Speed and endurance-question about practice pattens
Former Member
I have a question about practicing for speed and endurance. Consider two practice patterns:
a. You focus on improving speed in 25m swims; i.e. you don't swim consecutive laps, but pause for seconds/minutes after each length. After some months you will have increased your speed for very short distance (25m), but you don't know your speed for longer distance.
b. You focus on endurance by swimming non-stop for as long as you can, without regard to speed. So after some months, you will be able to swim some 1000s, in moderate or low speed.
What I am interested to know is, which practice pattern will likely help achieve the other practice goal more? In other words, will (a) help improve endurance more, or will (b) help improve speed more?
Former Member
Attack you? Hmmm, you need to dial the sensitivity down a little, I think.
I got the point and answered the question as posed, I think: IMO training only 25s doesn't prep you adequately for racing long swims.
Man, I really need to learn how to communicate on these boards, because I'm beginning to realize I am terrible at it. I was being sarcastic with the "attack" comment. I do think you misunderstood the point of the question though. I think he is aware that it is an unrealistic question, but you're supposed to play along and just pick one. Realistically, even for sprints you would want to do more than 25s I would think; however, if I could only ever do one again, I would much prefer mixing it up with different 25s than just doing 1,000 yards of freestyle night after night. :yawn:
Sorry about the confusion. I was trying to be lighthearted, but I guess I don't convey that well over the internet. Maybe I need to up my use of smileys.
No harm. Sarcasm doesn't transmit well electronically.
Mostly I was responding to the comment that training 25s could accomplish both objectives. But I could argue both sides easily enough:
-- doing lots of 25s with low rest will help you develop endurance; doing few of them with lots of rest can develop speed
-- doing 1000s at moderate pace develops endurance; varying speed during the 1000s (fartlek training) can develop both speed and endurance.
Of course, if I'm on a desert island, maybe I'd rather have the ability to swim LONG distances instead... :)
Doing 1000s probably is better, since you could just vary the speeds and even strokes I guess. Maybe the fact that I think I would drown trying to complete a 1000 pushes me towards the 25s. :drown:
