Halloween Workout - October 31, 2011

Halloween workout today with the Masters team.   I have a hunch it would be fun for age groupers, too.

Ingredients:
1 small pumpkin for every 4 or 5 swimmers
12+ small apples 
1 oversized T-shirt for every 4 or 5 swimmers
2 bags or bathing caps, one marked TRICKS and the other marked TREATS

Come up with 10 to 12 short sets/relays and write each one on a slip of paper.  Some should be fun (TREATS); others should be swim based or skill based (TRICKS).  Put each slip in the appropriate bag.  After the swimmers are warmed up, have one of them start by drawing a slip of paper out of one of the bags -- either TRICK or TREAT.   The whole team does what's written on the slip of paper.    The "winner" of the set gets to choose the next TRICK or TREAT.  Etc.

Here are the tricks and treats that were in our bags this morning:

TRICKS
*  Dead-man Partner Push
Find a partner.  One partner swims backstroke.  The other parner is on his/her back with his feet on the head of the swimmer, and with his arms in streamline.  Each partner does a 25 as the backstroker.

*  6 lengths kick and/or swim while balancing an apple on your forehead 

*  2 lengths sculling on your back, going feet first with arms above head, while pushing a pumpkin with your feet

*  6 X 25 on :35 sendoff
Odd 25s:  Breaststroke with a double pullout
Even 25s:  Backstroke starting with at least 6 underwater dolphins

4 X 50 on easy sendoff; even 50s are up tempo

5 swims on 1:30 sendoff
These are choice of stroke and equipment and you can go as far (or as short) as you want.  Just make the sendoff.  

TREATS
*  Great Pumpkin Relay
Divide into teams of 4 for a medley relay.  All swimmers start in the water for each leg.  
Backstroke = Swim Backstroke, holding a pumpkin above water
Breaststroke = Swim Breaststroke while holding an apple under your chin
Butterfly = Swim any stroke but stay on your stomach...while transporting a pumpkin
Freestyle = Swim Freestyle while holding an apple in each hand

*  Pumpkin-Pass/ IM Swim
Divide all swimmers into two teams (4 teams if you have 16+ swimmers).  Each team should be in the water, in their own lane.  
Assuming you have 2 teams... Everyone on Team #1 treads water and passes a pumpkin while everyone on Team #2 swims a 50 Butterfly, leaving 5 seconds apart.  When the last swimmer on Team #2 gets back to the wall, Team #2 treads water and passes the pumpkin while everyone on Team #1 swims a 50 fly.  Keep going until each team has done a 50 Fly, 50 Back, 50 Breast, and 50 Free.  To determine the "winner" of this event, Coach should time the 50 free, from the initial pushoff of the first swimmer, until the time the final swimmer in the lane touches the wall.  

*  Three rounds of the following:
50 pull on a sendoff everyone can make (e.g., 1:00)
100 pull on double the sendoff (e.g., 2:00)
Descend 100 time on each round.

*  Mummy Relay
Divide into teams of 4.
Each swimmer wears a T-shirt, but you can't put your arms through the sleeves.  Keep them at your sides.  Each team member kicks a 50.

*  200 IM; fins optional