Swim Speed Workout

The swim speed workout is from my “Get Your Swim On” blog published in January 2014. It uses the perceived effort scale. If you’e never used it before, think of the fastest, hardest sprint that requires all your energy as 100 percent effort and scale down from there. A slow warm up and recovery pace should fall around 60 percent.

1. Start with a 200 meter (4 laps) warm up at a comfortable pace. Take a 30 second rest break.

2. Next, swim 3 100’s (2 laps each) in the following order: the first at 70 percent effort, the 2nd at 75 percent effort, and the third at 80 percent effort. Take a 20-second rest break after each 100.

3. Now pick up the pace a little with 3 50’s (that’s one lap each): the first at 80 percent effort, the second at 85 percent, and the third at 90 percent. These should feel like a pretty good push but you still should have some energy left. Take a 15 second rest after each 50.

4. Pick up the pace a little more with four 25-meter sprints: the first at 80 percent effort, the second at 85 percent effort, the third at 90 percent, and the last one 100 percent effort or “all out,” as fast as you can! Take a 10 second rest break between 25s and a 30-second rest after the last one.

5. Swim a recovery 100 EZ, and if you have time and energy, swim a second set of steps 2 through 4.

6. End your workout with a 150 meter cool down, around 70 percent effort.

If you followed this workout and swam steps 2 through 4 once, you just completed 1000 meters, and if you did steps 2 through 4 twice, you just knocked out 1650 meters!

 

 

Where to find us

Points North Sports & Regenerative PT
435 Points North Rd.
Stowe, VT 05672

Get Directions

Phone: (203) 260-0215
Fax: (802) 264-8519

Email: info@pointsnorthphysicaltherapy.com