I've been wanting to start this thread for a while-- we have one about flutter kicking, SDK, and speed. If I may be so bold, I'd like to see one on how to improve your capacity for hypoxic sets.
After getting back into swimming about 4 months ago, I have noticed a decrease in my ability to handle hypoxic sets, and in general, in my ability to stay underwater for any significant length of time. I find myself trying to get to the surface as soon as possible after turning at the wall so I can get some air. I know this is slowing me down significantly.
As for breathing while actually swimming, I seem to have no problems-- I am pretty much a bilateral breather (every three strokes). It's when I'm coming into the wall or leaving the wall where I have problems, as I can't seem to hold my breath and am always breaking the cardinal rule of not breathing while in the "red zone."
We do at least one hypoxic set per day, and not surprisingly, I usually have problems (although I do try to make it).
Any tips for how to improve, or does this just come with practice and increased aerobic capacity?
Hypoxic training is not useful, and there is no such thing as hypoxic capacity.
Hypoxic training is useful.
Hypoxic capacity, as a human concept, is whatever we define it to be.
It's when I'm coming into the wall or leaving the wall where I have problems, as I can't seem to hold my breath and am always breaking the cardinal rule of not breathing while in the "red zone."
Not to oversimplify this, but lately I have been consciously thinking about taking a deep breath on my last breath before each turn. When I remember to do it, and when I am able get a good, deep breath, my turns are a lot crisper and it's substantially easier to keep my head down on the first stroke.
I think it's fairly easy to get into a pattern of shallow, rhythmic breathing while swimming, even while swimming fairly fast. If turns break that rhythm, you can find yourself out of breath in pretty short order.
This one of those topics that have believer and doubters about the value of hypoxic swimming.
A couple of thoughts. Instead of taking your last breath before the turn, somewhere outside the flags, take your last breath right as you pass under the flags. This will give you plenty of time to get the head back down before the turn, plus you will get one more breath before you disappear under the water for a bit.
Another idea that may work even better, instead of holding your breath as you turn and come off the wall, make sure you are exhaling into the water. Don't blow everything out at one time, but make it a gradual exhale. You may find that your lungs are screaming as bad for air, since you will be getting rid of more of the bad stuff in the lungs.
One thing we use to do in practice was called "Tennessee Turns" Swim to the flags, as your approach the flags, grab a quick breath, then go completely underwater to the wall, turn, push off and don't breath until you get past the flags again.
From a mental standpoint, if you develop that trick, you may find it becoming easier on you while actually swimming into and out of the turns.
Explain
You can just read the original thread that Fortress linked; I don't believe JH's thinking on the subject has developed much since then.
Of course, there are also studies that show that lifting weights doesn't help swimming either, and I don't believe he pays much attention to those... :)
For myself: the farther I can swim underwater without severe oxygen debt, the faster the swim will be. Since there is no air underwater, that means learning to swim fast without it for portions of the race. That doesn't JUST HAPPEN unless you work on it in practice. David Berkoff himself talked about how his training had to change significantly once he started emphasizing underwater kicks in his races.
I notice the age group coaches at my pool are empahsizing this even at an early age ("four dolphin kicks before surfacing!" and the like). Saying hypoxic work is useless is about as true -- and outdated -- as saying dolphin kicking is useless.
Stud started a similar thread awhile ago:
forums.usms.org/showthread.php
Thank you for posting this link.
The sets posted by Jayhawk, Rob Copeland and Steve Ruiter look great.
My thinking? There's very little thinking involved, actually. I found fairly recent and comprehensive review of hypoxic training studies, read the relevant section, and came to the same conclusion as the authors of the review: It doesn't do a damn thing.
Since there's absolutely no evidence that hypoxic training reliably increases aerobic capacity in any way, your subjective opinion that you can somehow train yourself to not go into oxygen debt is wrong. There are two ways to avoid oxygen debt: breathe more and become more aerobically efficient. Holding your breath obviously isn't the former, and there's a ton of evidence that it doesn't affect the latter. Not useful.
So, Jazz, when you're practicing no breather 50s, that's just breath holding practice so you'll be used to not breathing at race time? You don't think you're training your body to tolerate oxygen debt better? Or is there really no oxygen debt on a 50?
It's just the psychological tolerance of the carbon dioxide.
I'm in agreement with Jazz about this. I'm sure there are ways to "increase capacity," but I think most of this is in our heads. As we practice this type of training, we just become more efficient at breathing out CO2 and breathing in more O2 - and as Jazz points out, more tolerant of the pain of CO2.
