Tall Pauls Favorite Workouts and/or Sets

Paul, I have been intrigued by this set, but not sure how to approach it. Question on your "tabata" sprints - the set where you do 8 minutes of some sort of 37.5 sprint from a dive continuous for 8 minutes..... 1. First, which 37.5 do you work, up to the 37.5? If so, should I do other complementary sets for the finish of a sprint? 2. How do you approach this set? It's not a true all-out sprint, right? Should I pace-sprint? How do I know how fast I should be going? What type of effort should I focus on? I would think it is at least 100 pace, like the back half of a 100. Perhaps think of it as training to be as tired as you are at that 50 mark and going fast from there? 3. I do like having to get out and dive over and over. There is such as thing as being in "dive shape", and we overlook this as a masters swimmer. As a kid, you can run, jump, dive, etc but it is much harder as an adult. If you aren't in "dive shape", you are using way too many silver bullets just getting into the water in a real race. 4. I also think this is a great "mental toughness" set. Chowmi...FIRST Merry Christmas!! As for this workout...to be clear this is not a "true" Tabata cycle but rather high-intensity interval training. "Tabata Method A popular regimen based on a 1996 study uses 20 seconds of ultra-intense exercise (at an intensity of about 170% of VO2max) followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated continuously for 4 minutes (8 cycles). In the original study, athletes using this method trained 4 times per week, plus another day of steady-state training, and obtained gains similar to a group of athletes who did steady state (70% VO2max) training 5 times per week. The steady state group had a higher VO2max at the end (from 52 to 57 ml/kg/min), but the Tabata group had started lower and gained more overall (from 48 to 55 ml/kg/min). Also, only the Tabata group had gained anaerobic capacity benefits." The way we do it is 37.5 yards or meters all out from a dive, followed by 12.5 easy recovery, hope out and repeat for 4 minutes usually but we have gone for as many as 8 minutes. And yes, clearly a physical AND mental toughness set...most of our swimmers who are in their early 20's are getting their heart rates around 180-200 so be careful!

Paul, I have been intrigued by this set, but not sure how to approach it. Question on your "tabata" sprints - the set where you do 8 minutes of some sort of 37.5 sprint from a dive continuous for 8 minutes..... 1. First, which 37.5 do you work, up to the 37.5? If so, should I do other complementary sets for the finish of a sprint? 2. How do you approach this set? It's not a true all-out sprint, right? Should I pace-sprint? How do I know how fast I should be going? What type of effort should I focus on? I would think it is at least 100 pace, like the back half of a 100. Perhaps think of it as training to be as tired as you are at that 50 mark and going fast from there? 3. I do like having to get out and dive over and over. There is such as thing as being in "dive shape", and we overlook this as a masters swimmer. As a kid, you can run, jump, dive, etc but it is much harder as an adult. If you aren't in "dive shape", you are using way too many silver bullets just getting into the water in a real race. 4. I also think this is a great "mental toughness" set. Chowmi...FIRST Merry Christmas!! As for this workout...to be clear this is not a "true" Tabata cycle but rather high-intensity interval training. "Tabata Method A popular regimen based on a 1996 study uses 20 seconds of ultra-intense exercise (at an intensity of about 170% of VO2max) followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated continuously for 4 minutes (8 cycles). In the original study, athletes using this method trained 4 times per week, plus another day of steady-state training, and obtained gains similar to a group of athletes who did steady state (70% VO2max) training 5 times per week. The steady state group had a higher VO2max at the end (from 52 to 57 ml/kg/min), but the Tabata group had started lower and gained more overall (from 48 to 55 ml/kg/min). Also, only the Tabata group had gained anaerobic capacity benefits." The way we do it is 37.5 yards or meters all out from a dive, followed by 12.5 easy recovery, hope out and repeat for 4 minutes usually but we have gone for as many as 8 minutes. And yes, clearly a physical AND mental toughness set...most of our swimmers who are in their early 20's are getting their heart rates around 180-200 so be careful!