I've been swimming for Masters for 34 yrs (age 58 on 1/27/13) and like to swim 6 days/week, 4000 to 6000 yds/day, across most of the year, taking maybe 2 weeks off per year. Obviously, I tend to get tired over time. The key issue seems to be how tired is too tired??? I've read Maglischo's books ("Swimming Fast", "Swimming Faster") and he uses a % effort formulation based on HR and/or best time in an event. If you're doing repeats at say 30-50% slower than your best race time, is there value in that from the long term development perspective??? When I rest and taper for a meet or race, I seem to recover pretty well and I'm much closer to the national 55-59 records than I was in the 25-29 AG, so it seems like I must be doing something right, but wondered what long-time Masters swimmers thoughts are. Also, FWIW, I do most of my training on my own, but just race whoever happens to be in the pool.
Ya, I'm well acquainted with the overtraining issue. As I pointed out in one of the other posts, when I increase my biking and running, I decrease my swimming. This year I did more swimming and averaged 30,000 yd/wk. My long-term (27 yrs) averages are 18,000 yd/wk swim, 75 mi/wk bike, and 18.5 mi/wk run, plus about 1.5 hr/wk of strength/stretching, for total of about 14 hrs/wk average, on a 50 wk/yr basis, i.e. 2 weeks off each year. One thing I have noticed is that my very best efforts come after many weeks of feeling exhausted, then finally tapering and then BOOM, I can really move. Seems to work most of the time.
I just started usms meets late 2011 and some sprint tri this past summer. My masters swimming has at best been erratic over the years and your average level of training has been new to me - i was going a little less than your average - about 12k to 15k in the pool, about 80-100 miles per week on the bike, about 10 mi per week of running (running is a WIP), and some weights for about an hour per week. I was probably about 2+ hours per day for 5-6 days per week. I lost a lot of weight, built muscle and conditioning, but was probably to tired to compete well without tapering for about 2 weeks, i think, cause i didn't really do that. With that "under my belt" in 2012, i'm wondering how it will go in 2013 and whether to back off a bit and allow more recovery. At 30k per week of swimming i would have no energy for cycling or running, but i think it would get me back to swimming decent times.
Ya, I'm well acquainted with the overtraining issue. As I pointed out in one of the other posts, when I increase my biking and running, I decrease my swimming. This year I did more swimming and averaged 30,000 yd/wk. My long-term (27 yrs) averages are 18,000 yd/wk swim, 75 mi/wk bike, and 18.5 mi/wk run, plus about 1.5 hr/wk of strength/stretching, for total of about 14 hrs/wk average, on a 50 wk/yr basis, i.e. 2 weeks off each year. One thing I have noticed is that my very best efforts come after many weeks of feeling exhausted, then finally tapering and then BOOM, I can really move. Seems to work most of the time.
I just started usms meets late 2011 and some sprint tri this past summer. My masters swimming has at best been erratic over the years and your average level of training has been new to me - i was going a little less than your average - about 12k to 15k in the pool, about 80-100 miles per week on the bike, about 10 mi per week of running (running is a WIP), and some weights for about an hour per week. I was probably about 2+ hours per day for 5-6 days per week. I lost a lot of weight, built muscle and conditioning, but was probably to tired to compete well without tapering for about 2 weeks, i think, cause i didn't really do that. With that "under my belt" in 2012, i'm wondering how it will go in 2013 and whether to back off a bit and allow more recovery. At 30k per week of swimming i would have no energy for cycling or running, but i think it would get me back to swimming decent times.
