History The term originates from Johnny Weissmuller playing Tarzan in the movies of the 1920’s. He was one of the World’s best swimmers who swam with his head out of the water. Johnny was considered the “Cadillac of swimmers” during his era. Sam Freas, who coached at LSU had a lot of success using Tarzan and dryland in the 1980’s. Who does this benefit ? This is for everyone who wants to develop speed and power in their swimming at any age. This is a great drill to spike heart rate in short spurts if you don’t have lots of time to work out. Why do you need Tarzan? This drill develops speed by forcing the swimmer to maintain a controlled small and fast kick. The kick must be behind the hips in order not to increase drag and fast! Keep the hips square, head still and out of the water while focusing on equal rotation of the shoulders. The arm stroke needs to be shorter to work on speed. This is a drill and used for speed and power so don’t worry about efficient long strokes. Correct form is priority! When do you add Tarzan to your workout ? Always fit Tarzan into your workouts, even if you do a few 25’s or 12.5’s at the end of a long distance oriented practice. You want to avoid retraining your fast twitch muscles to slow by swimming at the same pace which is usually slower than any race pace at meets. The more sprint oriented you are the more you need to work this in. If you need any help deciding how to use Tarzan or other sprint sets please email Brad@fasterswimming.com .
Training for one event
Mechanics vs. Yardage
Yardage, yardage, yardage is the old school of thought in this sport and is still used by some successful teams around the country. The true test would be to study the longevity of the swimmers who over train as a training philosophy and see if they continue to swim in college and improve as well as reports on injuries incurred. Overtraining results in bad mechanics, which leads to injuries and results in less recovery swimming, which breaks down the athlete and trains all muscle groups to work as slow-twitch muscles. Each person has a different level of fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscles which makes certain swimmers better at sprints and
5 sample swim workouts
Workout #1
warm up: 500 mix
8 x 50 kick descend by 2 :10 rest
Set #1 warm down as needed after each sprint
6 x :48 second sprints ( :48 is the goal time for the 100 fly)
3 of them free kick and 3 of them fly kick
Set #2 warm down as needed after each sprint
4 x :48 second sprints
2 of them fly sprint swim and 2 of them sprint paddle swim free
Workout #2
warm up: 600 mix
4 x 100 50 kick / 50 swim build each 50 to 80% :15 rest
6 x 50 swim 3 free / 3 fly build each 50 to 90% :20 rest
100 easy
Set #1 Tempo sprints ( decide stroke count to time and maintain speed once per each
25, starting 2 strokes after the break out)
2 x 25 swim (1 fly, 1 free) to develop tempo speed unless already known
rest as needed
4 x 75 swim (2 fly, 2 free) tempo each 25 maintaining speed
warm down as needed
timed turns, break outs and finishes
Workout #3
warm up: 400 mix
4 x 75 kick / swim / kick by 25 @ 70% :15 rest
6 x 50 kick @ 85% 3 fly, 3 free :15 rest
100 easy
2 x 100 sprint kick 1 free / 1 fly
50 easy after each kick
Set #1 swim set fly and free
8 x 25 on :40 build each 25 to sprint
2 x 100 on 2:15 broken @ 50 for (:10) negative split
variable speed by 50 90% – 100%
50 easy
2 x 50 on :50 sprint
12 x 25 on :35 1-4 tarzan (2 +/- 20 strokes and 2 increase arm speed)
5-8 recovery
Workout #4
warm up: 600 mix
repeat twice fly kick set up to :20 rest
100 middle 50 sprint kick
50 variable speed by 25 70% – 100%
2 x 25 sprint
warm down as needed
Set #1 paddle swim freestyle :10 – :20 rest as needed
8 x 50 @ 85%
2 x 100 @ 90%
1 x 200 variable speed by 25 70% – 100%
100 easy
one block sprint broken 100 @ 50 and 75 for :10 each
warm down as needed
Workout #5
warm up: 400 mix into
all choice rest within reason but increase and elevate heart rate
2 x 50 kick / swim by 25
2 x 100 kick / swim by 50
2 x 150 kick / swim by 75
50 easy then timed 200 swim
50 easy then timed 2oo kick
100 easy
200 alternate by 25 kick fly @ 80% / swim fly @ 100%
2 x 150 as above 1 fly / 1 free
2 x 100 as above 1 fly / 1 free
2 x 50 as above 1 fly / 1 free
warm down as needed
Weight Lifting / Training Guidlines
WEIGHT LIFTING / TRAINING GUIDELINES
FOR SWIMMERS
1. When the core of your training is aerobic you don’t need to lift aerobically. You are lifting for speed and strength.
2. Flexibility is key especially after lifting. Stretching after any
lifting to increase blood flow which aids in recovery. You must remain
flexible in swimming and maintain your full range of motion.
3. Always lift your larger muscle groups first when organizing your
work-out routine. Basic Guideline: Day 1 Back with bi-ceps and one leg
exercise and 15 minutes of ab work. Day 2 Chest with tri-ceps, finish
legs. Take one or two days off or do Legs and Abs on a third day and not
with day 1 or 2.
4. You don’t have to be sore to increase your power and that
definitely hinders speed. Example of how to work thru set( chest
exercise):
Let’s say your begin doing flat bench warm-up with 135lbs. Begin
with 2-3 sets warm-up with this weight doing +/- 8 reps, now lets begin.
As you increase your weight you must maintain the speed of each lift,
for example if you increase your weight to 155lbs and did 5 reps total
and 4 of them maintained speed and you struggled with the 5th rep you
should have stopped at 4 reps. Now increase the weight and try for 2-3
reps maintaining your speed. Remember that we are training you for power
and speed, working your fast twitch muscles. If you are more of a
distance swimmer this will only help your training.
5. Lifting is cross training and is essential for full body
strength, power and speed. It is old school to lift aerobically if you
train 2-6 hours a day aerobically in the pool. You eventually reach an
aerobic threshold and then the rest of your training is useless. An
example of aerobic lifting would be 3-5 sets with 10-15 reps or circuit
training where you spend 30 seconds or more at stations, sound familiar ?
That type of training has a purpose but not when you are getting your
aerobic training from swimming, maybe pre-season for starts.
6. Cross-training sports is good for some athletes. The only time to
really worry about cross training will be when you are resting for a
meet or in the taper phase or your season for the season end
championships. Example, don’t start running during a taper especially if
you are in conditioning phase of another sport or throwing if you are
in softball or baseball. Things to consider as they will impact your
swimming performance greatly. Start your other sports after
championships!!!!!
7. Distance swimmers gain from lifting for speed and power. You are
training for the mile and your coach is preparing you in the pool.
Lifting as prescribed is a great form of cross training that will not
only help your power and speed but help in recovery from all your slow
twitch muscle work.
8. There is a local team that over-trains swimmers and forces bad
weight lifting mechanics upon its swimmers. I was asking them about
their weight lifting program and he told me that they push multiple reps
to ultimate failure. Does any coach even old school do that ? NO ! They
give hard sets but you are always able to finish to the wall and
complete the set. Do you ever pass out or sink to the bottom ? Then why
would you train that way in the weight room. The problem is that most
coaches don’t understand how weight lifting, body strength, speed and
power work to help swimmers.
9. Weight lifting is one dryland component of training as is
swimming. Pilates, Yoga and any exercise regime that increases full body
strength needs to be included in your dryland routine.
10. Each person has a certain muscle make-up that helps
pre-determine success for particular events and if a coach doesn’t try
to recognize individual differences then true success or full potential
will never be known. In short there are fast twitch and slow twitch
muscles in everyone and each person has a different percentage of each.
The hard part on coaching is trying to recognize the tendencies. Long
distance training or over yardage will reinforce the slow twitch muscles
and slow down the fast twitch fibers of that swimmer and the swimmer
that is predisposed slow twitch will reach his or her full potential.
Weight training correctly will help maintain the fast twitch fibers
thru-out this type of program. Remember there is no need to lift
aerobically as you are getting all you need and more in practice. There
is an aerobic threshold for each swimmer and program that each coach
needs to recognize for each training group. What is that yardage number
is yet to be determined and hasn’t been studied enough yet. Once this
yardage figure is reached the remainder of practice aerobically is
useless. I would place the figure to be around 7,500 +/- yards per
work-out. Once a swimmer is in aerobic shape and this can be determined
by max heart rate sets based on time after set is complete for full
recovery. The faster the recovery to resting heart rate the better shape
the swimmer is in aerobically. The heart rate set must be completed
using a set that is a slow build in speed that utilizes slow twitch
fibers as they recover faster due to their size and energy demands on
the body. Now if a swimmer is predisposed to fast twitch you may begin
his or her training. I have developed a 9 week weight lifting program
that would start during the finish phase of getting swimmers in shape
aerobically and continue thru the print phase of training or as some
prefer to say the beginning of taper and finish with a 4 week speed work
taper that all finishes with the championship meet. You must have some
sort of speed work in every practice even if it for 10 minutes at the
end of each practice or trailing warm-up. You can’t let the fast twitch
of any swimmer to be detrained at any phase of your season.
11. Coaches must remember the key ingredient to this whole program
is based on training swimmers for the exact event. Most coaches still
believe that training swimmers for the mile will prepare you for the
500. I believe that training swimmers for the mile will prepare them for
the mile and hurt the speed needed for the 500. I said speed for the
500 and speed and power are part of each event. Training for the 50, 100
and 200’s take more speed and power but it one of the important
components of training after a swimmer is in shape aerobically. Please
remember that while you are in the aerobic phase of training that speed
work must always be worked in the work-out and the basis for your
lifting program.
12. I have had a handful of swimmers that came from programs that
over-trained and were in excellent aerobic shape but had no speed and
power and never trained for specific events. It took about 6-8 months to
get these swimmers to train with quality for each event and develop
speed since their muscle memory needed to be changed while trying to
figure out their muscle fiber make-up.
13. Kicking drives speed and needs to be a larger part of practice
and slow controlled kicking works while using correct body position
without using kickboards.
Daily practice advice to incorporate into your workouts
PRACTICE TECHNIQUES
1. Racing – The drive to win close races to recover from
2. Race Pace – This isn’t sprinting to exhaustion but creating the speed that will be needed to achieve goal times for each event. Let’s take the 100 free for our example: John’s goal is to swim a 48.00 in the 100. In order to achieve this swim we must create and instill muscle memory in john to help him achieve this goal. John will need to maintain 12.00 while swimming 25’s and 24.00 speed while doing 50’s. You can eventually work up to 75’s and broken 100’s (breaking them at different distances) and finally a 100 from the block before he actually swims his big race. This will give John the confidence he needs for his big race. Start the season with enough rest at each desired distance to achieve race pace speed and as the season continues change the rest interval and achieve the same result. If John is tired on a given day that you want him to do race pace then you must give him enough rest to achieve race pace. This doesn’t have to be the main set but just the last 10 minutes of a desired workout. Please remember to do race pace during the aerobic phase of the season and during holiday training. Race pace develops muscle memory and helps create speed and power. Remember that your dryland program is important and must coincide with this type of training. You will do more race pace as the taper progresses. Recovery and over-speed sets are as important and must be incorporated in workouts with race pace. Training with speed and power in the water and during dryland will enhance everything you are trying to achieve in your program.
3. Over-speed – Creating and enhancing muscle memory with the possible speed of a time not yet achieved in a race. Creating speed in short spurts helps train the fast twitch muscle make-up of every swimmer. Cords is wide spread example usually incorporated during the taper or resting phase of a season and should be used thru out. Over-speed can be achieved off starts and walls and during very short distances or with correct Tarzan swimming.
4. Tarzan for speed purposes – Swimmers that do water polo use Tarzan to see the ball. They are strong, have arm speed, upper body strength and usually are great at kicking. Wow, everything you need for sprinting!!!!! Sprinting doesn’t always mean short distances. 200’s are now in the sprint category. If you have ever seen Diana Munz swim she has great kicking skills that were evident in her swims off each wall and at the end of distance events. She shows variable speed and power in the distance events with her upper body and legs…………..
5. Recovery and dryland – These two categories make most coaches nervous. I understand the thinking of overtraining, as I have to constantly trust what I believe and not slip into the way I was trained to over train. Proper recovery must be part of each workout phase and the dryland program must match recovery and must constantly change body part emphasis to ensure recovery. Hard work should alternate legs, core and upper body. That doesn’t mean if you are recovering the legs you can’t work the arms, etc…. You can even alternate upper and lower body between dryland and swimming as well as in each set! You can alternate within each set, from set to set from work –out to workout, week to week. Add a true recovery workout once during the week and see how your swimmers respond the next day. Maybe recover for an hour and surprise them by sending them home early, you have now added MENTAL RECOVERY.
6. Each set should include distances as well as the repetitions, mechanics emphasis, and what to do on each part of the swim. For example: 6 X 400’s on 5:00 free with 4 fly kicks off each wall breathing to one side of the pool (to insure breathing n both sides and even shoulder rotation) and make-sure the swimmers know why. Odd swims are variable speed 75% – 95% by 50, with numbers 2 and 4 pace holding 1:02 and number 6 being timed with sprint kicking each wall and last 200. Write it down for them to read and repeat it to them verbally as you know it’ll take many times to get it thru their heads.
7. Make sure your swimmers can read the clock and understand negative, even, ascending, and pace terminology for splits in races and practice. Swimmers should constantly be using the clock even during warm-up and warm-downs so times and speed can be inherent. They must understand when you tell them they need to go out in a certain speed for a race strategy or tell them next time to go out faster or slower. Most swimmers shake their head OK but actually have no idea how to actually physically do it. They understand the concept mentally so you must incorporate this in your training sets. Simple example during warm-up 4 X 200’s with descending send-off tell swimmers to just make the send off as it descends with a goal time on the last 200 that is easy to achieve with some effort in order to reinforce feel of that speed in the water. 4 X 200’s 2:40, 2:30, 2:20 and the last one go a 2:15.
8. Just FYI and my opinion about certain types of equipment: Paddles – I like paddles but it does take away the feel of the water temporarily from the swimmers. Please incorporate a longer warm-down after a paddle set to give the swimmer time to regain feel. Pull-boys – They are made with different styles that fit each person differently and usually result in bad body position during a set. Please watch for this, as pull-boys don’t promote streamline body position. Kickboards – again different styles and sizes. Please don’t do all your kick sets with boards as this takes the body out of proper streamline position. Kickboards are good for isolating the legs. Cords for dryland and over-speed – Good for cross training as talked about previously. Please check the cords as chemicals do eventually cause the cords to snap and that’ll hurt!
9. Coaches flexibility: Stay flexible and evaluate if the swimmers are getting what you wanted out of each set. Don’t force the issue if motivation isn’t the issue. Change the set to achieve your goal, scratch the set if needed, adjust it or use it later in the season. If you change the set explain why and try to get them to understand the reason. If you can’t explain it you’ll never be able to teach it. If too much info is written for the set slowly increase the stimulus over time. Flexibility is hard as a coach feels the time constraint to get it all in. Fight that urge and back up, as that’ll help the swimmers more in the short and long term.
10. IM (Individual
11. Old school breathing – Have you ever been told to only breath 3 times each lap in the 200, hopefully not. Breathing is your friend in events longer than a 50 and helps the body alleviate the pain you feel in your body by exhaling and eliminating the lactate acid your muscles are producing as a by-product of the work you are demanding of them. Breathing too much or poorly (mechanically incorrect) in the 50 can slow you down. Breathing is important in the timing or the breast and fly and essential to the backstroke. Breathing is covered in mechanics of each stroke. You can’t expect a swimmer to change or do anything different is a meet that you don’t train at practice. Please keep that in mind ……… Breathing should never compromise streamline position especially before and after each wall or flags to flags.
12. Heart rate is a great tool to see if your swimmer is sick, stressed, over worked, needs more rest or is out of shape. You can measure this many ways by creating a set that helps the swimmer with maxing heart rate and measuring how long it takes to recover. Remember that I am not a doctor nor should you diagnose a swimmer from this, it is only a tool and can be used to help you at each phase of training. This tells you about aerobic conditioning, fatigue during the holiday training and the amount of resting needed to create race pace or sprinting and definitely during taper and resting before meets. Consult a doctor or read up about heart rate, as there are plenty of studies and info on the subject. This will help you with flexibility and changing your workouts when needed.
Sample workout during taper phase weeks before Champs !
Day #95
Warm up: start into 300 choice swim @ 70%
6 x 50 choice kick @ 75% :10 rest
spend 5 minutes on reaction drills
spend 5 -10 minutes on 1 or 2 step relay start with tarzan break outs
(or do start, turn, finish drill)
25 easy
Set #1 freestyle paddle swim if desired
4 x 125 on 1:55 VS by 25 100% – 75% (1-2 strokes higher on faster 25)
start each 125 with 25 @ 100%
4 x 125 on 1:40 open turn to get time @ 25
1st 25 @ 75% focus on longer stroke and breathing /
100 @ 500 RP with inc stk cnt each 25
50 easy
4 x 125 on 1:20 – 1:35 +/- based on ability
sub :05 faster than challenging send off chosen
1st 75 with moderate stroke count / last 50 2 strokes higher each 25
8 x 75 recovery on 1:15
25 6 stroke tarzan sprint break out then easy to wall
25 5 fast strokes / 4 slow strokes
25 easy
Set #2 top or 2nd stroke kick – complete this set twice :20 rest
2 x 200 #1 VS by 50 75% – 100%, #2 VS by 25 75% – 100%
150 75 5 fast kicks / 5 slow kicks into 2nd time thru
spend 5 minutes on turn
Set #3 swim set – add additional rest if needed or warm down
6 x 100 on 3:00 1-3 top stroke, 4-6 2nd stroke
#1, #4 broken @ 50 for :10 – :20 as needed @ 200 RP
#2, #5 broken @ 25’s for :05 – :15 as needed @ 100 RP
#3, #6 straight goal with +/- :05 from best time
if time allows from block and work on race strategy
100 easy
Total yardage = 4,575
Weight Lifting must continue during taper and athletic peaking
If you lift you must taper lifting also. Do not stop lifting or the benefits of your cross training will be lost. You must work on speed while continuing to gain strength. The Faster Swimming coach’s guide shows an exact practice schedule for lifting during taper as well as detailed dryland workouts during this crucial phase.
If you need help tailoring your program please email me @ brad@fasterswimming.com
Athletic Peaking
Athletic peaking, when you are in top shape, results in your best performances of the season. At this time fitness is at the highest level, while fatigue is at the lowest. This is the one time of the season that fatigue should in no way mask fitness. Your peak occurs when you are ready to perform at your best physically (fitness, skills, reactions…) and psychologically (strategy, focus, intent…). Peaking for sport is no accident, but rather the culmination of training, competitions, tactics and regeneration that has been planned for.
A peaking period can be as long as several weeks or as short as several days, so defining your peaking period and planning accordingly is critical. No new stimuli of any significant intensity should be introduced at this time, and training methods (psychological, physical, and technical) must be specific to the demands of competition. Complete regeneration of all required physical capacities; such as speed, strength, and power; is paramount. These levels should all be at their highest during a peaking phase. While volume most often drops significantly and rest periods increase during a taper, some portion of training intensity MUST remain high to facilitate peak performances. To maintain an extended peak, appropriate intensity must remain in your training at some level throughout the peaking period.
Taper Swim Workouts shouldn’t be easy and require QUALITY!
The Taper phase used by Faster Swimming is a 7 week process.
Get the exact workouts needed in our 23-week program.
Below is workout #105 of #113 that lead to Championships:
Day #105
Another meet warm up:
600 choice swim @ 70%
6 x 100 choice 50 kick / 50 swim :15 rest
6 x 75 choice #1-3 kick / swim / kick by 25, #4-6 swim / kick / swim by 25 :15 rest
6 x 50 swim take heart rate then :10 rest
#1-3 heart rate above 25 for 10 seconds, #4 easy,
#5-6 heart rate above 30 for 10 seconds
5 x 75 recovery swim on 1:10
Set #1 SKILLS spend 10 – 15 minutes on each
1. reaction drills
2. starts and relay starts
3. turns, finishes and walls into and off turns
Set #2
6 x 25 swim @ 100 RP or 200 RP rest appropriate to hold pace
( or 2 x 100 @ 500 RP)
6 x 75 recovery swim on 1:10
2 x 100 choice kick :15 rest
1st 25 alternate 5 fast kicks / 6 slow kicks, last 75 @ 70%
4 x 25 kick #1-2 build to sprint, #3-4 @ 70%
6 x 75 recovery swim on 1:10
Total yardage = 3,725
A Problem with College Swimming
I would like to discuss observations I have seen over the years as my High School swimmers attend and swim for Universities across the country. There are a lot of variables that affect performance for athletes as they move away from home and adjust to College life but there is no way that a majority of the athletes should get weaker and slower.
How can this happen?
First, I feel that most College coaches don’t care or inquire how an athlete trained previously or how they achieved their results. What makes that athlete tick physically and mentally? Wouldn’t you want to know what works – and shouldn’t they? Wouldn’t this save time getting to know the athlete? This seems like common sense to me. Are the egos of the collegiate coaches so large that they think they know it all? Does every College coach win their Conference?
Secondly, I feel that most College coaches don’t understand weight training and total body strength. You are training an athlete, not just a swimmer, and there isn’t a difference. Strength is strength and you need it to enable speed and power in the water. Strength training reduces injury and is essential. All of my swimmers have returned by their first college break weaker and by the end of their first college year have regressed many years in strength gains.
Third point, I feel that many collegiate coaches think that yardage is the main training formula. If you train your athlete at slow speeds for long periods of time you are training them to swim slowly. Training speed equals performance speed. This is one of the main training philosophies of Faster Swimming.
On a side note: A lot of talented athletes go by the wayside since most college coaches won’t take the time to figure out how best to train individual swimmers. There are many that still believe one formula works for all. Collegiate coaches are mandated to win and if they just take the time to understand each swimmer in their program they would succeed. This leads me to my next topic to discuss in a future newsletter. The recruiting of foreign swimmers that take scholarships from our American swimmers – especially boys – so the team can win. This shouldn’t be allowed! I know that the foreign swimmers are older, hence more mature, and this makes it easier for coaches.
All of these programs have a significant increase in yardage and loss of strength for all swimmers. There is a common theme of feedback from the swimmers about the collegiate programs and that is “mechanics aren’t important”. It is obvious when they return to train in the summer.
Here are the results of just a few of our past club swimmers and where they are swimming. (See attachment for results) University of Cincinnati, Louisville, Akron, Notre Dame College, Kenyon, Maryland, Duke, Princeton, Columbia, University of Notre Dame, Illinois Tech, Boston College, Findlay, Missouri, Kentucky just to name the most recent.
And a side note from Coach Coffman:
I don’t want to rant… well, maybe I do, but I’ll try not to – but the fact that many of these athletes returning from college have no indicators as to how strong they are is ludicrous to me. The main factor for strength training is maximal strength (1 rep max – or for the faint of heart, a 3 rep max). Maximal strength has a direct correlation to every other type of strength. Improving maximal strength leads to the ability to produce more force PERIOD – whether that force is low velocity or high velocity and whether that force is short duration or long duration. Maximal strength is also correlated best with improved durability (e.g. less repetitive injuries!). I feel it is lazy thinking (or no thinking?) that leads many to believe that they can create a better overall athlete while allowing for less maximal strength (which then leads DIRECTLY to a lessened ability to produce – and then apply – force…!!!). As far as dryland training goes, strength, conditioning, and speed are the top factors in faster swimming. Successful programming should be set up so that all 3 qualities improve over the course of the year and season. The fact that most of our former HS athletes come back from college far weaker (and many times actually devote more time to dryland at college…!) is sad, and I think an indication of poor programming.
Deck-Based Dryland
The main goal of deck-based dryland (or simply “dryland”) within this program is to increase the overall density of work performed and to increase general working capacities. Another term for this is GPP, or General Physical Preparedness. A high level of GPP will not only increase general fitness, but help facilitate recovery from swim and weight training and, in all, bring your ability to train in the water to a higher level. Increasing your GPP will lead to faster swimming!Multiple qualities can be addressed with a well designed dryland program. Overall GPP can be enhanced through improvements in energy system efficiency, strength (general and core), power output, mobility, flexibility and balance. The goal of this program is not to lay out a cookie-cutter, year-long program, but to give an idea of how to set up dryland work, how to improve some of the basic qualities of GPP, and some general guidelines to evaluate dryland abilities and progression. Dryland workout examples are included, as is a full 7-week dryland taper program.An individual dryland training session will include an active warm-up, the work sets of the day, and a cool-down including active and passive stretching. Most weeks will consist of two lifting workouts. Micro and meso cycles are less important in dryland (than in weight lifting) as GPP can be incorporated at the levels presented here throughout a season. Instead of back-off weeks, dryland training includes test weeks. General qualities can be tested with the exercises listed, and ideal test values are listed, as are specific test workouts. If there is an exercise that is difficult to reach specific test values for (especially the first, easiest test), it is suggested that this exercise (or a variant) be placed first in subsequent workouts. Front-loading is another term to describe this; placing the weakest link of dryland ability first in a workout so that it can be trained in a fresh state.Other than the planned training session itself, you need very little to perform effective dryland work. A willingness to perform the work as indicated is obviously the most important thing to bring to any training session. For dryland training, additionally you will want comfortable clothing that is easy to move in, workout shoes, an exercise mat and/or towel, and a full water bottle. Effective dryland work can be accomplished with none of the above, but having most or all of these items will make the workout more comfortable. An index card with the full workout written on it is also easy to take to the pool and make notations as necessary. An additional item that you may want for dryland work is a medicine ball. Any med ball, bouncy or “dead”, from six pounds to ten pounds (depending on your strength levels) will work. A med ball can be used in conjunction with many exercises to make work more challenging and can be a great addition to improve core strength and power development. You can lift it, throw it, carry it, bend with it, twist with it, hold it close, hold it away, balance on it (cautiously), and use it to augment almost any movement pattern. If you have only one piece of exercise equipment for dryland or at home, it should be a medicine ball.GPP, as defined above, is heightened with all that we do in dryland training. If we improve any of the following qualities, we improve our GPP. Increased dryland ability = improved GPP = faster swimming. Broad definitions of some general work qualities follow.Energy System- The focus here is on using a large amount of our musculature to produce work. Basic work sets move to longer sets, and then to more dense work. Heavy breathing and a lot of sweat are the norm. Rest intervals vary from half to double the amount of time worked (2:1 to 1:2 work-to-rest ratio).Strength- The focus here is on improving relative strength, or the ability to move one’s own body. Basic sets move to multiple, short sets, and gradually progress to longer sets with increased density and or intensity. Rest intervals can vary greatly here, but are generally short (1:1 or less).Core- Improving static, dynamic, and rotational strength in the core of the body (the trunk, or top of the neck to bottom of the hips). Sets can vary, and core work should always be included liberally within a given workout. Rest intervals are very short (4:1 or less).Power- Increasing the rate and magnitude of force production is the focus here. Short, multiple sets will gradually progress to longer, more dense multiple sets. Rest intervals are usually longer here to facilitate nervous system recovery (1:2 or greater).Mobility- Increasing the body’s ability to move efficiently through a full range of motion is the focus here. This quality is improved with increased exercise ablility (as we move through a full range of motion in many planes), and with active and passive flexibility work included at the end of each workout.Now that the list of GPP qualities is defined, it is important to note that the specific qualities trained in a given session are less important than simply putting in work at an increasing density and/or intensity to enhance GPP. Similar to the weight lifting program, a focus on improving movement quality is the goal. What those movements are accomplishing other than work is a secondary concern. In any given workout the focus should be on the movements and their parameters.Why do we train some qualities (i.e. energy system work) in dryland when we can train many of these same qualities in the pool? The best answer is: to avoid over-training in the pool. Including an effective dryland (and weight training) program with a swim training program can help avoid over-use injuries and staleness. A variation in effective training means such as this will lead to higher levels of GPP and increased swim training tolerance and efficiency. Running can also be introduced into dryland training. Short sprints, hill sprints and running stairs can all constitute energy system and/or power work. If shorter efforts (i.e. sprint 3 x (8 x 40m on :25)) are utilized, place this after the regular warm-up (be sure to include lower-body work in this warm-up!) and before any work sets. Count efforts as energy system work if shorter intervals are used (as above), and as power work if more total rest is taken throughout (i.e. sprint 6 x 80m on 3:00 send-offs). If longer running workouts (more than 30 minutes) are part of your training, it is advised that you drop a dryland workout in its favor, or (less commonly) drop a weight lifting workout. This will allow for the recovery needed to accentuate your swim training. Tri-athletes and multisport athletes should gauge volume and intensity for total work (all sports/workouts) performed first, and then plan individual (sport) workouts based on this information. To realize swim performance improvements the total workload must be judged appropriately.Design your program now. Get more information in the Cross Training book and /or the back chapters of the Faster Swimming book.