Hypoxic Advice/Workouts--Not Your opinion of Hypox Efficacy

Traditonal hypoxic training seems to have been replaced by many coaches/swimmers with snorkel training....something I added in a few years back and now use on about 25% of my sets. I apologize in advance for my thick skull, but it's not obvious to me (who's never used a snorkel except when, well, snorkeling) how training with a snorkel would be in any way equivalent to hypoxic work (breathing less frequently, more SDKs off the wall, etc). I've always thought of a snorkel as a stroke training device. You don't need to breath side-to-side, so you can work on a nice symmetrical stroke. Thx, Skip Montanaro

I never really questioned its value until I read some research which said that breath-holding does not produce any desirable physiological adaptation. All it does is result in an increase of CO2 -- which simply makes you want to breathe more. Isn't that precisely the sort of thing it's supposed to help with? Several people here have posted the problem of holding your streamline on the last pull-out on a 200. One of our coaches a couple years ago said it was really helpful on the last BR pullout of a 400IM. Our current coach stresses it for that reason as well. There's really plenty of oxygen there for your muscles, but you have to train yourself to resist/fight the urge to breathe that the CO2 buildup gives you. The "piano on your back" I think others have called it. How are you going to do that in a race if you never practice it during practice? Skip Montanaro

Your goal seems to not so much be able to hold your breath for an extended period of time (i.e not breathing for a fifty) but more to be able to mange your breath more on walls. Try working 200s double pullouts with quick turns, this will give you a good simulation of 200s in your race it will allow you to work on your pullouts as well. Take enough time to recover in between each, and work with whatever feels good. We usually end up doing 400-800 yards of these in some combination of 50s,100s and 200s.

The "piano on your back" I think others have called it. How are you going to do that in a race if you never practice it during practice? You do not want the piano. The piano is bad. Do not practice swimming with a piano. Do not race with a piano. Then you will beat people who swim with pianos.

Jazz Hands............your wasting your time on this thread. Let the believers in Hypox training continue the worthless practice.

I want to do this to at least train myself to mentally handle it.... The mental part is the biggest part of hypoxic training. IMO. The mind is a powerful thing. Especially in swimming. Who was it that said, "Swimming is 90% mental and 10% physical." "Try Not, Do, or Do Not. There is no try in hypoxic swimming." - Yoda No, really, he actually said that.

Much easier to go to the Hypoxic Chamber http://www.go2altitude.com/

I want to do this to at least train myself to mentally handle it... Stud, You and I are different from most of the posters here because we did not grow up competing in swimming. Shoot, I didn't learn know how to swim "proper" freestyle until I was 26 years old. And there are those who would say that even today I don't swim "proper" freestyle. :lmao: So a lot of things that are "old hat" for many of the forumites are new to you and me. Doing the breathing every 5, 7, 9 strokes helped my confidence a lot. It taught me, for example, that I can wait a couple of extra strokes to take a breath when going into a turn. (I don't have very good lung capacity and I still have a hard time forcing myself to consistently do flip turns. I tend to wimp out and take that big breath on an open turn.) The veteran swimmers have been doing it for so long that it all just comes naturally to them. They've forgotten what it was like when they were learning. When I was first trying to learn flip turns, I asked the best swimmer on our Masters team (a guy who had swum in the '84 Olympic Trials) if he would watch me and give me some pointers. I then asked him a question that began, "When you were learning how to do flip turns..." Dave very politely answered, "I don't remember. I've been doing flip turns since I was four." So, do some hypoxic breathing sets. It's not going to hurt you (we hope). :drown: Anna Lea

Jayhawk You are right lots of the swimmers have gone thru all kinds of steps to get where they are today. I know that I have tried just about everthing that was new. I even did duck squat walks around the pool before I swam now that was an idiotic exercise. We all followed the directions of coaches of all types. I even listened to Howard Firby and followed his directions for about 10 minutes, until I told him no.

I have the very best hypoxic set of ALL TIME. Really. I dare you to improve it. Its art. I do this hypoxic set when I want to do 600 more yards, but don't want to work hard, but I want to work smart. Its exceptionally elegant, if I may say so. The clock counts your repeats and tells you how many breaths to take. 12 x 50 on :50 1: leave on the :10 and take 1 breath for the 50 2: leave on the :60 and take 6 breaths 3: :50, 5 breaths 4: :40, 4 breaths 5: :30, 3 breaths 6: :20, 2 breaths 7: :10, 1 breath 8-12: complete the pattern The first one is done rested, so it shows you its possible to make a one breath 50. Then it gets progressively harder, some recovery, then harder again. My objective with this set has very little to do with oxygen, but the restriction forces you to swim efficiently, and NOT breathe out of the turns. Its just another "drill" to add to your collection. As for my opinion, I think hypoxic sets should NEVER be assigned based on strokes per breath, but ALWAYS on breaths per length. If you are told to breathe every 5 strokes, I take 12 strokes on a length and you take 22, why should you get more air? It makes no sense.