Cesar Cielo is fastest swimmer in the world -- 25 yards in 8.88 to the foot -- he was just trying to "maintain" on the second 25...
There are 3 ways to swim faster in any given race:
1) Improve your technique -- if you become more effecient in your technique, your times will drop across the board
2) Maintain a pace as close as possible to maximum speed -- You can hold your maximum speed for 6-8 seconds. There are no swim races of that length - so when training for any swimming race (50 up the mile), you are trying to maintain a pace as close to your maximum speed as possible.
3) Get Faster = improve your maximum speed
I would say on average, Masters swimmers (and age-groupers) spend their in the water workout season according to the following breakdown (rough guess):
1) Improving technique = 20-30%
2) Maintaining close to max = 65-79%
3) Improving Max Speed = 1-5%
Think about it -- if you swim 4-5 times per week, that equals about 20 hours a month. Did you spend more than a full hour in October on maximum speed ?
This Thread is all about Category 3 -- Improving your Max Speed --
My experience with the SWIMETRICS testing --
First of all - you need a little bit of a thick skin, you walk away just a little deflated - he said even some of the great swimmers wonder afterwards "am I doing anything right"?
A couple of key changes us oldtimers need to get rid of once and for all:
- the S-type stroke in Freestyle is no good >> set the elbow as high as possible and then pull in a straight line. Any scull to the side will slow you down.
- even in Fly - keep the arms pulling as straight as possible; I saw my speed slow down as soon as my hands came close together in the strongest part of my stroke - I was taught the "key hole" in fly and it seems to be wrong
- keep the freaking head down - once and for all - the head must stay down. Don't argue with me, talk to Dr. G, who has done this test for the US Olympic team.
- don't assume great swimmers do everything correctly. Just because Phelps swims a loping Free stroke, that does not mean it is correct. Just because Ian Thorpe has his head a little higher, that does mean it's the way to swim. Nobody has the perfect stroke and everybody is looking to improve.
Someone stick a thumbtack on this post!
Good one Erik!
Hope they listen...
But George Haines said, "Don't assume that just because you told them once today, that they will remember it tomorrow.
You have to repeat it every single day."
Ha Ha - I love my job - how simple is that?
My experience with the SWIMETRICS testing --
First of all - you need a little bit of a thick skin, you walk away just a little deflated - he said even some of the great swimmers wonder afterwards "am I doing anything right"?
A couple of key changes us oldtimers need to get rid of once and for all:
- the S-type stroke in Freestyle is no good >> set the elbow as high as possible and then pull in a straight line. Any scull to the side will slow you down.
- even in Fly - keep the arms pulling as straight as possible; I saw my speed slow down as soon as my hands came close together in the strongest part of my stroke - I was taught the "key hole" in fly and it seems to be wrong
- keep the freaking head down - once and for all - the head must stay down. Don't argue with me, talk to Dr. G, who has done this test for the US Olympic team.
- don't assume great swimmers do everything correctly. Just because Phelps swims a loping Free stroke, that does not mean it is correct. Just because Ian Thorpe has his head a little higher, that does mean it's the way to swim. Nobody has the perfect stroke and everybody is looking to improve.
Someone stick a thumbtack on this post!
Good one Erik!
Hope they listen...
But George Haines said, "Don't assume that just because you told them once today, that they will remember it tomorrow.
You have to repeat it every single day."
Ha Ha - I love my job - how simple is that?
