Working on 500 Free Time

I've experimented with a number of different training regimens over the 8 years I've been coaching Masters--this past year, for my mid distance group I used a modified regimen from Bruce Gemmell. At the national USMS coaches conference last year, he talked about how he trained Ledecky in the leadup to 2016, showed some sets, and talked about the general training regimen. The basic philosophy is that there are training zones (red, blue, purple, green, etc) that correspond to various percentages off of a threshold pace. Here's how I implemented it (note, all my mid distance swimmers are between 5:15 and 6:00 for their 500): -I had the swimmers do 3 x 500 from a push on 9:00 (you'd adjust to an interval that gives you 3:00-3:30 rest) -I averaged out the 100 pace for all three 500s, that gives the threshold pace -From the threshold pace, I calculated out red, blue, purple, and green target zones (2% faster than TP, 4% faster, 8% faster, and 12% faster than TP, respectively) at distances of 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, and 400 (note, each 50 increase in distance from 100 on up resulted in a 4% increase in pace compared to regular 50 TP) -In general, red sets would give :10-:20 rest at target pace, blue would give :15-:30 rest at target pace, purple would give :30-1:30 rest, and green would give 1:00-2:00 rest -I printed the resulting spreadsheets out and had them on the pooldeck for my swimmers to see during sets -Here's a sample worksheet: docs.google.com/.../edit (expand the hidden columns and rows to see the formulas, if you want to play around with it) For training, the majority of the sets I gave my mid distance crew stayed in the red and blue zones at probably a 60/40 mix, with short stints in the purple zone and very limited, irregular stints in the green zone. Taking Bob "Fly and Die" from the sample worksheet, here's a sample set I might have given him: -3 x 100 red zone on 1:40, target pace of 1:24 -2 x 200 red zone on 3:10, TP of 2:48 -1 x 300 blue zone on 4:35, TP of 4:14 -1 x 300 red zone on 4:30, TP of 4:20 -2 x 200 red zone on 3:05, TP of 2:52 -3 x 100 blue zone on 1:45, TP of 1:23 -1 x 150 purple zone, TP of 2:00 The key takeaway from this kind of training is repeatability. The idea isn't to fly and die, but to be able to hit your target pace every single time, whatever training zone you're in. It necessitated quite a substantial mindset shift in a number of my swimmers, since quite a few trained solely based on feel and never looked at the clock, or tended to start a set really strong and then epically crash and burn by the end. For example, the swimmer I based this sample worksheet on started off the season ranging anywhere from a 1:21 to a 1:36 on red zone 100s in the same set, even though his target red zone 100 pace was 1:24, but by the end of the season was able to hit within a :1 or :2 range of that 1:24 target pace very consistently throughout these kinds of sets. I think you can definitely train for the 500 while swimming nothing longer than a 300 in practice (not counting doing a timed 500 from time to time)--during Bruce Gemmell's presentation on training Ledecky, he mentioned that she never swam distances longer than a 400 in practice, and I hear she's a pretty good distance swimmer. Most of my mid distance swimmers swam very well this past season after using this training methodology for the majority of the season. Beyond the USRPT suggestions from earlier in the thread, this is another training methodology to consider.

I've experimented with a number of different training regimens over the 8 years I've been coaching Masters--this past year, for my mid distance group I used a modified regimen from Bruce Gemmell. At the national USMS coaches conference last year, he talked about how he trained Ledecky in the leadup to 2016, showed some sets, and talked about the general training regimen. The basic philosophy is that there are training zones (red, blue, purple, green, etc) that correspond to various percentages off of a threshold pace. Here's how I implemented it (note, all my mid distance swimmers are between 5:15 and 6:00 for their 500): -I had the swimmers do 3 x 500 from a push on 9:00 (you'd adjust to an interval that gives you 3:00-3:30 rest) -I averaged out the 100 pace for all three 500s, that gives the threshold pace -From the threshold pace, I calculated out red, blue, purple, and green target zones (2% faster than TP, 4% faster, 8% faster, and 12% faster than TP, respectively) at distances of 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, and 400 (note, each 50 increase in distance from 100 on up resulted in a 4% increase in pace compared to regular 50 TP) -In general, red sets would give :10-:20 rest at target pace, blue would give :15-:30 rest at target pace, purple would give :30-1:30 rest, and green would give 1:00-2:00 rest -I printed the resulting spreadsheets out and had them on the pooldeck for my swimmers to see during sets -Here's a sample worksheet: docs.google.com/.../edit (expand the hidden columns and rows to see the formulas, if you want to play around with it) For training, the majority of the sets I gave my mid distance crew stayed in the red and blue zones at probably a 60/40 mix, with short stints in the purple zone and very limited, irregular stints in the green zone. Taking Bob "Fly and Die" from the sample worksheet, here's a sample set I might have given him: -3 x 100 red zone on 1:40, target pace of 1:24 -2 x 200 red zone on 3:10, TP of 2:48 -1 x 300 blue zone on 4:35, TP of 4:14 -1 x 300 red zone on 4:30, TP of 4:20 -2 x 200 red zone on 3:05, TP of 2:52 -3 x 100 blue zone on 1:45, TP of 1:23 -1 x 150 purple zone, TP of 2:00 The key takeaway from this kind of training is repeatability. The idea isn't to fly and die, but to be able to hit your target pace every single time, whatever training zone you're in. It necessitated quite a substantial mindset shift in a number of my swimmers, since quite a few trained solely based on feel and never looked at the clock, or tended to start a set really strong and then epically crash and burn by the end. For example, the swimmer I based this sample worksheet on started off the season ranging anywhere from a 1:21 to a 1:36 on red zone 100s in the same set, even though his target red zone 100 pace was 1:24, but by the end of the season was able to hit within a :1 or :2 range of that 1:24 target pace very consistently throughout these kinds of sets. I think you can definitely train for the 500 while swimming nothing longer than a 300 in practice (not counting doing a timed 500 from time to time)--during Bruce Gemmell's presentation on training Ledecky, he mentioned that she never swam distances longer than a 400 in practice, and I hear she's a pretty good distance swimmer. Most of my mid distance swimmers swam very well this past season after using this training methodology for the majority of the season. Beyond the USRPT suggestions from earlier in the thread, this is another training methodology to consider.