OK,
I worked on my turns and I did better at my second SCY meet.
At my first meet I did the 50yd free in 30.3 and the 100yd free in 1:10.24.
At the last meet I did the 50 yd free in 28.7 and the 100yd free in 1:08.76 with a 31.63 split. I also did the 200 yd free and did a 2:56.98 with the following splits: 34.49, 42.87, 50.91, 48.71.
I think that I don't have any strength endurance, because of my splits. Of course it would also be nice to be faster and get my 50 free lower. Will strength endurance work help my speed at all in the 50?
What workouts do I need to bring down these times if I can only swim 3 to 4 times a week? Please be specific.
FYI, I'm a 41 yr old male and have been swimming for 3 months.
Thanks!
Parents
Former Member
Looking at your splits, I think the recommendations about keeping up the swimming is good advice, but to be more specific, I think you need more aerobic conditioning.
Frequently, new swimmers, and seasoned swimmers with the intials MR, will pace a race poorly and the effects will be evident in their splits. Your splits don't suggest poor pacing to me, though.
As a 28.7 50 freestyler, a 31.63 is a relaxed first 50. With that first 50, I would not have been surprised to see second 50 at 32+. Similarly, your first 50 in your 200 was relaxed enough where sub-36's should have been possible.
Since I didn't see you swim, I will guess that the large dropoff from your first 50, is a combination of factors involving technique and conditioning.
You mentioned yardage and intervals in your training, but you didn't mention measuring your heartrate while training. I am a firm believer in the importance of monitoring one's heartrate during training.
My guidance to you would be to start taking your HR periodically on your sets of 200's and 100's, if you find that your HR is greater than 70% of your max HR, slow down your swimming. This may seem counter intuitive, but slowing down may benefit you more than increasing your yardage or your intensity. Not only will you increase your aerobic abilities, but you will be better able to work on perfecting your technique.
Looking at your splits, I think the recommendations about keeping up the swimming is good advice, but to be more specific, I think you need more aerobic conditioning.
Frequently, new swimmers, and seasoned swimmers with the intials MR, will pace a race poorly and the effects will be evident in their splits. Your splits don't suggest poor pacing to me, though.
As a 28.7 50 freestyler, a 31.63 is a relaxed first 50. With that first 50, I would not have been surprised to see second 50 at 32+. Similarly, your first 50 in your 200 was relaxed enough where sub-36's should have been possible.
Since I didn't see you swim, I will guess that the large dropoff from your first 50, is a combination of factors involving technique and conditioning.
You mentioned yardage and intervals in your training, but you didn't mention measuring your heartrate while training. I am a firm believer in the importance of monitoring one's heartrate during training.
My guidance to you would be to start taking your HR periodically on your sets of 200's and 100's, if you find that your HR is greater than 70% of your max HR, slow down your swimming. This may seem counter intuitive, but slowing down may benefit you more than increasing your yardage or your intensity. Not only will you increase your aerobic abilities, but you will be better able to work on perfecting your technique.
