I was just watching the Semis and Final of the 50m Free at the World Champs in Japan in 2001 and noticed that none of the competitors seemed to be breathing at all. Is this standard practice for a 50 Free at this level? Here is the link: www.youtube.com/watch
Syd
Former Member
Pool Rat can you hold your breath for 40 seconds???
I know you can. Now when you get in there all you have to do is hold it for 26 seconds and you may surprise yourself and do the 50 in 24 seconds. Next time you do 10 X 50 slow the pace a bit and do them with no breaths or one or 2 breaths.
I couldn't do a 50 (SCY) without breathing until I trained for it. It's really easy to do. Just try to full out sprint the distance without breathing a couple times a week during training. As I mentioned a while ago, this was actually about the extent of my training for the 50 at nationals this spring.
Swimming a 50 with no breath doesn't require any kind of fantastic aerobic conditioning. It's just a skill you have to practice.
