That's my pet name for anaerobic swimming..... Tonight we did a set where we swam a 400, breathing every 3rd on the first 25, every 5th on the 2nd, every 7th, then every 9th !!! on the last 25. Repeat X4 = 400 yds. My question for all the coaches and/or coach wannabees out there is : What's the benefit ? I can see some down-side to this idea, for example; as you start to yearn for that good ol' O2, you shorten up and hasten up each stroke. Not good. So what's the good side ? Cheers ! Bert
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Former Member
There have been some good points made here. Years ago I had a long discussion with an Olympic Gold medal winner, who instructed me that you never swim with all your lung capacity, UNLESS you swim some lengths underwater.
As an asthmatic, swimming a length underwater, resting (not hyperventilating), then swimming another length underwater, until I have 4 lengths done, makes a huge difference. It opens the tiny air sacs in the lungs, and it helps me mentally. At one Nationals, the first day I could not swim even one half length underwater. I was having a bad asthma day, coughing badly. I had a so-so one hundred ***. The next day, I did four lengths total underwater, had a great massage, stretched properly and won. And I did it by NOT breathing every stroke, which after 6 seconds underwater after the start and turn is hard to do.
As a coach, I have my swimmers swim lengths underwater. But never more than one length at a time. Sometime they do it after a sprint, sometimes before a sprint. I have my swimmers do a very long warm up, doing sculling and kicking drills until I am sure they are ready to swim hard. I prefer they swim wave style (body dolphin) breaststroke during their under water lengths. Even eight year old girls have no problem swimming a great looking wave style breaststroke underwater.
The pushoff underwater for all strokes have gotten faster and longer the last 15 years. A real eye opener is Natalie Coughlin, all she did was a 49.9 100 back, and a 50.1 100 fly. She went 15 meters off each turn, and gained one FULL body length on the fastest women in the world during those 15 meters! She gained that body length each and every length, so she gained eight body lengths in her incredible 1:49 200 back. She beat the 96 Olympic gold medal winner in back by 3.5 seconds in the 100 back! With swims like this, more and more swimmers WILL get faster underwater, and will do the entire 15 meters underwater.
Masters can and will copy this, and will get faster. As a coach I want to be there while they train their bodies and mind to do this!! As they say, don’t do this alone.
There have been some good points made here. Years ago I had a long discussion with an Olympic Gold medal winner, who instructed me that you never swim with all your lung capacity, UNLESS you swim some lengths underwater.
As an asthmatic, swimming a length underwater, resting (not hyperventilating), then swimming another length underwater, until I have 4 lengths done, makes a huge difference. It opens the tiny air sacs in the lungs, and it helps me mentally. At one Nationals, the first day I could not swim even one half length underwater. I was having a bad asthma day, coughing badly. I had a so-so one hundred ***. The next day, I did four lengths total underwater, had a great massage, stretched properly and won. And I did it by NOT breathing every stroke, which after 6 seconds underwater after the start and turn is hard to do.
As a coach, I have my swimmers swim lengths underwater. But never more than one length at a time. Sometime they do it after a sprint, sometimes before a sprint. I have my swimmers do a very long warm up, doing sculling and kicking drills until I am sure they are ready to swim hard. I prefer they swim wave style (body dolphin) breaststroke during their under water lengths. Even eight year old girls have no problem swimming a great looking wave style breaststroke underwater.
The pushoff underwater for all strokes have gotten faster and longer the last 15 years. A real eye opener is Natalie Coughlin, all she did was a 49.9 100 back, and a 50.1 100 fly. She went 15 meters off each turn, and gained one FULL body length on the fastest women in the world during those 15 meters! She gained that body length each and every length, so she gained eight body lengths in her incredible 1:49 200 back. She beat the 96 Olympic gold medal winner in back by 3.5 seconds in the 100 back! With swims like this, more and more swimmers WILL get faster underwater, and will do the entire 15 meters underwater.
Masters can and will copy this, and will get faster. As a coach I want to be there while they train their bodies and mind to do this!! As they say, don’t do this alone.
