10/28/06 UV Rays Masters Saturday Practice

I wanted to try Glenn’s Mode-2 Tempo Trainer practice with the Masters swimmers whom I coach, but I was unsure how many of them could handle the length of it, so we modified and made it simpler, just to experiment.

WARMUP: 400
400 your choice, on your own

KICK SET: 200
With a pull buoy the entire time.
4 X 50 kick down, swim back Your choice flutter/free or breast kick/breast.

IM SET (STILL WARMING UP): 400
With fins.
4 X 100 IM
Odds: FL and BR are Karla drill; BK and FR are swim
Evens: BK and FR are 4 BK/3FR; FL and BR are swim

100 EZ

MODE-2 TEMPO TRAINER SET: 800/400 + 100
Fastest two swimmers are distance freestylers, so I had them do 2 X 400 while everyone else did 4 X 100.

Get the Tempo Trainer into Mode 2 and set it to BEEP BEEP BEEP at an interval that gives you a comfortable 100 pace. Here are some TT settings and the 100 pace that they produce:

18 seconds = 1:12 pace
19 seconds = 1:16 pace
20 seconds = 1:20 pace
21 seconds = 1:24 pace
22 seconds = 1:28 pace
23 seconds = 1:32 pace
24 seconds = 1:36 pace
25 seconds = 1:40 pace
26 seconds = 1:44 pace
27 seconds = 1:48 pace

The swimmers doing the 400s used settings of 20 and 23. The swimmers doing the 4 X 100 used settings of 20 to 27. For many of the swimmers, it took two or three 100s before they found the ideal TT settings for their 100s. It’s an interesting set because you have to maintain a steady pace for the entire 100 — you can’t start easy and then speed up your cadence.

100 EZ

MODE-1 TEMPO TRAINER SET: 950
Put the TT back into Mode 1 and use a setting that gives you a comfortable freestyle rhythm. Most of our swimmers used 1:05 or 1:10 as the initial setting. Two of us swam this set as breaststroke, and we started at a 1:95 setting.

5 X 100 @ approx. :25 RI [used 2:00 sendoff for breaststroke]
#1-4: Wear fistgloves. Take :05 off the TT setting after each 100.
#5: Take off the fistgloves, take another :05 off the TT, and GO!!!! This one should feel great! [breaststroke times went from 1:37 to 1:27 on the set]

200 EZ choice

#1-4: Wear fistgloves. Your initial TT setting should be :05 less than your initial setting on the 100s [we used 1:75 for breaststroke, which is :20 less than initial setting on the 100s]. Take :05 off the TT setting after each 100.
#5: Take off the fisitgloves, take another :05 off the TT,and G! [breaststroke times went from 45 to 42]

WARMDOWN: 200
200 EZ plus 3 jumps from the blocks

Total Yardage: 2550