We needed to have an easier day – the last couple of our practices were pretty heavy.
So halfway through practice we focused on form and mechanics, and then had a nice chunk of time to work on starts, turns, and breakouts. During the drills portion (not long, but enough for the guys to work on what they need to work on) we focused on the following:
- Freestyle: fist swim for vertical forearm and a couple different drills for high elbow recovery
- Breaststroke: flutter kick and pull for quick recovery. 2 kick and 1 pull for recovery timing
- Backstroke: catch up backstroke for hand entry, and 6 kick 3 stroke for rotation and timing
- Butterfly: right arm, Left arm, both (breathing on on ‘both’) for timing and rhythm
The guys added in other drills as they felt appropriate. We trust our swimmers to know what they need to work on, so when we’re watching them work drills we can see what they’re working on and adjust as needed.
Starts, turns, and breakouts – we focused on good hip position on the starts (high hips, centered between feet) with a nice backwards pull on the blocks. For backstroke, we’re looking for a nice straight back and neutral head position, with feet planted high up on the timing pads. All starts included a 1/2 length of breakout. No breathing on first couple of strokes after strong underwater work.
Workout
Warm-up:
800 done as 500 choice – 300 (25 kick / swim IMO)
8 x 50 Odds kick @ 1:00 – Evens swim free :45
Main sets:
150-125-100-75-50-25 (2:00-1:40-1:20-1:00-:45-:30)
4 x 100 kick moderate (work the legs) 1:45
10 x 25 1-8 burst 15 stroke, 9-10 all hard :20
10 x 50 1st length drill (focus on need / stroke) @ 1:00
10 x 50 Burst 15 (can do stroke, good turns) @ :50
8 x 50 Burst 25 w/ hard turn (can do stroke, good turns) @ :50
20+ mins of Starts, Turns, Breakouts
Cool down:
400 easy with paddles and snorkels
Workout Total: 4300
This workout was provided by Podium Training Systems Coach Dave Burgess.
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