Set of the Week - July 20, 2007

Here's a fun set for your swimmers that keeps them moving for quite a few minutes, and builds teamwork. It's a simple set when you explain it, but gets a bit more complicated through the execution.

Split up 4 swimmers into two teams. You can make the teams larger if you need to, but if there are too many swimmers on a team the set won't work them quite so hard.

During the set, one group swims while the other group rests. When the 1st group finishes their 50, the 2nd group swims. In other words, someone is always swimming, and there is no interval. Each group does the following swims:
50 fly
50 fly kick
50 back
50 back kick
50 breast
50 breast kick
50 free
50 flutter kick

There is a "catch," however. While one group is swimming, the other group is doing med-ball toss in the pool, without allowing the hands (or the med ball) to go in the water at any point. Eggbeater or breaststroke kick can be used, and the group that's using the med ball must hand off the ball as soon as the last person in the other group finishes swimming.

While you may think this would encourage the swimmers to go slow on the swimming, you have to remember that what goes around, comes around. If group 1 goes slow on the swim and makes group 2 kick longer, what do you think group 2 is going to do during their swim? The TOUGH part about the set is the med-ball kick, so getting it done quickly is the goal... which is where teamwork comes in.

If it looks like the swimmers are really having a good time, have them go through the set a couple times. They'll thank you for allowing them to play catch during practice... really they will. :)