Gray Guys/Girls Masters Focus Triathlete Forum--OPEN! (Page 18)

Hey James,

An  observation and a couple comments.  You mention you are doing 2 - 750 meter sets.  Can you clarify that?  You DON'T need to be doing 750 meter swims, rather you should be doing intervals.  Maybe 8 x 100 with 30 seconds rest.  Follow with an easy 200.  Then another 8 x 100 with 20 seconds rest.  I will address in just a moment how to specifically set pace and rest periods.  There is absolutely nothing gained by doing long swims other than the psychological reinforcement that you can do the distance.  The ONLY time I have anyone do a long swim is when doing a time trail.

As to you having a hard time doing the 500.  I suspect you may have been overcooking it just a little bit.  By slowing down you allowed your body to clear the lactic acid build up and your stroke smoothed out, which had a positive impact on your breathing.

You have been swimming long enough now that it is probably time to find your threshold pace - the pace that you can theoretically hold "all day long."  There are two ways to determine that.  The first is a 1,000 maximal effort time trial.  The problem is that most people go out to fast which skews the results  The second way is to use the CSS (Critical Swim Speed) test.  It is not quite as accurate, off by a couple seconds per 100, but for our purposes, it is accurate enough.  It has the added benefit of a quicker recovery.  Once you have determined you threshold pace, you can use it to set the swim intensity in your workouts as well as have an actual target time and pace for your races that is built on empirical data, not a guess.

CSS Test Procedure -

Do your normal warm-up (a couple hundred easy freestyle).  Once you are warmed up, you will do two time trials, one of 50 yards (or meters if you are in a long course pool) and one of 400 yards. Both time trials will be at a maximal pace - meaning as fast as you can go the distance.  There needs to be sufficient time between the two swims so that you are FULLY recovered before the second time trial.  I recommend doing the 50 first as the recovery time is shorter.  Ideally you will have someone available that can time you.  If not, time yourself, the slight difference in time will not be significant.  To start, push off from the wall - NO DIVING START.  Record the time in seconds.  I suggest an EASY 100 after the first swim to clear the lactic acid.  Give it at least 10 minutes, then do an EASY 100.  Then start the second time trial.  Again, record the time in seconds.

How to Calculate CSS -

CSS/Threshold Pace in yards/meters per second can be calculated with the following formula, where D1 = 50, D2 = 400, T1 = time for 50 swim in seconds and T2 = time for 400 swim in seconds

CSS/Threshold Pace = (D2 - D1) ÷ (T2 - T1)

I figure if you are going to do a test it won't be for a couple days so I will write up a post over the weekend that describes how to take your CSS/Threshold pace and build workouts from that as well as set race paces.

First thing, if at all possible, get in the water and warm up.  You will then know what the water conditions are which will remove any anxiety brought about by the unknown.  Second, just being warmed up will help.  Next, DON'T get into the washing machine.  Start to the outside or to the back.  Your time does not start until you cross the timing line.  Swim your race and don't worry about the other participants.  There is a saying, you can't win a triathlon during the swim but you can lose it there.  You aren't going to be first out of the water, so don't worry about that.  Your goal should be to turn in a solid swim FOR YOU.  Don't get caught up in everyone else's pace - swim YOUR pace.  Get to the swim venue early, warm up if possible and then look at the course.  Plan out your swim.. How and where are you going to start, how are you going to approach the buoys, etc.  When the gun sounds, swim your plan.

You've got this James! 

D. Baby Oil or Olive Oil.  A drop in each ear before getting in the water will reduce the likelihood of 'swimmer's ear.'

Don't ask me why it works, I just know it does.  This was the preferred remedy for our swim team back in the day - over 300 total members between the age group and national teams.

Also, make sure your ears are clean.  Any wax build-up will hold water in the ear canal which may result in swimmer's ear or an infection.

Hey Steve,

Here is the post I promised that covers using threshold pace to plan workouts and set race pace.  It should answer your question about rest periods, etc.

Fair warning to all, this is a long post.

In an earlier post I referred to determining your Swim Threshold Pace (STP), also known as CSS – Critical Swim Speed, or simply as threshold pace. There are a couple ways to determine your STP. The first is to do a long maximal effort time trial swim, typically 1,000 yards/meters and then determine your average pace per 100 over the final 400 of the swim. The problem with this method is that swimmers tend to go out too fast which skews the results to the low side, and it takes a good deal of time to recover from a 1,000 yard/meter swim. The second method is becoming the preferred method which is to use the modified Critical Swim Speed (CSS) test. The advantage to a CSS test is that it can be done before a workout as it is quick and easy to administer plus it doesn’t replace a workout as a long time trial often does. The disadvantage is that it tends to produce a STP that is a couple seconds per hundred too fast. We can easily adjust for that when we set-up workouts and/or a race pace.

To review the STP/CSS Test Procedure -

Do your normal warm-up (i.e. 200 easy freestyle). Once you are warmed up, you will do two time trials, one of 50 yards (or meters if you are in a long course pool) and one of 400 yards/meters. Both time trials will be at a maximal pace - meaning as fast as you can go the distance. There needs to be sufficient time between the two swims so that you are FULLY recovered before the second time trial. I recommend doing the 50 first as the recovery time is shorter. Ideally you will have someone available that can time you. If not, time yourself, the slight difference in time will not be significant. To start, push off from the wall - NO DIVING START. Record the time in seconds. I suggest an EASY 100 after the first swim to clear the lactic acid. Give it at least 10 minutes, then do an EASY 100. Then start the second time trial. Again, record the time in seconds.

How to Calculate STP/CSS -

STP/CSS/Threshold Pace in yards/meters per second can be calculated with the following formula, where D1 = 50, D2 = 400, T1 = time for 50 swim in seconds and T2 = time for 400 swim in seconds

STP/CSS/Threshold Pace = (D2 - D1) ÷ (T2 - T1)

So now you have a couple numbers from your test. What do they mean and how can I use them?

We happen to have a couple of imaginary swimmers that just did the STP test.

Suzie Swimmer recorded 64seconds (1:04) for the 50 yard time trial, and 592 seconds (9:51) for the 400 time trial.  Ricky Racer recorded 32 seconds for the 50 and 296 seconds (4:55) for the 400.

The STP calculations –

For Suzie – STP = (400-50) / (592-64) = 0.66 yards/second.
For Rickie – STP = (400-50) / (296-32) = 1.18 yards/second.

Now that we have our STP number, let’s take a moment and look at the various types of swim endurance training and use the STP numbers from the volunteers to see how to use STP.

There are different types of swimming endurance training –

Extensive Endurance – Long repetitions at a steady, comfortable pace.
Intermediate Endurance – Shorter repetitions that are closer to your race pace.
Intensive Endurance – Very hard efforts. For stronger swimmers this will be below your race pace.

EXTENSIVE ENDURANCE TRAINING

You would exclusively do this type of training at the beginning of the season during your base build and then maybe once a week during the season. This type of training uses long repetitions. However, long does not mean race distance. Repetitions of 200 are typical with perhaps an occasional set of 400 repetitions (no more than once every couple of weeks). At the beginning of base training or if you are a newer swimmer, repetitions of 100 work well to begin to build swim fitness.

The idea is to use repetitions of a distance that you find challenging but not maximal, with sufficient rest that you can repeat the effort. You should be able to keep your breathing under control. If a swimmer tries to swim too far or too fast in a single repetition, they would likely fade badly and their stroke technique would rapidly deteriorate. You do not want to train with poor technique!

An endurance training session for Suzie, our newer swimmer might look something like this –

5 x 200 at a comfortable aerobic pace. This should be 10-15 seconds per 100 yards slower than your STP with approximately 45-60 seconds rest/recovery between repetitions. To determine the base pace take the target distance and divide by your STP.

Target Pace = (200 / 0.66) + 30 (add 15 seconds per 100 for extensive endurance pace) = 333 seconds = 5:33/200. From that, add your rest period, to arrive at an interval time. 5:33 + rest = 6:30 interval time. As your endurance increases, you begin to add repetitions. The goal is to build to a total distance of 1.5 – 2.0 times your longest race distance in the upcoming season.

The key to extensive endurance training is hitting your target pace – that’s what that big clock at the end of the pool is for! By the way, this will begin to teach you pacing which will benefit you on race day!

Now, let’s look at the same extensive endurance training session for Ricky –

Ricky is more experience so he will be swimming a longer workout – 10 x 200 at a comfortable aerobic pace with 45-60 seconds rest/recovery between repetitions.

Target Pace = (200/1.18) + 20 (add 10 seconds/100 for more experienced swimmer extensive endurance pace) = 209 seconds = 3:29/200. Add rest period for interval time – 3:29 + rest = 4:30 interval time.

When you are able to maintain good technique and steady controlled breathing for 1.5 – 2.0 times the longest race distance in the upcoming season on a regular basis, you have begun to develop a good endurance capacity for your speed . . . now it’s time to work on going faster.

INTERMEDIATE ENDURANCE TRAINING

This type of endurance training is used after you have achieved a basic level of swim fitness. The intensity you want for these training sessions is quite hard, although not an all-out maximal effort. The pace should be “uncomfortably comfortable.” Breathing should still be under control but in these sessions it is more difficult to maintain that control. Developing endurance at this pace and intensity helps with the latter stages of the swim and begins to develop speed.
Shorter repetitions are used for Intermediate Endurance Training with reduced rest periods.

An example of an Intermediate Endurance session using Suzie’s STP –

20 x 100 at STP with 15 seconds rest. As you become more proficient, add more repetitions.

Target pace = 100/.66 = 151 seconds = 2:31. Add 15 seconds rest for interval time = 2:45 interval.

As you progress through this set it will become increasingly difficult to maintain stroke technique and control your breathing. Newer swimmers should attempt less repetitions to avoid stroke technique deterioration.

INTENSIVE ENDURANCE TRAINING

This type of training is developing speed and more importantly it is training your body to clear lactic acid from your bloodstream. This is a VERY HARD session and you need to be technically very competent to gain the most benefit. Otherwise you will find that your stroke technique will deteriorate as you fatigue and you will be missing interval times by increasingly wide margins.

The session might look something like this –

10 x 100 at 3-5 seconds below STP with 20 seconds rest.

This could develop into multiple sets in the same session.

2 x [10 x 100 at 3-5 seconds below STP with 20 seconds rest] and 5 minutes between sets].

Make no mistake, this is a MAXIMAL EFFORT!

The early part of this type of session you will feel pretty good because you are swimming a relatively short distance and have a sufficient rest period. However, by the time you get halfway through the set you will find that 20 seconds rest is just enough to get your breathing back under control. By the last couple of repetitions you will be gasping for breath as you start the next rep!

For Ricky, our stronger swimmer, the set pace and intervals would look something like this –

Target pace = 100/1.18 = 1:25 – 0:05 = 1:20/100. Add 20 seconds rest = 1:40 interval.

PUTTING IT TOGETHER TO PLAN WORKOUTS

Your swim training sessions should include:

1. A warm-up (In addition to warming up paying particular attention to stroke technique is beneficial)
2. A main set (Target is 1.5-2.0 race distance)
3. Cool down

Prior to the beginning of the season the focus should be on building endurance so workouts should exclusively include Extensive Endurance Training.
Once endurance has improved to where the swimmer can comfortably swim at least 1.5 – 2.0 times the longest race distance of the upcoming race season while maintaining stroke technique and keeping breathing under control Intermediate Endurance sessions should be added each week.

Intensive Endurance sessions should be utilized once every other week and added once a week approximately 4-6 weeks before your ‘A’ race to develop speed. This type of session should be removed from your workouts 2 weeks before your ‘A’ race. This type of session is for stronger swimmers and will compare to a long time trial. It is not a session you will want to do or should do often.

A typical mid-season training week for a moderate ability swimmer might include one Extensive Endurance session, one mixed Intermediate Endurance and Extensive Endurance session, and one Intermediate Endurance session.

As the swimmer progresses, he/she may add Intensive Endurance sessions as I described earlier.

RACE PACE

The final piece of the puzzle is determining your race pace from your STP.

If you are a new swimmer or one that does less than 3 swim sessions per week, or you are not training sufficient yardage based on the 1.5-2.0 time race distance formula, your race pace will be the same as your STP. Simply divide 100 by your STP to determine your pace per 100 = 100/0.66 = 151.51 seconds = 2:31.2/100. To predict your race swim time, take the total race distance and divide by your STP. Thus Suzie’s predicted time for the swim in a Sprint Triathlon (750 yards – I know it is actually 750 meters but for our example this is close enough) would be 750/0.66 = 1136.36 seconds = 18:44.8

For a more experience swimmer, you will learn through Intensive Endurance training sessions if you can do a Sprint Triathlon below STP. For any distance above a Sprint your race pace would be the same as your STP.

So there you have it. The basics to plan your workouts, or at least begin to understand what your coach is having you do.

Hope that helps.

Nice job Deb - congrats!!  40 mph - wow.   The fastest I have gone is 55 kph.  I want to go faster and certainly have the hills to try it on, but have not yet built up the confidence to let it rip.

James:  sorry to hear about that speed bump, but glad that you only ended up with road rash.   Sounds like you had a pretty good race.

I have said for years that there are more than three disciplines you have to train for if you are a triathlete.  Some are obvious, others, not so much.

1. Swimming
2. Cycling
3. Running
4. Transition
5. Nutrition
6. Recovery
7. Mental

We can have a debate about the various disciplines on another day at another time, but of note is the fact that transition is a discipline that you MUST train for, and most triathletes tend to NOT put adequate time into their transition training.

The shorter the race, the more important you transition time becomes.  Consider this, in a full Ironman, if you are REALLY fast you will be racing upwards of 10 hours, considerably longer if you are a mere mortal.  However, in a sprint triathlon, that same athlete will only be on the course for an hour or less.  That 5 minutes of total transition time "you" have, is 0.08% of a 10-hour Ironman time, whereas that same 5 minutes is 8.3% of a fast sprint triathlon time.

Time you gain in transition is 'free' time and it can make a huge difference!

I agree with what Deb said on many of her transition points, however I take a bit different view on a couple.

I use road cycling shoes that have two Velcro closures and the ratchet at the top.  You can learn to put these on fairly quickly with practice and get it down to a second or two difference.  I prefer actual road shoes vs. tri-shoes as I believe you transfer more power to the pedals with road shoes vs. tri-shoes or mountain bike shoes.  4-5 watts isn't very much I admit, but over the course of 112 miles, it adds up and will more than compensate for the couple of extra seconds it took in transition, in a sprint it is probably a wash.

I do not attach my shoes to the pedals.  If you are going to do that - PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, and then practice some more.  It is not as easy as the pros make it look on TV.  You have to be prepared for every situation - imagine you are just putting on your first shoe and 7 people are stopped or going extremely slow right in front of you.  I can attach my shoes to the pedals and run to the mount area barefoot, however my problem is I have "baby feet."  A grain of sand and I am writhing in pain!  (Yeah, I know, running around barefoot for a couple months will fix that).  Getting from the water to T1 is enough of a barefoot challenge for me on race day  thank you very much!  I prefer putting my cycling shoes on in T1.

I use socks on anything longer than a sprint.  Developing a blister will cost you far more in time than the few seconds it takes to put socks on in T1, or change socks in T2 if need be (thinking passing portapotties here), and having a blister can easily end up as a DNF.  If you are going to consider running without socks - DO THAT IN TRAINING FIRST.  Remember, nothing new on race day.

Practicing your transitions will significantly improve your time through transition.  I set up my transition area and then start 10 yards out and time myself from that start point, through T1 or T2, back to the 10 yard mark.  Find what works for YOU to make your transitions faster.