10 x 125 warm up on 1:45

5 x 200 kick on 3:15

8 x 75 drill swim drill

7 x 100 } on 1:24, - 2 on 2nd & 3rd
2 x 75   }

5450 scy

Marathon Swim shirt on PBS

Starting Taper, Sorta

No equipment, a little less yardage, and more quality without a ton of rest yet.  

6 x 150 warm up on 1:55
8 x 50 free 25 fast 25 easy on :55  (hold :14's)
8 x 75 free 50 fast 25 easy on 1:20     :29's
8 x 100 free 75 fast 25 easy on 1:50   :49's
4 x 300 free on 4:15  (3:52, :50, :44, 3:42)
200 swim down
Total 4100 scy

The meet is in 4 days, and I am only planning on a short taper and rest in hopes that I'll feel fresh and aggressive on race day.  Entry/Seed time:  200 free, 2:08; 100 fly 1:02; 500 free 5:55

I have entered a swim meet in about 10 days.  It's not a huge event, but I'd like to swim fast and I'll need to start a "mini-taper" about 4-5 days prior to the meet.  So, this is just a typical day during the middle of the short course season:

4 x 200 warmup on 2:55
11 x 100 kick on 1:35  (usually kick is w/ fins)
20 x 25 fly on :28
5 x 400 pull on 5:45  (desc: 4:52, 4:45, 4:41, 4:37, 4;38)
24 x 25 odd easy free, even fast fly on :30
100 swim down
Total 5000 scy

Lots of Yards and a Little Rest

Here's a Tuesday morning workout with some rest, and a lot of yards:

6 x 100 warm up on 1:25

6 x 150 kick on 2:30

16 x 25 on :28

(3 x 200 on 4:15)
(3 x 200 on 2:50) x 2
(3 x 100 on 1:25)

100 swim down

5600 TOTAL

Mark Smitherman's English Channel Pictures

Toughen Up, Buttercup

Chris Burke celebrates his Triple Crown!

Basically, my lane mate told me to stop loafing after I finished the first 200 of the main set:

10 x 125 warm up on 1:55

1000 kick

4 x 200 fast on 2:55}
10 x 25 on :30        }
4 x 100 on 1:20      }
6 x 25 on :30          }   x 2

5450 Total SCY

Sunday Morning Challenge Set

Today's workout started out normally, then turned into a challenging test set that required speed.  The 100s were on a fast interval, and most of our group wore paddles.

8 x 150 warm up on 2:20

10 x 125 kick on 2:30

20 x 25 on :30

3 x 100 on 1:20        )
2 x 50 on 1:20 easy )   x 5

150 swim down 

TOTAL 4900 LCM

Long Course - Perpetual Interval Work

My base pace for a challenging set in a 50 meter LCM pool is 1:30 per 100.  I am unsure how many more years I'll be able to hold that pace, as required in this main set:

4 x 250 warm up on 4:00
8 x 100 kick on 1:50
16 x 50 choice on :55
8 x 300 swim on 4:30
100 swim down
Total 5100 LCM

Typical Thursday workout

8 x 125 warm up on 1:45   (1 min. between each set)
10 x 50 25 fly, 25 free on :50
5 x 200 free on 2:50
6 x 75 easy on 1:15
5 x 200 pull on 2:50
6 x 75 easy on 1:15
5 x 200 kick on 3:20
200 swim down
5300 scy

With USMS Nationals and the 18th Annual 24 Mile Tampa Bay Marathon Swim scheduled for the end of April, it's time to begin to start to increase quality and to start to decrease yardage.  Everyone's method is different, but the main idea is to produce results by swimming fast as possible.   

This morning's workout shows what a workout looks like at the beginning of the process:

10 x 125 warmup on 1:50
10 x 100 kick on 1:50
8 x 50 drill/swim on :55
{6 x 50 catchup on :45           }
{10 x 100 race pace on 1:20}    x 2
{150 easy                                }
 Total 5500 scy

Fun Friday

5 x 250 on 3:30 warmup
6 x 200 on 3:30 kick
10 x 50 on :55 fly
{4 x 125 on 1:40 swim or pull}
{4 x 200 on 2:30 swim or pull}  X 2  
150 swim down
5700 scy TOTAL