... I would also watch the clock. With a goal of 5000 (1:12’s) it’s pretty easy to see if you are holding 6:00 500’s and if you are slipping a bit off the pace and feeling good, then pick it up a bit. If you are slipping off and swimming poorly, then readjust the goal. My best hour swim was when I had a pace clock next to me and I could calculate where I was for the entire swim.
I tried this in 2007 for my postal swims. It really helped when I had settled on a target pace per 500 for a swim and could see the clock easily. In my 3000 I had trouble both seeing the clock and maintaining my pace. When I swam the 6000 my mental and physical states were better and I could more easily see the clock. Accordingly, the 3000 split in my 6000 was only about 20 seconds slower than my 3000 time. Working with a 500 pace seemed to work well for me. I wouldn't be too concerned about anything shorter than that unless you're a real clock watcher *and* you can see the clock without changing your stroke (doing an open turn, lifting your head, etc).
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... I would also watch the clock. With a goal of 5000 (1:12’s) it’s pretty easy to see if you are holding 6:00 500’s and if you are slipping a bit off the pace and feeling good, then pick it up a bit. If you are slipping off and swimming poorly, then readjust the goal. My best hour swim was when I had a pace clock next to me and I could calculate where I was for the entire swim.
I tried this in 2007 for my postal swims. It really helped when I had settled on a target pace per 500 for a swim and could see the clock easily. In my 3000 I had trouble both seeing the clock and maintaining my pace. When I swam the 6000 my mental and physical states were better and I could more easily see the clock. Accordingly, the 3000 split in my 6000 was only about 20 seconds slower than my 3000 time. Working with a 500 pace seemed to work well for me. I wouldn't be too concerned about anything shorter than that unless you're a real clock watcher *and* you can see the clock without changing your stroke (doing an open turn, lifting your head, etc).
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