Ok let me attempt to simplify my request.
Would anyone have a good programme / schedule to assist me in achieving a back to back very long swim. As previously stated, I wish to complete a swim distance between 95-100 miles over a 10+ day period. Does anyone have an idea here on how to train for this? If there is anyone out in the LD community please drop me a private line or public I don't mind.
Again Thanks in advance I hope.
Trevor,
Open Water Swimming by Penny Dean and Dover Solo by Marcia Cleveland are excellent references for any marathon swim. They contain a lot more useful tips then we can give in forum posts and I found then very helpful in preparing for my marathon swims.
The biggest drawback with posting a good programme / schedule, is that while we know your goal we don’t know your starting point. How many long swims (4+ hour) have you attempted to date? How does your body hold up to mega-yardage swim training? What is your current training base, swimming yardage?
This sounds like a great challenge and when you break it down 10 miles a day for 10 days is quite doable.
And a couple of quick suggestions:
I’d suggest that you start incorporating at least one long swim day each week immediately. Preferably a 10K or longer, swum as a continuous swim with 30-45 second feeding breaks every 20-30 minutes. Early next year add a second day, preferably back to back (Sat-Sun). And continue to increase the volume, so that June or July you can swim a full week of 15K’s. By this time you should be training in the open water and should get in some 2, 4, and 6 hour open water training swims, with your support crew. As you get closer to your swim week, back off the total yards but throw in a couple of real long swims.
Rob,
Thank you, just what I was after. Currently i'm nursing a fractured knee, so it's only he gym 4 days per week for upper body, Hopefully next week will bode better results from the Ortho'. Distances / times have been left to the Iron man swim training usually max 1.5 hours most often 1 hour daily or two 45 min sessions per dy during the season. max 3 miles with no problems.
Diet as I experienced in the Tri LD races is key = difference between finishing and DNF.
Thank you i'll look up those authors you suggested. More help the merrier.
Thanks again and Happy Christmas.
rob, i am incorporating a feeding break in my long swim this saturday. i am going to use a squeeze bottle with gel and some kinda of drink. what do you use and what is your set up? mark
Mark,
Assuming this is an open water swim and not a pool swim (where you can line water bottles up on the pool edge) and assuming you don’t have boat support( who can hand you water bottles…
What I have done in the past is bungee 3 or 4 Gatorade, Poweraid or Endurox bottles to a kickboard. And either anchor this feeding station at a convenient point in your swim OR tow it behind you, wearing a swim belt/tubing. I don’t mess with gel packs during a swim (personal preference) I’d rather take calories and fluids all at once.
rob i am doing lap swim in a pool. i want to start incorporating the feeding for my 5 mile open swim training. so like saturday i am doing 3.5 miles. i thought i would put the bottles at the deep end and stop after the first two miles for a short feeding break. you know tread water and feed. i don't quite get exactly what my body needs. what is endurox? i know gels are messy. i'm kinda of afraid to drink too much as i am 53 yrs old and i'll have to piss cause of my bigger prostrate! seriously. mark
