Much has been discussed on this topic but i wanted to revisit it after watching the track & field championships and remembering debates about how much pool training time swimmers put in relative to a runner competing in the equivalent event (a 400m runner to 100m swimmer).
What got my attention on this again was a recent article in Men's Fitness about Jeremy Wariner, specifically his training week during mid-season:
M= 200's: 8 x 200's two minutes followed by 40 yd sprints w/20 seconds rest
T= 350m: 2 x 350's followed by 1 x 300, one minute rest then a 100m to simulate the end of the race
W= 450m: 2 x 450's each under 1:00 with 9 minutes rest between each
Th= 90m: Recovery day each run in an "X" pattern
F= 100m: last run of the week is multiple 100m sprints
That's an insanely lower amount of training time than even i put in....Ande & Jazz come to mind.
More of this in an excellent article:
"Elite coaching special - Clyde Hart coach to Michael Johnson and Jeremy Wariner"
Here's are a couple of excerpt:
Clyde believes the principles of training are the same for many events: "I trained Michael Johnson like I trained a four minute miler. A four minute miler was doing a lot of the same things Michael Johnson was - a lot of the same things in training but more of them.
"The longest workout we have ever done - not counting warm up and warm down - would be under 20min, I think we have never worked more than 20min. That's not counting the Fall phase.”
So here's my challenge...I'm going to pick one of the next seasons (either SCM this fall or SCY in the spring) and try and adapt to this regime...anyone else game?
I just don't get the benefit from doing 5 x 100 @ 6:00 (fast sprints) that I would doing 10 x 200 @ 3:00 (in my workout mode).
Aneareobic training stimulates the production of natural HGH in your body. It slows muscle loss.....some perceive this as a good thing.
Also
This is quite the interesting post. I like the thought of doing a workout similar to world class track and field sprinters. Unfortunately, doing a workout like that is not realistic in the swimming world for a few reasons. First, aerobic work has huge health benefits and should be done by everyone.
Second and more pertinent to this discussion, sprinters in swimming are not exclusively fast twitchers. The velocity of movement for swimmers is lower than for sprint runners. Sprinters in track and field move their legs so fast that slow twitch fibers can't make a contribution. There is no reason to put an emphasis on aerobic work. In swimming, the velocity of movement with the arms is much slower. The lats are by their very nature slow twitch fibers. Aerobic work needs to be done and contributes to each event, even 50’s and 100’s.
I can remember the fastest sprinters in my section when swimming high school were also the best 500 swimmers. Heck, the section record holder in the 500 averaged each 100 faster than many could sprint a single 100. The only event this guy could not win was the 50. He was beat out by a pure sprinter, who spent much less time getting in yards.
So for swimming, if you want to put in minimal yardage, you could be a great 50 swimmer, maybe an ok 100 swimmer, and mediocre at everything else. Or you can train huge amounts of yardage and be pretty damn good at every event, even the 50. You may not win the 50, but you can come pretty close.
A few thoughts:
Probably in HS the best swimmers were the best at all distances because they were the best athletes. As they develop they will probably need to choose focus events and not be first in everything.
I agree there is a huge areobic component to 1 minutes efforts like the 100. Phelps breaths every stroke in the 100 right from the blocks.
The recovery of 50m swimmers is increadibly ballistic. You almost can't even see it and watch C. Jones 6 beat kick. It's a blurr. There is fast twitch in swimming.
You are right that distance swimmers can swim a fast 50, but will not win. A good miler like Alan Webb is also fast and has 10.8 speed in the 100.....but of course will never win.
I think there is a place for 4 all out 100's as a complete workout. These types of sets stimulate and develop the CNS which will promote reqruitment of more muscle tissue as it is developed.
I just don't get the benefit from doing 5 x 100 @ 6:00 (fast sprints) that I would doing 10 x 200 @ 3:00 (in my workout mode).
Aneareobic training stimulates the production of natural HGH in your body. It slows muscle loss.....some perceive this as a good thing.
Also
This is quite the interesting post. I like the thought of doing a workout similar to world class track and field sprinters. Unfortunately, doing a workout like that is not realistic in the swimming world for a few reasons. First, aerobic work has huge health benefits and should be done by everyone.
Second and more pertinent to this discussion, sprinters in swimming are not exclusively fast twitchers. The velocity of movement for swimmers is lower than for sprint runners. Sprinters in track and field move their legs so fast that slow twitch fibers can't make a contribution. There is no reason to put an emphasis on aerobic work. In swimming, the velocity of movement with the arms is much slower. The lats are by their very nature slow twitch fibers. Aerobic work needs to be done and contributes to each event, even 50’s and 100’s.
I can remember the fastest sprinters in my section when swimming high school were also the best 500 swimmers. Heck, the section record holder in the 500 averaged each 100 faster than many could sprint a single 100. The only event this guy could not win was the 50. He was beat out by a pure sprinter, who spent much less time getting in yards.
So for swimming, if you want to put in minimal yardage, you could be a great 50 swimmer, maybe an ok 100 swimmer, and mediocre at everything else. Or you can train huge amounts of yardage and be pretty damn good at every event, even the 50. You may not win the 50, but you can come pretty close.
A few thoughts:
Probably in HS the best swimmers were the best at all distances because they were the best athletes. As they develop they will probably need to choose focus events and not be first in everything.
I agree there is a huge areobic component to 1 minutes efforts like the 100. Phelps breaths every stroke in the 100 right from the blocks.
The recovery of 50m swimmers is increadibly ballistic. You almost can't even see it and watch C. Jones 6 beat kick. It's a blurr. There is fast twitch in swimming.
You are right that distance swimmers can swim a fast 50, but will not win. A good miler like Alan Webb is also fast and has 10.8 speed in the 100.....but of course will never win.
I think there is a place for 4 all out 100's as a complete workout. These types of sets stimulate and develop the CNS which will promote reqruitment of more muscle tissue as it is developed.
