For those of you that do IM, do you focus on doing IM only in your main sets or do you focus on one or two strokes each time? I have recently started swimming the IM and love it but want to get much faster. I know my backstroke and breaststroke are slowing me down. I am not sure if I should focus on those once a week or something or just keep swimming IMs since that is what I want to race.
Training for the IM is a complex process since you have to juggle all 4 strokes. You'll want to avoid any possibility of injuries by ensuring that you have an excellent technique in each of the strokes - I would suggest consulting a qualified stroke coach to ensure that you have a balance of technique and strength-building in your training.
Excelling in the IM requires a great deal of variety in your workouts. You should not train only using IM sets nor should you train in one or two specific strokes. A good way to maintain an appropriate variety in your training is to combine several strokes into your sets: breaststroke pull with freestyle or dolphin kick, for example, or sets of kick and drills in IM order, or even reverse-order fullstroke IMs. This will allow you to ensure a balance between technique and interval work and between the strokes themselves.
It is great to hear that you are interested in improving your IM times. Best of luck with your training!
Training for the IM is a complex process since you have to juggle all 4 strokes. You'll want to avoid any possibility of injuries by ensuring that you have an excellent technique in each of the strokes - I would suggest consulting a qualified stroke coach to ensure that you have a balance of technique and strength-building in your training.
Excelling in the IM requires a great deal of variety in your workouts. You should not train only using IM sets nor should you train in one or two specific strokes. A good way to maintain an appropriate variety in your training is to combine several strokes into your sets: breaststroke pull with freestyle or dolphin kick, for example, or sets of kick and drills in IM order, or even reverse-order fullstroke IMs. This will allow you to ensure a balance between technique and interval work and between the strokes themselves.
It is great to hear that you are interested in improving your IM times. Best of luck with your training!
