Dryland Training For Swimmers

I know that I need to get stronger out of the pool. I am not an elite athlete, nor do not have the time to commit to a full dryland program. I think that it would be helpful to have a shortened version of a workout that people of all abilities could integrate into their routines. What exercises would you recommend? I'm not Grif, but I would like to chime in with a few comments on these points: If you're not an elite athlete and have time limitations it is paramount that you get some basic assessment of your movement abilities first. Many masters swimmers have this misconception that dryland training must involve long sessions in the weight room. You can eliminate a lot of superfluous activity (and save time!) by identifying your weak links of movement first. Some common dryland dysfunctions that manifest themselves in the water include.... 1) The pattern of unstable neck, lumbar spine, knee, and scapulae combined with immobile thoracic spine, hips, shoulder joint, and ankles. The cause of this dysfunctional series of joint patterning often relates to lifestyle/postural issues. You can throw all the exercises you want at the issue, but as soon as you leave the gym and get in your car or go back to your desk with crappy posture you've just erased the new "software" that you just downloaded with all of your exercising. 2) Poor landing skills. A lot of swimmers spend too much time on the wall during their turns because they don't know how to land softly and change directions. When performing jumping drills (whether plyo jumps or simply jumping rope) the focus should not only be on the explosiveness of the push, but also on the quality of the landing. This is where the supervision of a good coach is PARAMOUNT...if you're working out under Grif's supervision you'll probably get this down quickly. Show up at some nonsense boot camp class at your local big box gym and you'll just randomly burn some calories and learn poor habits (and possibly get hurt in the process). 3) Inability to segmentally disassociate. Basically this refers to the ability to move the lower body independently of the upper body in the appropriate sequence. Many stroke flaws (and technical flaws in all rotationally based sports) exist because the upper body and lower body are unable to work independently. 4) This is related to number 2 and 3, but deceleration skills are also a problem for many swimmers. That is, they can rotate from side to side, but lack power because they can't change directions quickly. Again, this is a motor learning issue that will show up both on land and in the water.

I know that I need to get stronger out of the pool. I am not an elite athlete, nor do not have the time to commit to a full dryland program. I think that it would be helpful to have a shortened version of a workout that people of all abilities could integrate into their routines. What exercises would you recommend? I'm not Grif, but I would like to chime in with a few comments on these points: If you're not an elite athlete and have time limitations it is paramount that you get some basic assessment of your movement abilities first. Many masters swimmers have this misconception that dryland training must involve long sessions in the weight room. You can eliminate a lot of superfluous activity (and save time!) by identifying your weak links of movement first. Some common dryland dysfunctions that manifest themselves in the water include.... 1) The pattern of unstable neck, lumbar spine, knee, and scapulae combined with immobile thoracic spine, hips, shoulder joint, and ankles. The cause of this dysfunctional series of joint patterning often relates to lifestyle/postural issues. You can throw all the exercises you want at the issue, but as soon as you leave the gym and get in your car or go back to your desk with crappy posture you've just erased the new "software" that you just downloaded with all of your exercising. 2) Poor landing skills. A lot of swimmers spend too much time on the wall during their turns because they don't know how to land softly and change directions. When performing jumping drills (whether plyo jumps or simply jumping rope) the focus should not only be on the explosiveness of the push, but also on the quality of the landing. This is where the supervision of a good coach is PARAMOUNT...if you're working out under Grif's supervision you'll probably get this down quickly. Show up at some nonsense boot camp class at your local big box gym and you'll just randomly burn some calories and learn poor habits (and possibly get hurt in the process). 3) Inability to segmentally disassociate. Basically this refers to the ability to move the lower body independently of the upper body in the appropriate sequence. Many stroke flaws (and technical flaws in all rotationally based sports) exist because the upper body and lower body are unable to work independently. 4) This is related to number 2 and 3, but deceleration skills are also a problem for many swimmers. That is, they can rotate from side to side, but lack power because they can't change directions quickly. Again, this is a motor learning issue that will show up both on land and in the water.