USPRT Workouts?

Done properly, USRPT is very much harder than traditional training. That is why many people go into it and after a few sessions say,"this is too hard" and they quit. If you are going to train with USRPT here is what you should do when beginning: 1. Do only one set each time. This is NOT like Traditional Training. You do not need mega yardage, you need quality yardage. 2. When you calculate your target time, add two or three seconds to the time in the beginning. That way you can concentrate on how the set flows, and get used to doing USRPT sets. When I first started, my 50 repeat target time was :32 per 50. I started however using :35 as my target time to get used to it. After two sessions I was able to do 30 repeats with no failures. So I moved it down to :34. After three sessions at :34, I was able to do 30 repeats with out a fail. I moved it down to :33 and then started to get fails after 12 or 15. It probably took me a month to get to my target time of :32 on the repeats. By that time I was used to doing the sets. 3. Start with one set two times a week only. Then go to three times a week and eventually for or five times a week. Do this gradually. 4. Many people continue with Traditional Training while flirting with USRPT. If that works for you then go for it. I however, believe that only training with USRPT is the way to go, but I do understand why most people reject that approach. Remember, I have been doing USRPT exclusively for 5 years. Up until very recently, I was doing it five times a week doing two and sometimes three sets a day and that was doable for me. Three months shy of my 70th birthday, I have come to the realization that I can no longer do this training five times a week. Right now I am training only USRPT three times a week and taking the other two days off. I have not trained on weekends for several years. We have many swim meets in SoCal so Sat/Sun twice a month will be a meet. If you want to commit to USRPT don't try to do it in one week or even one month...take your time and ease into it. You are essentially changing your training habits of many years to a workout regimen that may be much shorter in yards but much harder in it's application. OHHHH! I did these three sets last Monday (from post #25 on this thread), and I did a combo of two sets on Tuesday through Friday, and then again yesterday: "If you want to train for all of those distances and races you might start your workout with race pace 25s for your 50 target race, and follow it with 50s at 200 pace and finally 50s at 400 IM pace with each 50 being two of the strokes in the IM so that you get the transition turn practice on each one. I suggest starting from the faster pace repeats (25s) and ending with the slower pace repeats (50s at 400IM pace). I was doing that for a while a few months ago and I found I could actually get in three sets total ech day since each successive set was at a slower target race pace time." At my target pace, I was able to do (6) 25's ***, (11) 50-'s ***, and then 7 (50's) of fly-back for my 400 IM training. I survived, but I was TOAST for the next day, and I had insomnia, which happens to me after too much race-pace or after a swim meet. My sleep has been the pits since then. Your tips above for newbies like me is a HUGE help! You might want to copy/paste those into the main USRPT thread that has been going for several years now. NEWBIES TO USRPT: Take it from me, especially if you are 50+ or have any physical issues; DO NOT go full-on into USRPT training! Take Glenn's advise and ease into it, no matter how good of condition you think you are in. I am in excellent condition from swimming (104 miles GTD to date)/ push-ups/ planks/ theraband/ yoga/ etc., and have a resting heart rate that hovers around 50 bpm; however, USRPT knocked me on my *&$ after just one week! Thanks for this advice, Glenn. I appreciate it very much!

Done properly, USRPT is very much harder than traditional training. That is why many people go into it and after a few sessions say,"this is too hard" and they quit. If you are going to train with USRPT here is what you should do when beginning: 1. Do only one set each time. This is NOT like Traditional Training. You do not need mega yardage, you need quality yardage. 2. When you calculate your target time, add two or three seconds to the time in the beginning. That way you can concentrate on how the set flows, and get used to doing USRPT sets. When I first started, my 50 repeat target time was :32 per 50. I started however using :35 as my target time to get used to it. After two sessions I was able to do 30 repeats with no failures. So I moved it down to :34. After three sessions at :34, I was able to do 30 repeats with out a fail. I moved it down to :33 and then started to get fails after 12 or 15. It probably took me a month to get to my target time of :32 on the repeats. By that time I was used to doing the sets. 3. Start with one set two times a week only. Then go to three times a week and eventually for or five times a week. Do this gradually. 4. Many people continue with Traditional Training while flirting with USRPT. If that works for you then go for it. I however, believe that only training with USRPT is the way to go, but I do understand why most people reject that approach. Remember, I have been doing USRPT exclusively for 5 years. Up until very recently, I was doing it five times a week doing two and sometimes three sets a day and that was doable for me. Three months shy of my 70th birthday, I have come to the realization that I can no longer do this training five times a week. Right now I am training only USRPT three times a week and taking the other two days off. I have not trained on weekends for several years. We have many swim meets in SoCal so Sat/Sun twice a month will be a meet. If you want to commit to USRPT don't try to do it in one week or even one month...take your time and ease into it. You are essentially changing your training habits of many years to a workout regimen that may be much shorter in yards but much harder in it's application. OHHHH! I did these three sets last Monday (from post #25 on this thread), and I did a combo of two sets on Tuesday through Friday, and then again yesterday: "If you want to train for all of those distances and races you might start your workout with race pace 25s for your 50 target race, and follow it with 50s at 200 pace and finally 50s at 400 IM pace with each 50 being two of the strokes in the IM so that you get the transition turn practice on each one. I suggest starting from the faster pace repeats (25s) and ending with the slower pace repeats (50s at 400IM pace). I was doing that for a while a few months ago and I found I could actually get in three sets total ech day since each successive set was at a slower target race pace time." At my target pace, I was able to do (6) 25's ***, (11) 50-'s ***, and then 7 (50's) of fly-back for my 400 IM training. I survived, but I was TOAST for the next day, and I had insomnia, which happens to me after too much race-pace or after a swim meet. My sleep has been the pits since then. Your tips above for newbies like me is a HUGE help! You might want to copy/paste those into the main USRPT thread that has been going for several years now. NEWBIES TO USRPT: Take it from me, especially if you are 50+ or have any physical issues; DO NOT go full-on into USRPT training! Take Glenn's advise and ease into it, no matter how good of condition you think you are in. I am in excellent condition from swimming (104 miles GTD to date)/ push-ups/ planks/ theraband/ yoga/ etc., and have a resting heart rate that hovers around 50 bpm; however, USRPT knocked me on my *&$ after just one week! Thanks for this advice, Glenn. I appreciate it very much!