I started swimming in August, since them I learned all the strokes and pretty much realised that I am most proficient in sprint freestyle events(considering my times for all the strokes).Well, I have a few questions:should I just consentrate on 50 and 100 m. free events then without paying much attention to other strokes, well, maybe just a little bit for a change...Or should I still keep working at all the strokes, maybe versatility in all of them will contribute to my freestyle improvement.Another question is: if I concentrate on freestyle sprint, how should my work-outs look like then?Should they consist of shorter distnace training only with occasional all-out sprint work-outs(25s and so) and a lot of interval training or should I still throw in distnace in my work-outs?I want to compete and compete in a good shape!I can do a 29 sec. 50 free(SCM) and a 1:03-1:05 100 m. free(SCM) depending on how I feel...Is that good considered I was never coached, did all on my own(videos, books, forums) and only introduced myself to swimming August, 2004?I am 24 years old, pretty tall (6'1")and lean(165lb.), so can I expect to go under 55 sec.(that is my goal) for 100m within a year or not?And what can I expect long-term(4-5 years), considering that I will probably get a coached program and will still be insanely passionate about the sport as I am now(I train 6 days a week, sometimes twice a day.How hard does it get once you go under a minute for 100 SCM?I improved dramatically since August(my time was 1:50 when I just started), , but now I feel that every second is a battlle...
I would appreciate everyone's input...
Thanks!
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Former Member
Hooked,
I started swimming again last September after 15 yrs off. It took me months till I could do any stroke work, and even now doing 200s non-free kill me. But I keep doing strokes, and they are getting better. It does help vary practice, making it easier to get through longer workouts than if you did it all free.
A suggestion to measure progress--don't time yourself on a single event every week. A week is not enough time to expect continuous improvement. I've been measuring myself by my average time for a set that I do regularly (for me 5x300). My average 300 time (with same amount of rest) in this set has been dropping about 3.3% per month. You could find a similar set (10x100 with 10sec rest for example) and measure your progress for the set every 2 or 3 weeks. This will be a better indicator for the shape you're in
Hooked,
I started swimming again last September after 15 yrs off. It took me months till I could do any stroke work, and even now doing 200s non-free kill me. But I keep doing strokes, and they are getting better. It does help vary practice, making it easier to get through longer workouts than if you did it all free.
A suggestion to measure progress--don't time yourself on a single event every week. A week is not enough time to expect continuous improvement. I've been measuring myself by my average time for a set that I do regularly (for me 5x300). My average 300 time (with same amount of rest) in this set has been dropping about 3.3% per month. You could find a similar set (10x100 with 10sec rest for example) and measure your progress for the set every 2 or 3 weeks. This will be a better indicator for the shape you're in
