Every single time I practice in the pool I start off in a weird way - as if my muscles are asleep or something(I feels like I do not move what my potential allows me) and only some time throught he work-out it clicks and I start swimming faster , easier and smoother.That probably is nothing strange, 'cause obviously muscles need some warm-p first.
That brings me to the following question: at meets(any level - up to Olympics) do swimmers prefer to warm up somehow(maybe go for a short swim) and is that even possible to do, i.e. are there usually certain areas for that?
Originally posted by hooked-on-swimming
So how much time before a meet is it best to warm-up?
The answer varies from person to person and I imagine has a good deal to do with age and experience with masters swimmers. The best way to learn what works for you is to swim in a fair number of meets and experiment. That said...
I generally try to get in about an hour before the session starts and do between 1500 and 2000 yards of warmup (varying strokes, drilling, straight freestyle, etc) depending on when I start to feel loose and ready to go. After about 1200 I will do a series of 50s or 25s varying speeds and strokes in order to get a feel for swimming fast. At prelim/final USS meets, I generally do half the prelim's warmup again at night.
Before the race, I'll do anywhere from 200 to 500 depending on how long it's been since warmup or the last race. Again, it's really a "feel" thing. During this time I mentally picture the upcoming race, imagine how it feels, what the splits are going to be, etc.
Then, after the race, it's back for another 300-500 and sometimes more depending on the length of the race or just how my body is feeling. I try to warm down until I'm not out of breath and my muscles don't feel tight. As the meet goes on, especially on a multiday meet, I probably up the warm down amount to compensate for the fatigued muscles. I find it beneficial to pick up the tempo a little before I get out to really flush the lactic acid out of the muscles. While warming down, I'll also go through the race again and see what matched up with the plan and where I can improve next time. There's no better time to do that than immediately after the race when it's still fresh in your mind.
Just my two cents,
-Jason
Originally posted by hooked-on-swimming
So how much time before a meet is it best to warm-up?
The answer varies from person to person and I imagine has a good deal to do with age and experience with masters swimmers. The best way to learn what works for you is to swim in a fair number of meets and experiment. That said...
I generally try to get in about an hour before the session starts and do between 1500 and 2000 yards of warmup (varying strokes, drilling, straight freestyle, etc) depending on when I start to feel loose and ready to go. After about 1200 I will do a series of 50s or 25s varying speeds and strokes in order to get a feel for swimming fast. At prelim/final USS meets, I generally do half the prelim's warmup again at night.
Before the race, I'll do anywhere from 200 to 500 depending on how long it's been since warmup or the last race. Again, it's really a "feel" thing. During this time I mentally picture the upcoming race, imagine how it feels, what the splits are going to be, etc.
Then, after the race, it's back for another 300-500 and sometimes more depending on the length of the race or just how my body is feeling. I try to warm down until I'm not out of breath and my muscles don't feel tight. As the meet goes on, especially on a multiday meet, I probably up the warm down amount to compensate for the fatigued muscles. I find it beneficial to pick up the tempo a little before I get out to really flush the lactic acid out of the muscles. While warming down, I'll also go through the race again and see what matched up with the plan and where I can improve next time. There's no better time to do that than immediately after the race when it's still fresh in your mind.
Just my two cents,
-Jason
