"H2O: 2 parts Heart, 1 part Obsession" Swimming: From the outside looking in, you can't understand it. From the inside looking out, you can't explain it.
"Hi, i am a Masters swimmer age 46 in Austria / Europe. I really like your strategy tips as given on the 200 free. But, how to swim the 400?"
50 strong/moderate
100 long strokes, fast kick
100 quick strokes, solid kick
100 build
50 sprint
"hi, im swimming the 200 free in my league final meet in about 9 days and i was wondering if you perhaps had any advice? usually what i do is : 1st 50 small strokes tiny kicks, 2nd 50 long strokes tiny kicks, 3rd 50 long strokes start kicking, and last 50 all out. but is there anything that you can recommend pre-meet and during the meet that can help? P.S. im a guy if that makes any difference"
STRETCH! Stretching is good, and a slow but smooth warmup. Stay hydrated and warm.
Also, I like your strategy. My coach has a different one, if anyone is interested in 200 strategies: 50 strong moderate, 50 build to sprint, 50 long strokes/sprint kick, 50 dead sprint.
"Hi, Im a 2 years high school swimmer, and Im doing the 200 IM and the 100 fly for champs any tips on those sets, or what should I do after the 200 IM to be ready for the 100 fly ?"
Check out http://swimthefly.tumblr.com/tagged/tips or /butterfly or /IM for some tips on the events.
As for in between the two races, I don’t know what your league is like, but dual meets for us means usually only 2 or 3 heats in those events at the most. Make your cool down your warm up, and most importantly: breathe. Just relax, stretch, drink a little bit of water. And good luck!
With more and more swimmers around the world using the dolphin kick as a huge weapon in races, what are the key technique points to have the best dolphin kick? Many people point to hip movement as being the most critical, but the leg motion and position are equally – if not more – important.
"My advice on the 500: I'm at 6:30 because of my amazing coach. It sounds like a bad idea so practice it first, but do the first 100 fast pace, second hundred at an easy pace, third is fast, then for the fourth, you have to build, do the first 25 of it slow, second 25 is faster, then faster for the third and sprint the last 25 and absolutely kill with everything you have left on the last 100, because once you see the 15th lap on the counter, that's the make it or break it point."
Here are some of the top questions I’ve gotten from my readers.
Question: Is fruit juice a good beverage for a young swimmer who is trying to gain weight?
"i swam the 500 my last two meets for high school and i went a 7:06 and 7:07 any ideas on how i could break 7? what are some good race strategies and what should i do for warmup? my coach told me to hold 42s but i'm not good with numbers and swimming :("
I just broke 7 about a week ago! I went a 6:47. Here’s what I did:
First 50 I went out too fast. I know from earlier experience that you actually want to go out pretty slow. It’ll feel slow in a bad way to you, but it’ll help you conserve your energy. Keep pacing until the 200 or 250. At the 250, start building. At 350, do a 50 that emphasizes super powerful kicking. And then you have to really dead sprint that last 100. It hurts a lot, but make sure your last 100 is technically perfect. Strong turns and long streamlines, at least 2 strokes breakout before your first breath. Breathe as little as possible. If you can manage it, don’t breathe more than 4 or 5 times total in your last 50. Good luck!
Also check this post out in our tips section
~Meg
"it's my first meet and my mom won't let me shave my legs. i'm a girl by the way. she's never shaved before and thinks it's down right bad for you, same with my dad. what do you think i should do ? will not shaving affect my time?"
I personally think that shaving is more of a mental thing. If you shave you feel like you can drop time and if you don’t you won’t. If your parents don’t let you shave, don’t do it. You can try explaining to your parents that shaving is important to you or that you think it will help you drop time, but if they still say no you should listen to them. Unless you are an Olympian or at an incredibly high level of competition, it really isn’t anything more than a psychological advantage.
Do you ever wonder how much fluid is needed to prevent dehydration? If you’ve experienced dehydration, you know it derails swim performance and causes other effects such as tiredness, headaches and confusion or poor judgment.
Did you know that sleeping is part of training? Sleep is the time that the body needs to incorporate the effects of training to upgrade performance. Sleep is the time that the body uses to repair the effects of training to improve strength, endurance and cardiovascular fitness.
Considering these known responses to sleep, it could be argued that heavier or more intense training times have to take sleep into account to be effective. Without it, the benefits of training may be lost or worse yet, result in breakdown.
So, is breakdown a result of ‘over-training’ or lack of sleep? Makes you think, doesn’t it?
USA Swimming will be featuring a series that addresses sleep as a critical component to achieving successful performance. The upcoming topics will include a lead off with a discussion of how sleep works to maximize your training. This will be followed by tips on how to carry healthy sleep habits with you when you travel. Two unique challenges follow - sleep management when crossing time zones and sleep management during the taper. All of these topics are critical to achieving maximum performances from the years of training that you have invested. Finally, is there a time when medication, prescription or ‘natural’ is warranted? We will look into that topic also.
Without sleep, performance will suffer regardless of technique, training or coaching. Winning requires sleep management, which has to be planned and not left to chance.
By Jim Miller, MD, National team physician and Chair of USA Swimming’s Sports Medicine Task Force
"Hi, do you have tips on transitioning from JV to varsity on a high school team? I tried a look in the tips section, but couldn't find anything! Thanks!"
Firstly, congratulations on making varsity!
Other than maybe being in a faster group for practice, the biggest difference between JV and varsity is the distance of some events. The 100 IM becomes 200, and 50 fly becomes 100. Of course, the competition gets faster, too. If I were you, I’d make friends with and get to know the varsity swimmers. You can go to them for advice on certain events, and they’ll probably help you with your training if you push yourself to keep up with or even outswim the veteran varsity swimmers.
Best of luck!
~Meg
P.S. Thanks for checking the tips section!
