Solving the Speed Problem Video - Q&A with Terry

Thanks for your videos! I recently started swimming again after being "taught" how to swim when I was pretty young. In November I wasn't even able to swim a lap in a 25 yard pool without feeling like I was going to drown. I even had to warn the lifeguard every time I went swimming because I was so horrible. Then I started watching some of your videos on here and practiced some of your drills. I learned how to relax and breath well in the water. It made swimming so much fun.

I just finished my first Sprint triathlon on Sunday and my 400m time was 7:20! Not bad for a guy that thought he was going to drown a few months ago, but the time wasn't even the best part. I kept passing people in the pool who were exhausted and either had to take a break at the wall or were just standing up. I, on the other hand, couldn't believe I was done because I had so much left over in the tank. I had tons of energy left for the rest of the race. 

Today, I decided to see how long I could go in the pool. I have never swam more than the 9 laps that were necessary to complete the triathlon. I decided to take it easy and not worry about the time, but I wore my lap counter just to see how I did. Unfortunately I had to stop early because of bad weather in the area and they closed the pool, but when I check it out I was shocked to see 27 laps in 26 minutes! 1350 yards and I felt like I could have swam all day! I wasn't even close to being tired or out of breath.

I can't thank you enough for all the advice you have put out for beginners like me! I can't wait to get a tempo trainer and work on improving my stroke even more.

Bo

Bo

Being excited about Continuous Improvement is the key to avoiding the "OK Plateau." The Tempo Trainer will help too.  Let us know what you do with it and what insights may come.

Thanks for the video!!

Terry- I'm below ave swimmer (100M PB 1:45, 8:10 400M).  You seem to suggest that training sessions should always try to maintain the SPL in individual target range.  If I have 60min for swim session but tire at 40min, is it OK to do drills (spear switches, balance, etc.) for remaining 20 min or just hit the showers until next time?

I think it has to do with your arm not being properly anchored in the water during the pull phase of the stroke.  I spent an hour working on maintaining 17 strokes per length today and in order to be successful I had to be sure to get a good catch with my left hand which I realized had gotten lazy.

OT

A key theme in the talk shown in the video is that Stroke Length is the primary element determining pace. If your SL decreases incrementally but steadily in the course of your swim leg, your pace is highly likely to slacken as well. 

If your goal is to swim a steady pace - at whichever pace is comfortable for you - then your practices should be pretty targeted to building neural circuits that are highly resistant to losing efficiency. In simple terms that means designing your practices to keep SPL (strokes per length) fairly consistent.

Since I made that my goal some 20 years ago, I've taken the attitude that all the other elements of set design are fungible. E.G. Let's say I'm doing a set of 10 x 100 on a 1:40 interval (which happens to be a set I did earlier today. If I aim to hold 15 SPL in that set, and midway through find I can't hold it, the first adjustment I'll make will be to add 10 sec or so to my rest interval. Often that will be enough to restore the level of efficiency I aimed for. But if that didn't do it, I'd consider shifting to 75-yd reps instead. 

It's pretty hard to go wrong if you make a relatively efficient SPL the main focus of a set or practice. 

As for your question about changing the content of practice in the final 20 minutes if you feel form degrading. I've made that exact choice many times. And I've also made the choice to end the practice if I don't think swimming for another 20 min will benefit me. 

FYI: Here's the set of 10 x 100 I did today, along with some notes. I'm in a 'sharpening' phase for USMS Nationals which start a week from tomorrow. My first event is 1000 Free. Here's what I wrote on the TI Discussion Forum about my goals for that event. >>1000-yd Free I feel a goal of 12:40 is realistic. If I have a great swim I might go 12:30. It will take an even split to a slight progressive split - swimming the second 500 one or two seconds faster than the first. So I'd have to split 6:16 and 6:14 to go 12:30. On Saturday I swam 500 in 6:13, which was my seasonal best by 9 seconds. >>

And my notes from today's set, on which I held consistent at 13-14-14-14SPL (by 25s)

>>10 x 100 FR on 1:40 Descend 1-3, 4-6, 7-10. Hold 13-14SPL

1-3: 1:21-1:20-1:19
4-6 1:20-1:19-1:18
7-10 1:21-1:19-1:18-1:17
This was a sharpening set for the 1000 Free. My plan was to swim 1 to 2SPL lower than I'll swim in the race, use a very controlled effort and descend three times in 10 x 100, aiming to use minimal effort to improve my pace by a second per 100 in each mini-cycle of 3-4 x 100. 

You can view the entire practice, and my goal statement for USMS Nationals here http://www.totalimmersion.net/index.php?option=com_jfusion&wrap=showthread.php%3Ft%3D2264

Terry-

Thanks again for your thoughts.

As experienced rec golfer (played >35+yrs, ex 8-handicap), it seems to me that learning good freestyle stroke is quite similar to learning the golf swing.  Both involve balanced, sequential, coordinated movements of upper body, core, and lower body to achieve best results.  And many times significant improvements can be VERY frustrating to achieve  Although some strength is clearly necessary to hit 250+yd drives, it is mainly NEURAL training of body timing & coordination that ultimately gets the job done consistently. A look at the effortless (and ageless!) power of Fred Couples illustrates the point.  Other pro golfers may swing with more physical effort (harder), but few hit it further. Those that do still have excellent coordinated rhythm to their swings (e.g. Tiger Woods). Flailing at endless buckets of balls at max (or near max) effort is no way to increase driving distance.  Just as lack of raw muscle strength is not the reason most male mid-handicap golfers cannot ave 250yd drives, my guess is that poor cardiopulmonary reserve is NOT main swim performance limiter for otherwise MOP triathletes (e.g. 20-23mph bike/21-24min run for sprint tri).  I do not understand the logic behind many coaches having below ave swimmers do repeated high-effort sets which too often only ingrain bad habits, or worse eventually break the swimmer's spirit when their initial improvement plateaus (or eventually even declines). Repetition of proper technique seems most efficient way to improve either the golf swing or the freestyle stroke.

Your application of the 'mature wisdom' afforded you from golf is a great insight into the spirit one should bring to swim practice.

In a recent blog It's a Crossroads, not a Plateau I addressed that common phenomenon of the period when it seems we've stopped progressing. Here's a brief excerpt:

>>In his 1992 book Mastery, the Keys to Success and Long Term Fulfillment, Aikido Master George Leonard describes what you’re facing as a defining moment for all of us: In most endeavors we improve quickly in the early stages, but improvement slows, then stops, as the skill requirements increase. (Because drag increases exponentially, this is a far more tangible matter in swimming than in, say chess, music or math.) What happens next reveals something fundamental about character.

Leonard says that when progress slows or stops, most people fall into one of two categories:

The Dabbler makes good initial progress. Upon encountering the plateau he loses enthusiasm, gives up and tries another activity . . . then repeats the pattern.
The Hacker hits the plateau then defines satisfaction as status quo. Rather than seek instruction or adjust his approach, he contents himself with that level.

But a fortunate few progress to a third category:

The Master displays mental discipline, persistence, and flexibility as her learning curve flattens. She understands that lessons learned more slowly have more meaning and permanence.>>

I'll be adding another blog post shortly where I write about learning to Love the Plateau, because it's where neural change - usually below the level of our perception - is happening. The duration of the Plateau can mean that positive change will be more durable.

Any method of counting, so long as you're consistent, is fine. I count each hand entry because it's a bit more precise.

Just as Stride Length in running should be a factor of height, so should Stroke Length in swimming. Your SPL of 24 for 25 yds would be reasonably efficient if you were about 4'6" tall. If you're taller than that, your count should be lower. I included a chart on one slide in the video that shows 'efficiency ranges' for heights from 4'10" to 6'4".

Here's my key question - how do you reduce your strokes?  At just over 6' your chart would indicate that I need 14-17 SPL, and I'm currently around 18-19, and when I start to fatigue I notice that it drops off to 20.  I then really need to focus on getting to the 18-19.  But I'm not sure how to go lower, without adding even more glide into my stroke.

I brought up your video in another group discussion, and some of the thoughts there were that lower SPL is great for pool swimming but less effecient than a high turnover in open water - Gary Hall Sr was reffered to as an advocate of a higher turnover.  So I'm admittedly a bit confused.  Your analogy of shorter strides in running makes a lot of sense to equate with shorter strokes in swimming, but there's also another school of thought that seems to contradict this. 

Not sure which makes more/less sense - and not sure how to drop my SPL.

Do you guys have a photo, screen shot, or time stamp for the stroke efficiency chart according to height?  I'm curious as to how SPL corerlates to height.

Thanks.

It's in the video in the first post which isn't that long.  For me at 6 ft it is between 14 - 17 SPL.  I can do 16 but not for repeats.  Then I'm mostly 19 so I guess I need to work at it.

I have been trying the technique now for 2 weeks, so 6 swims in total. When I do repeats, I used to swim 1:10 per 100 yards. With this new technique I swim 100 yards in 1:20. When I try to push it, I end up with my old stroke but a much faster time.

My question, do I just keep on practicing until the time goes down to 1:10?

Michael.