Introduction.
I coach 3 mornings a week at a 25 meter pool with an average of 25 swimmers in 5 lanes. I coach 2 evenings a week at a 25 yard pool with an average of 12-14 swimmers in 5 lanes. Both workouts are for one hour. They are mixed groups with competitive swimmers, triathletes, and people who just want a good workout. Ages range from 20 to 87, with an occassional teen-ager dropping in. My emphasis is on techinique and pace. I swim 3 days a week with a coach at a Y pool. I use some sets that I learn from my coach, Laura Peter. I also write a workout for myself for Saturday mornings. The workouts that I coach are 2500-2800 meters for the fastest lane, scaled down for other lanes. In the yard pool, they are 2700-3000 yards for the fastest lanes. For my personal workouts, I aim for 2500 yards and try to boost it to 2700 in the fall.
Wednesday, Oct 20, Yard Pool
Warm-Up (1100)
300 Swim
200 Pull
4 x 25 Drill. Extend, glide, elbow up, catch, power at beginning.
(1) Rt arm only (2) Lft arm only (3) 3R-3L (4) 3R-3-3L
4 x 50 Drill/Swim. Same 4 drills for 1st 25.
4 x 50 Choice. Free-glide and hip roll; Back-hip roll; ***-glide; Fly-double breathe
4 x 25, choice. Count strokes.
Main (1200)
•4 x 50 on 1:30. Work on holding the pace.
•1 x 100 Kick
•4 x 50 on 1:20. Hold the same time as 1st set.
•1 x 100 Pull, easy
•2 x 100 on 2:15. Same pace as above, if possible.
•1 x 100 easy swim, pull, or drill/swim
•1 x 200. Go for the same pace.
•1 x 100 easy
Cool-Down (100-300)
Easy pull or swim.
Hi, Betsy: Thanks for posting your training sets. I read them everyday.
Do you have any drill/set for butterfly, especially distant butterfly (100-200y/m)?
Thanks for the questions.
1. "Butter/flutter" is a term I learned from Coach Emmitt Hines. On the push-off, swim fly for at least 3 strokes or as long as it feels good, then switch to free. It encourages swimmers to at least try some fly. Years ago I read that Coach Hines got his swimmers to swim a 200 fly but starting out with butter/flutter and gradually increasing the amount of fly per length.
2. Drill explanations:
a. Change 6 (sometimes called 6 kick switch). Kick 6 times on your side, change to the other side for 6 kicks. Change 3 is 3 kicks on each side.
b. Change 6 with 3. This is the 6 kicks on your side, 3 arm pulls (1 1/2 strokes) as you turn, then 6 kicks on the other side.
c. Catch-up. This is to hold your hand on the surface of the water (freestyle) until the other hand comes around and touches it. This drill encourages you to glide and to lengthen your stroke.
d. One arm - hold one arm extended, stroke with the other arm. Be sure that you roll back with stroke so you are not always on your side.
e. 3R-3L means 3 right arm only (as above), 3 left arm only.
f. 3R-3-3L means 3 right arm only, 3 strokes, 3 left arm only.
g. One arm opposite breathe. On this one, you keep one arm at your side, stroke with the other arm and breathe on the side where you are not stroking. If you have your left arm at your side, stroke with the right arm, and breathe on the left. This forces you to roll.
Any other explanations needed?
You have exposed my major weakness as a coach. I am not comfortable coaching fly.
However, I will share what I have read.
1. Butter/flutter helped Emmitt Hines' team get ready for 200 fly. They would swim 200 fly (I don't know how many) and swim fly each length until they lost the stroke, they switch to free. Over the season, they were able to build up how much fly they could do each length. This makes sense to me because you are increasing the fly, but only swimming it correctly as you do so.
2. Other flyers will swim fly on the last 25 or last 50 of set of repeats. Go free 150, finish with 50 fly.
3. Sometimes I have flyers alternate 25 free/25 fly or 50 free/50 fly.
I hope this helps a little.
Friday, Oct 22, Meter Pool
Warm-Up (1200-1300)
200-300 Swim
8 x 50 #1-2 25K on side/25 Swim, #3-4 25K on bk/25 Swim,
#5-6 on each length K ½ / S ½ Free, #7-8 Same thing Back
6 x 50 Pull. #1-2 25 back/25 free, #3-5 Free, #6 25 ***/25 free
100-200 Kick 100 *** or 200 free or fly/free
4 x 25 Swim, IM order
Main (1200)
One stroke or IM
200 good pace
4 x 50 with 10 sec rest
One stroke or IM
100
2 x 50 with 10 sec rest
One stroke or IM
4 x 25
100
One stroke or IM
8 x 25
200
Cool-Down
100-300 Easy
Thanks, Betsy. I like 1 and will include in my sets. I have tried 2 & 3, and I never can swim beyond 75.
You have exposed my major weakness as a coach. I am not comfortable coaching fly.
However, I will share what I have read.
1. Butter/flutter helped Emmitt Hines' team get ready for 200 fly. They would swim 200 fly (I don't know how many) and swim fly each length until they lost the stroke, they switch to free. Over the season, they were able to build up how much fly they could do each length. This makes sense to me because you are increasing the fly, but only swimming it correctly as you do so.
2. Other flyers will swim fly on the last 25 or last 50 of set of repeats. Go free 150, finish with 50 fly.
3. Sometimes I have flyers alternate 25 free/25 fly or 50 free/50 fly.
I hope this helps a little.
Monday, Oct 25, Meter Pool
Warm-Up (900-1100)
200-300 Swim
300 as 25K/25D/25S, choice
~Get lane together~
4 x 50 Kick
4 x 25 Kick
~Fins off~
100-200 Swim
Main (1000-1200)
(2-3) x 100 Pull, free or 25 non/25 fr, rest 15 sec
(2-3) x 100 Swim free on 1:35, 1:45, 2:00, 2:15, 2:50
8 x 25, choice, sprint, on :35, :40, :45, :45, :55
4 x 25, one stroke, sprint, on :30, :30, :35, :35, :50
Turns: 4 from ½ way. One at a time. Use deep and shallow end. Free to Back.
Turns: 4 more. Free to free.
100 swim. Free or back with flip turns.
Cool-Down (100-200)
100-200, think about streamline push-offs, choice.
Monday, Oct 25, Yard Pool
Warm-Up (1100-1500)
400-500 Swim
300-400 Pull
300 as 6 x 50 Drill/Swim
200 as 4 x 50 Kick/Swim
100 Kick
Main (1300-1500)
100 Free. Long stroke, glide, elbow up, roll hips.
200 Free. Again, glide and roll. Stop at 100 to check time; hold even pace.
300 as 6 x 50 Swim. Descend 1-3, 4-6 on :50, :55, 1:00, 1:00, 1:15
400 Swim. 100 non-free/100 free/100 non/100 free or 100 free/50 non/100 free/50 non/100 free
200 as 8 x 25. I’ll time you on odd numbered 25s; easy swim on even numbered.
Cool-Down
Easy swim
Wednesday, Oct 27
I did the same workout in the morning (meters) and evening (yards). We have a meet in less than 2 weeks and I am discouraging anyone from swimming twice a day. Practicing turns worked out well.
Warm-Up (1100)
400 (100 Swim/100 Kick/100 Drill/100 Swim)
300 12 x 25 Split Turns. Go to the middle of the pool. ½ head to deep end; ½ head to shallow.
Stay on the line. Wait until the swimmer is back to you before leaving. Choice.
Flip for back and free; underwater pull-out for ***; underwater dolphin for fly.
400 8 x 50 Drill ½ of each length/Swim ½ of each length; choice. Go on 4th person touch.
Main1 (800-1100)
100 free swim. Work in and out of wall to the flags.
100 choice. Work the turns. Good chance for IM or non-free.
300-600 as (6-12) x 50. Descend in groups of 3, on :55, 1:00, 1:10, 1:20, 1:50.
200 Pull recovery
Cool-Down (300)
300 as 4 x 75 (free/choice/free).
Monday, Nov 1, Taper
Warm-Up (900)
300 Swim
200 Drill/Swim by 25
400 (8 x 50) #1-2 drill ½ way of each 25, #3-4 kick ½ way of each 25, #5-8 build each 25
Main (600)
200 (8 x 25, Back). #1-2 Kick ½ way, sprint rest; #3-4 Pull ½ way, sprint rest; #5-8 sprint
200 (8 x 25, Free). Same as above.
50-100 as (1-2) x 50 choice
50-100 as (1-2) x 50 free
Morning group: Starts. Swim back easy.
Evening group: timed 25’s
Cool-Down (100-300)
Easy swim
