I just purchased Swim Spa. Does anyone have any experience with one. Any workouts. Workouts will have to be by time instead of distance. Should be interesting.
I just purchased Swim Spa. Does anyone have any experience with one. Any workouts. Workouts will have to be by time instead of distance. Should be interesting. posted by SwimNavy
Nice to meet you NavyFlyer. I tried one out in Ft. Lauderdale at SCYNAts 2005....an endless pool version. I thought it was pretty neat and thought about getting one but couldn't afford it at the time. Did any literature come with the spa that might suggest some workout ideas? I will be interested to see what kind of responses you get here....Certainly you can do some long aerobic swims concentrating on stroke mechanics and such....maybe some of the drills that Paul Smith talked about on his recent threads (who's titles escape me now??....they should still be on the first page of the forum though because they were fairly recent)...I wonder how you do interval training with those things?....I'm guessing you can adjust the jets to make the intensity go up and down....somehow this might be the way to transistion from aerobic based training to something more like anerobic threshold and Lactate Production training?
Newmastersswimmer
If Rowdy can keep a steady stroke against the flume...it's a safe bet than any decent swimmer will find it to be a great alternative to the pool. I always thought of them as glorified hot tubs...until hearing some very positive comments on their use.
Here's a link to the Endless Pool set up....
www.youtube.com/watch
I've swam in an Endless Pool, my former coach had on in her swim studio. They have a different feel to them and magnify your bad technique. It's a great way to see what needs to be fixed. I understand Terry uses one for his TI classes and clinics at New Paltz.
My endless pool observations:
The current is rather compact, so it takes a bit of practice to learn to swim straight into it (my tendency at first was to drift off to the side) A mirror on the bottom is a great aid for this.
Since the flow is steady, you can really keep your speed constant. I never realized just how much my speed would vary within each 25 yd length. (even if I was maintaining the same interval)
Backstroke is weird as the water will flow over your face if your head is in a good position, it will push on the back of your head if it is not.
Short axis strokes: Since the current is close to the surface, the undulating motion is slightly enhanced as you work above and below the stream.
I think you will find the swim spa has a wider flow than the endless pool, I love it and you can certainly get a great workout.
You do have several speeds to work with the larger hp one creates quite a good flow.
Work outs that I do in mine are based on stroke count per minute and heart rate. You can do do aerobic, anerobic, Vo2max, or what ever you wish.
I have to be careful what I say here.
Just wondering aloud............... How would one practice their racing starts in one of these? :frustrated:
Cheers
:drink:
I think flip turns will be a bit tough too.
I haven't gotten the Swim Spa yet so I will have to wait and see. It has four speeds so you can vary your workout based on current speed. Should be interesting when I get it. More to follow.
There was an ad on TV recently and I watched with some reservation about the product. The swimmer in the demonstration seemed to have a very nice relaxed freestyle...and made a convincing pitch for the product. (A long story short...it turned out to be Rowdy Gaines.)
If Rowdy can keep a steady stroke against the flume...it's a safe bet than any decent swimmer will find it to be a great alternative to the pool. I always thought of them as glorified hot tubs...until hearing some very positive comments on their use.
Here's a link to the Endless Pool set up....
www.youtube.com/watch
I just purchased Swim Spa. Does anyone have any experience with one. Any workouts. Workouts will have to be by time instead of distance. Should be interesting.
Just wondering aloud............... How would one practice their racing starts in one of these? :frustrated:
Cheers
:drink:
Work outs for the swim in place pools - You can easily do great workouts
Aerobic 2 x a week
Anaerobic 2 x a week
Max Vo2 2 x a week
Anaerobic threshold once a month.
Use your resting heart rate then make your calculations.
Do them by time
15 to 20 sec for a 25
25 to 35 sec for a 50
60 to 75 sec for a 100
and so on.
Do your times in a pool and check your heart rate for each level of training.
Then start going. Shut the flow of and you can practice your flip turns. Now isn't that simple.
If you have trouble with the levels email your age, restig heart rate and I will send the heart rates for these levels of training. geochuck@hotmail.com Don't forget to consult with your doctor before you train this system.
