Timed Swim Stroke Count!

About 54-55 for SCY.

George -- Can you elaborate? Maybe I'm counting something else, but I'll take a (pretty consistent) average of 14 strokes per length in a SCY pool. So that would put me at 28. But the faster I go, the more strokes I'll end up taking. 14 is what I do at my basic aerobic (do-it-for-a-mile) pace. On an average day I'll swim that at a little under 45 seconds per 50. On my best day I can sustain that count at a 40 second pace (maybe 41) but I can't sustain that for more than 400-500 yards or so. Anything faster than that, and my stroke count starts to rise. So I want to say my count for 50 is 28. What am I missing?

Your score 28 strokes for 2 lengths and 40 seconds for the 50y equals a score of 68 good score. My score 26 strokes for 2 lengths and 36 seconds for 50m equals a score of 62. I do these 50s on two minutes, about 80 sec rest. If I go faster than 36 for the fifty meters my stroke count may go up. But not necessarily making the golfing score go up because the speed is faster. It is strokes and time added together. If I slow down I can do 10 strokes per length and maybe 8 or 9 then the time goes up. Score could still be the same maybe not.

Guvnah, My coach refers to this little game as "Golfing". He makes us do this game to death. Some days I'm okay with it, and some days I don't have the concentration to remember all the stupid numbers, because we do them as a set - usually 10 x 50's on :50. Here's how it works: Count your strokes for the entire 50, then add your time to it. Let's say you swim 14 strokes up, 14 back, and you swim it in a time of :35 seconds. Add 28 + 35, and your "score" is 63. The goal is to get as low a number as you can - what's interesting about this game, is to find out that most people achieve a lower score by increasing their DPS and going a little slower, rather than swimming faster. Does that help? George, my last score was a 50, I believe.

thisgirl13 Great explanation. I would die on 10 x on 50 seconds, may be not? I only do this when I am swmming at a lap swim, not as a workout, 10 times takes 20 minutes. All under control, swimming quality.

George, I think you would do just fine with 10x50's on :50. I am recommending your idea of when to use this game to my coach. He gets a little bit over-zealous, I'm afraid, and as a result, the golf-stroke game is more over-worked than we are!

Originally posted by knelson Tell that to Janet Evans! In general I think you're right, and that's the idea behind this drill, but like I said before the only thing that truly matters is how fast you complete the race. Different strokes for different folks and all that. If you don't swim fast when you are counting strokes there is no sense doing it. Now when I do 36 seconds for a 50m swim I am swimming almost as fast as I can remember take pity on this fat old fellow. I used to have a TSSC of 49, 24 strokes 25 sec 50m sc.

Well said, Lindsay. I think you're right on the money. Maybe this is a better way to do this set: start out with a baseline 80% effort 50 and count your strokes and remember your time. Now try to hit this same time but reduce the number of strokes taken on the subsequent 50s. This will give a truer indication of what changes actually produce more efficient swimming without sacrificing speed.

We do it quite a bit as a short warmup set, but I have to say I think it's a little flawed. The idea is to get the lowest combined score, but really the only thing that matters in swimming is the time. If someone can swim a 19 second 50 free, but it takes him 50 strokes, why is that worse than swimming a 19 second 50 free in 25 strokes?

Originally posted by geochuck The secret is to swim fast, with a slow turnover. Tell that to Janet Evans! In general I think you're right, and that's the idea behind this drill, but like I said before the only thing that truly matters is how fast you complete the race. Different strokes for different folks and all that.