Ultra Short Training At Race Pace

Question to practitioners of USRPT: What do you do if you can't make any (or just a few) swims at the target time? For example: My most recent rested and tapered 100 back was 1:05.79. Let's call that 1:06 to make the math easy. My target time for a 25 would be 16.5. My target for a 50 would be 33.0. Suppose I show up at the pool, warm up and start into a set of nx25 shooting for 16.5, only to find that I can't break 17 to save my soul. What to do? This does happen from time to time. Sometimes I can identify a reason: did drylands/weights the day before, not well rested, recovering from an illness etc., but sometimes there is no clear culprit. I'm just writing checks my body does not seem to be able to cash. What? Do I just give up and go home? That's kinda not in my character, and I'd bet I won't magically improve the next day if I do. To improve, I need to swim, (except in the illness recovery case of course). Also, this seems to require a precision in timing that is unrealistic in practice. Despite my best efforts to be systematic with my pushoffs, it would be hard to believe that I am consistent to better than 0.3s or so. Similarly, the clock is read from a different position depending on the finish end of the pool. At one end I may have to look over my shoulder whereas at the other I merely need to look up. Clearly I'm not getting the finish time consistently. Also, one pool where I train has an analogue clock, another has a digital one, further confounding my attempts to be consistent. I've taken to figuring that if I am within 1s or a little more, that's "close enough" and I keep going. It seems to me that it is better to do a fixed number of swims aiming to get as close to the target as possible, but accepting that some days will be better than others. I've actually completed 20x25@16.5 or better, (i.e. 16 with a lot of hang time) suggesting that I should change the target or tighten the interval, but then some days I just never even see the 16. This situation is worse for 50s. 50s at 100 pace are bloody freaking hard in-season. Doing 20 on 20s rest seems pretty unbelievable. If I could do that, it would be my 200 pace. Should I be targeting my in-season 100 pace instead of my season-ending target pace? That doesn't seem consistent with the USRPT philosophy that I should be training at the pace at which I desire to race. My suggestion to you would be to purchase a Tempo Trainer and a swim cap. Set the Tempo Trainer to 8.25 seconds. That will be two beeps per 25 to get under your goal time of 16.5 seconds. You can take two (16.5 sec) or three (24.75 sec) cycles of rest. I believe the three cycle rest is outside the Rushall guidelines, but what the hell, you are a masters swimmer. You can visually sync up with the clock at either end by watching the closest clock and using the mid beep cycles to alert you to your upcoming send off. This does not get you past the good day bad day issue, but it does give you more accurate clock management. To your point above about getting close, I would also suggest that you make an allowance for being close and continue to keep going as this is more precise than getting visual times off the clock :)

Rich, do you use USRPT for 50's, or just 100's and 200's?

Rich, do you use USRPT for 50's, or just 100's and 200's? I use it for 100's and 200's (25's for 100 pace and 50's for 200 pace work). I've adapted to suit my abilities and the pool I'm swimming in. For example, a majority of my USRPT training is in a 20 meter pool.

Let me just say using a tempo trainer for this is a brilliant idea. Thanks for the compliment Knelson. :) That's exactly how I have been using my tempo trainer for the past few months. It is perfect for interval sendoff. However, it does have its shortcomings. Not sure if the model Tom is talking about above is newer than mine, but mine cannot be set to anything smaller than a second. So, it can be set to 17 but not 17.25. For USRPT I use it like this: I mostly train for the 200 Free and my target time is 2:08. So, I try to do as many 50's as I can at my target pace of 34 seconds. I set it to beep at 17 second intervals. I set it for my 25 target time for two reasons. The first is because it lets me know at the turn if I am on track for my target time or not. The second reason is that it gives me my next sendoff. Rushall suggests an interval of not more than 20 seconds between 50's. I set it to beep every 17 seconds. If I come in at just under the beep (33 high), it will beep as I stand up. Now I just wait for it to beep one more time (17 seconds later), then count 'one Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi" and press it once as I duck into the water to synchronize it again. I never have to look at a clock. I love my tempo trainer for this use and it is really the only way I use it. It would be great to be able to set it in increments smaller than a second, though. For instance 16.9 for a 50 time of 33.8. The next step down for me is 16 seconds which is impossible unless I do two or three and then call it quits.

Thanks for the compliment Knelson. :) That's exactly how I have been using my tempo trainer for the past few months. It is perfect for interval sendoff. However, it does have its shortcomings. Not sure if the model Tom is talking about above is newer than mine, but mine cannot be set to anything smaller than a second. So, it can be set to 17 but not 17.25. For USRPT I use it like this: I mostly train for the 200 Free and my target time is 2:08. So, I try to do as many 50's as I can at my target pace of 34 seconds. I set it to beep at 17 second intervals. I set it for my 25 target time for two reasons. The first is because it lets me know at the turn if I am on track for my target time or not. The second reason is that it gives me my next sendoff. Rushall suggests an interval of not more than 20 seconds between 50's. I set it to beep every 17 seconds. If I come in at just under the beep (33 high), it will beep as I stand up. Now I just wait for it to beep one more time (17 seconds later), then count 'one Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi" and press it once as I duck into the water to synchronize it again. I never have to look at a clock. I love my tempo trainer for this use and it is really the only way I use it. It would be great to be able to set it in increments smaller than a second, though. For instance 16.9 for a 50 time of 33.8. The next step down for me is 16 seconds which is impossible unless I do two or three and then call it quits. Wouldn't your pace 50 time for a 2:08 200 be :32/50?

The tempo trainer sounds very attractive. How does it hold up to dives? If the beep interval programming is vversatile enough, I was thinking it could make for a start reaction trainer. Or even a quantitative tool for timed training swims (25's 50's) by going on the beep and trying to touch before the next. I have used it once this way and it was fine. Just place it to the rear of your head under the cap. I intend on doing simulated races also for the reasons you mentioned.

May 31 200 BR Gridge engaged! Er, I mean... engridged? Something!

Wouldn't your pace 50 time for a 2:08 200 be :32/50? Whoops, sorry! Yes, it should be 16 per 25 (i.e. 32 per 50) for a target of 2:08. Had a bit of a rain fart when I wrote that. But the principal of using the tempo trainer remains the same irrespective of your target time. With 16 second intervals you just count one Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi, four Mississippi and then re-sync. 2:08 i is indeed my target time, and my most recent Master's best but I haven't raced in over two years and I am trying to work my way back to that time (with a lot of difficulty). For the time being I am aiming for a sub 2:16 and am stuck on 17's per 25. I can do them fairly easily now but can barely manage 3 at 32. That is why it would be really nice if the temp trainer could descend in increments of less than a second. How do you adapt to fit into a 20 meter pool?

The tempo trainer sounds very attractive. How does it hold up to dives? If the beep interval programming is vversatile enough, I was thinking it could make for a start reaction trainer. Or even a quantitative tool for timed training swims (25's 50's) by going on the beep and trying to touch before the next.

Hi Syd, Mine has 3 separate operations/functions available and I believe one of function works as you describe above. One function (No. 1) allows you to set the time to the hundredth of a second. There is a round version of the TT and a version with a protruding area in the upper left portion of the trainer. I have the latter version which allows you to replace the battery. You can cycle through the functions by holding the top button down on the TT. Hi Tom, Then you have the same model as me: the Tempo Trainer Pro. I mainly use mine on Mode 2 which allows you to set it in 1 second increments from 00:01(1 second) to 9:59 (9 minutes, 59 seconds). This gives a triple beep every time it reaches the interval you set. I thought Mode 1 was only for stroke rate and never thought of adapting it the way you describe. But I see from glancing at the manual that it can be set in hundredths of a second from 00:20 to 99:99 which means I can, indeed, set it to beep at say 16:80 seconds. What an excellent idea. Thanks for that. :) The only drawback that I can see is that on Mode 1 it only gives a single beep so it could be easier to miss but i will just have to listen harder. i am off to the pool to try it immediately.