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Winter Break Practices

Increased volume = Increased energy use = Increased calorie intake!

Body weight should NOT drop more than 3 pounds during an intense period of training in-season. Most large training load increases in-season come in 2 or 3 week periods, and the benefits can be numerous, BUT… Losing weight quickly in-season does NOT equate to being in better shape (necessarily…) – faster swimming equates to being in better shape at this time! Losing muscle to provide energy for practice is not the path to increased recovery and faster swimming, and the idea that you need to “break down” to build back up has serious limits.

If your practices are coming close to or going beyond double your normal volume, an additional 1000 calories per day may be in order. Your body weight and recovery status will determine this need. 1000 calorie examples: 2 large protein shakes OR 4 snickers bars OR 1 Chipotle burrito.

If you lose 3+ pounds (in a 2 to 3 week period), add an additional 500 calories per practice.

If you lose 6+ pounds, add an additional 100 calories per practice.

And, as you should be doing throughout the season… drink Gatorade (or something like it) at any practice over 1 hour, and be sure to drink something (chocolate milk or a protein shake) or at the very least eat something with both carbs and protein within one hour post-practice. The first hour after practice you should try to get in somewhere between 400 and 800 calories – again coming mainly from carbs and protein.

Good luck in your training, and remember the take home message here: During intense in-season training losing weight does not equate to better shape, faster swimming equates to better shape! Improved recovery doesn’t have to be a complicated effort, just a consistent effort!

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Administering Test Sets

Let’s administer test sets while maintaining yardage goals. Work in as you see fit but try to complete during the week.

The test sets are to establish repeat pace per 100’s on all strokes to help the swimmer and coach adjust send offs for the Holiday training demands.

The following warm up is a great set pattern for swimmers to learn and complete at meets. Adjust at meets based on time and warm up facilities offered.

Warm up:
600 choice swim

6 x 100 choice 50 kick / 50 swim :10rest
then stretch based on time allowed no longer than 5 minutes

6 x 75 choice :10rest with heart rate about +/-20 at a minimum, check twice
adjust heart rate based on age and level of fitness
1-3 kick / swim / kick by 25, 4-6 swim / kick / swim by 25

6 x 50 choice swim – raise heart rate, check heart rate and then :15rest
1-3 heart rate +/-25, 4 easy swim, 5-6 heart rate +/-30

100 easy

2 x 25 sprint (work in starts at meet)

75 easy after each

Total warm up yardage = 2,250

Some swimmers need more and some less based on your demands for the day and learning to read your body. Don’t do less just because. Remember to simulate practices where you have great sprint swims at the end with 5,000 or more yards to warm up……….

Don’t let more than 5-7 minutes elapse before starting test sets. This would also be the ideal time period between warm up and your events at meets.

Do the below set for all strokes except butterfly unless you or your swimmer is the exception. Most swimmers are too weak mechanically to complete this set fly. The fasterswimming work outs are designed to train fly at race pace mainly alternating upper and lower body while focusing on timing and mechanics.

Goals for set:
You need to be able to repeat your pace with your heart rate +/- 25 (this is for the national level swimmer, please adjust accordingly). Check your heart rate only a few times at the beginning of the set to establish speed. Your initial rest will be :05 seconds between swims developing a send off with the same amount of rest. Adjust send offs either faster or slower as needed. This should not be at a comfortable pace but on the challenging side with heart rate appropriate while holding pace thru set. Read set and start with a goal pace in mind.

Record your results (pace per 100) and use for setting send offs for the upcoming weeks.

4 x 100 start setting pace and establishing heart rate

8 x 25 this will be the easiest part, use to establish heart rate

6 x 50

4 x 100

2 x 200

recovery swim of 6 x 75 on +/- 1:15

set yardage = 2,150 for each stroke

Total yardage not including the set fly = 8,700

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Thoughts on Training

OK… No nonsense here – just some thoughts on training pertaining to what I’ve been reading lately and how I train my teams (swimming, track, and many others). No particular order, but the pieces do fit:

A. Training regularly, systematically, and progressively are keys to obtaining the desired goals of training (better competitive performances!!).

B. The real effectiveness of training depends to a large extent on the quality of distances covered (or movements performed) at high velocities.

C. Training intensity is directly proportional to your competitive results.

D. Double practices can benefit several fitness factors, and optimal recovery is required to reap these benefits.

E. Train as hard as possible, as often as possible, while staying as “fresh” as possible.

F. You must develop neuromuscular capacity to improve maximal speed; maximal speed being an important predictor of both sprint AND endurance performances.

G. Greater speed depends on greater force production, quicker force production, and improved stability and coordination. These attributes are not developed in a day or a week, but over the course of seasons and years.

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Workout Nutrition

WHEN you eat can be as important as WHAT you eat regarding workout nutrition. There are an endless array of supplements and wonder-foods available, many promising a great return if you simply purchase their product. Well, there are some supplements that could help with workouts and recovery, but they are just that – supplements to a regular diet and exercise program. Get your regular diet and eating habits in order first, and then you’ll be able to tell which supplements really seem to help you out.

So how do you go about getting your eating habits in order? Start with the things that matter the most, of course. We will detail this in a future newsletter, but the bullet points:

  • Eat breakfast everyday
  • Eat a complete protein with each regular meal
  • Eat every two to three hours
  • Drink plenty of water throughout the day
  • Drink mainly non-caloric beverages

Before you start counting every gram and half-gram of fat in your diet, get these basics in order. Eating smaller, more frequent meals can not only stop cravings, but leave you felling less hungry during the day, improve insulin sensitivity, and improve recovery from training. Get this in order first.

This all leads us to the title of this article – workout nutrition. Besides (or possibly including) breakfast, timing nutrient intake around your training is the most important aspect of recovery. Multiple studies have shown far higher recovery rates (in some studies as much as 300%!) for those consuming a pre- and post- workout drink containing both carbohydrates and protein opposed to those consuming only water around the workout window. We will define this workout window as 30 minutes prior to and 30 minutes post-workout, and this nutrition should come in the form of liquid and contain little to no fat for ease of assimilation. There are many drinks that address this issue (Endurox, Surge, etc.) and fit this bill – but there is an easy choice in your local grocery – – chocolate skim milk. An easy to find, relatively cheap way to increase your recovery from hard training. Add a small bottle to your workout bag and sip some about 30 minutes prior to your workout, and finish the bottle within 30 minutes post-workout. This bottle would of course be in addition to your water bottle (or Gatorade, etc) – because we want to cover basic hydration as well.

If you aren’t already doing so, try incorporating workout nutrition as detailed in your training program and start recovering faster. Find which workout-window drink works best for you (chocolate milk is an easy starting point…) and follow the bullet points above to get your eating habits (and timing) in order. Improved recovery doesn’t have to be a complicated effort, just a consistent effort!

  • by John Coffman,
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Fitness and Fatigue

When training to compete we increase our fitness by recovering from our training. There are several models to describe training and it’s after effects, the most popular and recognized of which is the single-factor model. The single-factor model proposes that training is the stimulus for super-compensation, and that repeated bouts of gradually increasing intensity result in gradually increased fitness. Basically: train, recover to a higher level, train again, recover to yet a higher level, etc, etc. This model, however, does not take into full account the factor of fatigue.

The two-factor model of training takes fatigue into full account. The two-factor model proposes both a long-term fitness after-effect from training, leading to specific fitness (aerobic, anaerobic, etc.); and a short-term fatigue after-effect, leading to specific (aerobic, anaerobic, etc.) fatigue. Throughout much of our training, fatigue masks fitness. A high work load in training, especially in a concentrated block or multi-sport training, can cause a much more pronounced fatigued state. The athlete themselves may have an exceptional level of fitness, but performances can suffer or become stale if fatigue is not taken into account and managed. The ONE time of the year fatigue should not mask fitness is during a peaking phase (otherwise known as tapering).

There is a lot more to all of this – but the take-home message is to be aware that your training produces both fitness and fatigue, and that fatigue can mask your actual fitness level much of the time. So how much fatigue is too much? Your Resting Heart Rate (RHR) can tell you a lot. After a couple of off days from training, simply take your heart rate as soon as you wake up. Don’t go to the bathroom first or take your HR after breakfast – measure your HR as soon as you wake, while still in bed. This will give you a base-line measure. If during the training week your RHR differs upward from your base-line RHR more than 6-8 beats per minute, take it easy that day. You can still train in this state, but a recovery-type of training day may be in order. If your RHR differs upward more than 9-10 beats per minute, a day off is probably in order. Anything under 6 beats difference and you should be good to go. I say “should” and “may” because every athlete’s response to training and ability to recover is different.

These are some general guidelines for you to track your recovery and monitor your fatigue, and if you stay on top of your recovery, your true fitness level will be accessible when you need it!