splits

How did you kick during your race? I think you should have ideally split 30.5, 32.5, 32.5, 32.5, giving you a 2:07high or a 2:08low, 1:03 + 1:05. You took it out too fast, but the arm speed might have been fine, you might have given it too much kick the first 50. Practice splitting well, and remember what you are telling yourself mentally, so you can tell yourself the same thing during the race. For example, I used tell myself to go slow, don't kick on the first 50 of my 200. Mentally, I thought I was going slow, but in reality, I was so hyped up on adrenaline that I was going out much faster than I felt. So you actually don't use your legs at all in the first 50? You only use you arms?

Rykno, last October in an LCM meet, I went 2:10:33 . Out in a 1:01:44 and back in a 1:08:89. Almost identical to you. This is what Ande had to say: yes you definitely can split your 200 better 1:01:44 1:08:89 is a 7.45 sec diff which is too wide, you want to keep your 100's within 0 to 4.0 you probably went too hard on the first 100 & it cost you on the 2nd 100 you want to go out smooth and easy, breathing often light kick so you're fast but feeling good at the 100 swim a strong 3rd 50 and bring home that last one ideally your 2nd, 3rd and 4th 50 should be very close or even descended with better splitting you should be able to go 63 65 with more conditioning and speed you'll be even faster I think the key is conditioning. The first 100 is no problem. The difficulty lies in being able to maintain that pace for the second 100. Ideally, I would like to go out in a 1:01 and come back in a 1:04. So I work on it the whole time. I do broken 200's in practice and try and get that second 100 as close to my goal time as possible. If I swim a set of 100's, on the last one, I will go for my race pace back-half-100 time. When I am exhausted at the end of a training session, I do a 100 for time and see how close I can get it to 1:04. I do race pace 200's, too and get times for every 50 so I can see where I am slacking off the pace and all the time I try to narrow the gap between those 100 splits. You have to concentrate on your stroke. It is so important not to let it fall to pieces. It will only increase the pain. On that third 50 it is very important to keep it smooth and long. No thrashing. I try to extend my reach as far as possible, really work that EVF, keep the hips up and head down. Breathing should be rhythmical. On that final 50, you can go hell for leather.

So you actually don't use your legs at all in the first 50? You only use you arms? Hey flippergirl, there is a difference between what I am telling my body and what my body is actually doing. My kick is pretty weak the first 50, but it does exist. I will give you an example. First 50, go slow, no kick. Second 50, build, no kick. Third 50, strong, start kicking. Fourth 50, all out, hammer the kick. That pattern used to result in the last 3 50s being evenly split, and the first 50 being about 2 seconds faster than the others. The first half of my race, my kick is just strong enough to provide balance and rotation, not aide in speed. At the beginning of the year, I started working on my kick seriously. My kick is now strong enough that I need to replan my 200, because my splits look like a pyramid. It is a good problem to have in my book.

How does one know if poor splitting is due to a training issue or a race strategy issue? Perhaps wide fluctuations or *dying* at the end are due to training issues. . .

Dying off on the back half of a 200 certainly has to do with training issues. But also to consider is that there has to be an economy of energy expenditure. Controlling the flow of energy reserves is a bit of trial and error. If the analogy of a balloon were used...You can't let all the air out right away. Saving some release towards the end ensures that it's not entirely empty before the race is completed. And that said, sprinters and distance swimmers often have an entirely different strategy. So it's not easy to compare how everyone's game plan is mapped out.

Controlling the flow of energy reserves is a bit of trial and error. And that said, sprinters and distance swimmers often have an entirely different strategy. So it's not easy to compare how everyone's game plan is mapped out. I found that with proper training I know where I am in a race. Trial and error is figured out in practices. . . That's an interesting thought on sprinters vs. distance swimmer strategy. If your strategy is this for the 200 - 1st 50 EZ speed (typically you'll be out first in your heat in the first 50) REALLY Work the 2nd and 3rd 50s Sprint last 50 Is that sprinter or distance strategy? To smontanaro's point regarding legs, do the top masters 200 FR swimmers (let's say #1 in the nation and world record holders) all 6 beat kick the entire 200? I thought they did. . . perhaps there's some variation on intensity of 6 beat - but it's 6 beat (I'm talking up to perhaps the 40s age groups).

When you get on the blocks you have to race the best you can. At that moment you can't do anything about the training that got you there. The only thing you can control is race execution which includes splitting. So yeah it would be great to say increase your fitness to split 101/104 instead of 101/108. But you can't do that at race time. So Ande's advice is probably spot on. If you go out in 101 and die with a 108 that means you don't have the fitness to go out that fast. 102/106 might be a better race. Some people will split wrong no matter what. If you improve fitness, will the 101/108 turn into 100/107? I suggest it pays, no matter what, to learn to split your races smart.

Is that sprinter or distance strategy?Hmmm?...In the 200, most sprinters by nature will go out and fast and suffer the consequences. Smart sprinters (having learned not to crash and burn) will go out with the pack and try to use their sprint gear on the last 50. Distance people seem to churn through the race...like machines. Steady even splits. Fast and steady. No jack rabbit with death by piano.

if you really want to improve you 200 free you should be thinking about what it will take to bring it back faster rather than concentrating on being out slower.great advise.

funny that you mentioned the 400. I only get to swim the 400 and 800 2-3 times a yr. so it's been a real slow learning curve. the reasons I have goals of under 1:00 and getting down to 2:06, is that I want to swim the 400 under 4:30 and it will take for me something like 2:12/2:18 currently at 4:41 my 800 goal time is under 9:40, currently at 9:54 down from 10:26 last yr