1 Breaststroke cycle. Continue 25m length fly. 
 As the set implies “Add One” Breaststroke cycle  each length until swimmer completes entire length with breaststroke only.  ie. Length #2 = pullout + 2 Br cycles, Length #3 pullout +3 Br cycles  Length #4 = Pullout + 4 Br cycles etc.
They’ll learn to maximize pullouts and breaststroke cycles to avoid the fly

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Breaststroke Set #2,174

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Ryan Woodruff
 
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Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA

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Breaststroke Tempo Set with York Swim Club Coach Parker Ramsdell

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Parker Ramsdell
York Swim Club

I did this set (SCM) with my breaststrokers yesterday morning and really enjoyed it.

The 200s provided a solid aerobic touch to the training, and we’ve been really struggling with pullout discipline later in races, thus the no touch walls to put some extra pressure on the lungs on those underwaters.

The 100s w/ tempo trainer set at 04:00 (25-1 stroke/beep; 50-2 strokes/beep; 25-3 strokes/beep) helped them work body line and glide for the first 75, then pick up the tempo on the last 25 helping prime them for the fast 50s to follow.

Total – 3500m

Round 1 – 4x each distance
Round 2 – 3x each distance
Round 3 – 2x each distance
Round 4 – 1x each distance

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Working On Breaststroke Technique with the Piranhas

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Ryan Woodruff
 
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Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA

Our breaststrokers liked this set.  Technical focus early with some descending 200s (150s) for slower swimmers/non-breaststrokers.

Drill explanations:
R arm and L arm Br = single arm breaststroke done with the other arm straight in front of the swimmer.
3K-1P = 3 kicks-1 pull.  Swimmer does two additional kicks in every cycle, while the swimmer is in the glide position.
Fast Heels = This is just a “deep practice” focus point where we swim breaststroke emphasizing rapidly drawing the heels toward the butt.

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!

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Try This Set to Crush the Middle of Your IMs

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Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
  

The purpose of this set is to improve the middle of our IM races

First, a set to test backstroke speed/endurance

8 x 100 Backstroke –Fastest Possible Average (essentially a broken 800 with active recovery)
After #1 and #2: 75 ez free @ 1:30
After #3 and #4: 50 ez free @ 1:00
After #5 and #6: 25 ez free @ :30
After #7 :10 rest

Record average 100 time

300 easy recovery

Repeat the 8 x 100s breaststroke, record times, go 300 easy.

Follow-up Challenge:
Timed 200 (100 back/100 breast) with the goal being to match the total of the backstroke pace and the breaststroke pace times. We got some excellent efforts and some really outstanding performances.

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Freestyle and "Deep Practice" Stroke Set

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Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA
 

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!
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This was a little technique/focus set we worked on the other day.  “Deep” practice refers to our intent to be totally engaged in our stroke and focused on improving one particular part of the stroke while swimming (not drilling or isolating).

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Speed Squats Hybrid Set for Breaststroke Leg Speed

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Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA

One thing we have been trying to emphasize with our breaststroke swimmers is heel speed during the kick.  I like “speed squats” as a dryland exercise to help develop this ability.  A speed squat is essentially a regular squat done so quickly that the athlete almost pulls himself down with his hamstrings.  We combined this exercise into the following breaststroke set that also emphasized hitting the walls on a full stroke.

Breaststroke with Nuclear Underwater Kicks

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Ryan Woodruff
Head Coach
Lynchburg YMCA

The purpose of this set is primarily to improve a swimmer’s capacity to do an effective Br pullout and sprint while fatigued.   The 10 underwater breaststroke kicks (NUCLEAR INTENSITY!!!) are performed pushing against the wall at a depth of about 1m with the hands pushing against the wall. Then WITHOUT COMING UP TO BREATHE, the swimmer pushes off into the 25 sprint breaststroke.  The 25m sprint is importantly followed by very smooth and efficient “long-glide” breaststroke on a maximum cycle count.

SCM