The Backstroke Lane

None of those. I mean repeats of 100's wherein you sprint the 2nd 50 of each 100. Then take low (5-10 seconds) to medium (10-30 seconds) rest before the next 100. Have a mental cue like "ok GO" when it's time to sprint. It'll come in handy in competition. In addition to this sort of set I think you need to work on pacing and lactate tolerance. (These are not independent things but they are not identical either.) One suggestion is to do pace 200s where you decrease the rest as you progress. For example: 4 x 200 back on 4:00, rest 12/10/8 sec at the 50s, try to keep the same time on all 4 50s, and not far from your goal race pace.

None of those. Glad I asked! Thanks!

So I tried this (for reference, PBs 100 back 1:05, 200 back 2:21). You can see what happened: 3 x on 5:00 1. 1:17, 1:12 2. 1:17, 1:14 3. 1:17, 1:17 After #3, I was cooked. 1:17 is PB+:12 & 1:12 is PB+:07, so I was pretty happy with the first interval. 1:12 would be a reasonable time for the 2nd half of a 200, though I would prefer something closer to 1:10. Intervals 2 & 3 clearly hurt.

When I stroke left I sink, and my face goes under surface. With right stroke I surface and inhale. Is this pattern OK or does it need to be fixed?

Glad I asked! Thanks! Since this is the backstroke lane, I should note that I rarely train backstroke this way. However in butterfly, I practice changing pace all the time.

And I tried this, 2 x on 5:00 1. 35, 36, 35, 35 2. 36, 36, 37, 38 That's roughly 20 sec, 15 sec, and 10 sec rest between intervals. Feels about right to me.

Based on one of your previous posts -- correct me if I'm wrong -- your goal 200 might be something like 38/40/40/40. In other words, 40 sec per 50 is your 200 pace, right? For SCM, you are exactly right. For SCY, it might be something like 33/35/35/35. I am training in an SCY pool. ... I think you need to also work on holding your desired 200 pace with less rest. You need to know what those 40s feel like and you need to be able to do them even when tired ... Today's set (a slight variation from yesterday): 2 x on 8:00 1. 35, 37, 35, 34 2. 35, 36, 35, 34 This is a good set for learning what those 35s feel like; my challenge is the "do them even when tired" part!

And I tried this, 2 x on 5:00 1. 35, 36, 35, 35 2. 36, 36, 37, 38 That's roughly 20 sec, 15 sec, and 10 sec rest between intervals. Feels about right to me. Based on one of your previous posts -- correct me if I'm wrong -- your goal 200 might be something like 38/40/40/40. In other words, 40 sec per 50 is your 200 pace, right? That's a very good set but I think you need to also work on holding your desired 200 pace with less rest. You need to know what those 40s feel like and you need to be able to do them even when tired. At least, that's my $0.02...!

None of those. I mean repeats of 100's wherein you sprint the 2nd 50 of each 100. Then take low (5-10 seconds) to medium (10-30 seconds) rest before the next 100. Have a mental cue like "ok GO" when it's time to sprint. It'll come in handy in competition. This is great stuff, That Guy! I have had the same problem splitting my 200 races of any stroke, whereas I negative split anything 400 or longer. Thanks! :applaud:

My LCM 50bk is 43.10, which places us close in seed, but my recent SCY is 36.something for the 50, I will convert that one to LCM and use that as seed (If I do the 50bk). However, I never completed a 100 back before, and Athens (if I can make it there, 80% sure) seems like a good time to try a new event, so long it does not interfere with target events. I can seed whatever for that one. So, are you going to Athens? If so, are you going to swim the 50 back and/or 100 back?? What will your seed times be??? FYI: My best times in SCY are 40.21 and 1:29.85 which converts to 46.22 and 1:42.92, according to the Swimming World Time Conversion Utility. Let's coordinate our seed times, so we can (hopefully) end up next to each other. :banana: