Set of the Week - January 12, 2007

Basic Black & White:
6 X 25 freestyle on :40 sendoff

Technicolor:
What could be simpler, right? But there are a couple of twists:
#1: No breathing until after the first stroke.
#2: No breathing from the flags into the wall.
#3: Everybody on the team has to do it perfectly or that one doesn�t count.
#4: For the senior kids: The team has to do 6 perfect 25s IN A ROW or the team starts over.

How It Plays Out:
Our age-group team does this as a first set almost every night. It� a good warm-up set because it imprints good racing technique early in practice, but without having to race.

The 40-second sendoff is nice and easy. It gives everyone in the lane a chance to finish and gives Coach a chance to see if everyone has complied with the rules. But�in the entire season, I can remember only ONE TIME when all we did was 6 X 25. Usually, the swimmers end up doing 8 or 12 or sometimes even 20 X 25 before they get 6 perfect 25s in a row.

After 12+ of these 25s, the swimmers become acutely aware of each other� efforts, and they start to work as a team (they are also ready to strangle the person who messes up).