Hey guys, it's my first time posting here. I should start of by saying I am not a master's swimmer and am a 14 year old guy. I just started swimming for my high school jv team a couple months ago and I've swam the 500 free twice. My recent time I got at my last meet was 7:20. I know I could do much better, but I need you guys to help me. Is there a certain strategy that can help me for the 500 free? What should I do in practice and on my own to become better at this event? Are there any good books out there on stroke technique? All your help is appreciated, thanks.:D
First, believe it or not, about half of us Masters Swimmers were once 14 year old guys, the other half were once 14 year old girls! What brings us all together, regardless of age, is our love for swimming.
Now back to your question. There are so many things that go into swimming a faster 500. I’ll just touch on a couple of them here.
The first and most important thing is practice. The coach is there to give you the workout. It is the swimmer who must commit to do the work to the best of our abilities. This is particularly true for us distance swimmers who need to develop the technique and aerobic capacity to compete in the longer races.
The best way to cut time in a 500 or any other distance for that matter is to improve technique. In practice; 1) work your turns (cutting a second on each turn is 19 seconds in a 500), 2) pay attention to your body position a good streamlined, level body position reduces resistance, 3) concentrate on stroke technique during all parts of practice warm-up, main sets, drills, warm-down, especially concentrate when you are getting tired.
As for quick race strategy, the first 100 is critical. Too fast or too slow will cause problems later on. Many 500 swimmers try to swim a real solid first 200 and then try to build into the final 300. For example a 7:00 500 may end up being 1:22, 1:27, 1:26, 1:24, 1:21, by 100’s. Individual results may vary.
First, believe it or not, about half of us Masters Swimmers were once 14 year old guys, the other half were once 14 year old girls! What brings us all together, regardless of age, is our love for swimming.
Now back to your question. There are so many things that go into swimming a faster 500. I’ll just touch on a couple of them here.
The first and most important thing is practice. The coach is there to give you the workout. It is the swimmer who must commit to do the work to the best of our abilities. This is particularly true for us distance swimmers who need to develop the technique and aerobic capacity to compete in the longer races.
The best way to cut time in a 500 or any other distance for that matter is to improve technique. In practice; 1) work your turns (cutting a second on each turn is 19 seconds in a 500), 2) pay attention to your body position a good streamlined, level body position reduces resistance, 3) concentrate on stroke technique during all parts of practice warm-up, main sets, drills, warm-down, especially concentrate when you are getting tired.
As for quick race strategy, the first 100 is critical. Too fast or too slow will cause problems later on. Many 500 swimmers try to swim a real solid first 200 and then try to build into the final 300. For example a 7:00 500 may end up being 1:22, 1:27, 1:26, 1:24, 1:21, by 100’s. Individual results may vary.
