210710 Swim Training

First of all, THANK YOU TECKBENG!!!!! For helping us take video even though you are sick!!!! Thank you on behalf of the whole team! :)

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Training:

Warmup:
1 x FS-Swim, FS- Kick, FS-Swim (100 each)

Main set:
100 Fly Kick (3 kick, 1 bs pull)
200 Breast Stroke Swim
300 Free Style Swim

100m Hard FS swim for video purpose

100 Fly Kick (3 kick, 1 bs pull)
200 Breast Stroke Swim
300 Free Style Swim

100m Cool down

---------------------- 1.7KM

Basically the idea of today's training is a generic extract of a true swimmer's training. A true swimmer's training as per mentioned before, are very diversified and not ALWAYS specific to his/her event stroke style.

Some of you complained of feeling "chuiz" or exhausted after butterfly kick sets... Some of you complained of feeling damn tired after breast stroke swim...
Some of you complained of feeling devastated or "te-kan-ed" by me because I ask you to do kicks... (Before you complain, look(below) at how much kicks I did before joining you guys.. :P).

So as you see, we're all weak at a certain part of our body and swimming is a wholistic sport. In fact, everything in life is wholistic. You can't stand straight if your back muscles can't pull your back together. You can't lift your leg and move it forward for a step if the other leg doesn't have strength to support your weight while you move. You can't carry a box of equipments or even you bike with your arms if you lower back screams pain and ache when you use your arm to shift such heavy items.

These supporting muscle groups are what we call stabilizer muscles or in actual scientific terms, Synergy muscles. Basically it supports your other part of body as you focus on doing one thing with one other part.

In swim, keeping your body straight while you pull your body through the water is a helluva tiring business. You're literally moving through a space filled with water in a hovering position with your arm as an anchorage. And you have to keep that 60 to 80kg body of yours in a straight line as you move through the water (sometimes with turbulence).

Thus it pays to train up all supporting muscles as at the end of the day, it makes you stronger and you'll eventually find it more effortless to hold a streamlined position while moving through the water with a strong pull or kick.

Below is an illustration of my own swim tonight... as boastful as it seems, please take the below with a pinch of salt and see through what I'm really trying to say behind the colorful description of my own swim program. That's the anchoring of arm and swimming with your core.

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I did:
Warmup:
100m FS- Swim
100m FS- Kick
100m FS- Pull
100m FS- Kick
100m FS- Swim
100m FS- Swim
100m FS- Kick
100m FS- Pull
100m FS- Kick
100m FS- Swim
+ Warmup with you guys..
100m FS- Swim
100m FS- Kick
100m FS-Swim
NO Rest, all near Race Pace except first 100m.

Main set:
100m Fly Kick (3-6 kick, 1 bs pull)
200m Breast Stroke Swim
300m Free Style Swim

100m Hard FS swim for video purpose

100 Fly Kick (3 kick, 1 bs pull)
200 Breast Stroke Swim
300 Free Style Swim
100 FS Cool down
---------------- 2.7KM,
About 85% of it in Race Pace, Kick laps all in Race Pace.

Also to note, I did them with minor tear in my both arms' biceps. This morning I couldn't straighten my arm past 90 degrees and I had to go for a doctor's massage then pop 6 pain killers to help the inflammation go down. I wasn't able to bend my arm or straighten without any pain right now as I type too.

The point I'm trying to prove?
I am able to swim without much use of my arms.

I use my arms only as anchor and then I use my core and body rotation to help me move through the water.

Lawrence made a comment about swimming at my pace (Easy to moderate) felt like I was pulling really hard with my arms as he had to pull pretty hard to be able to catch up. The matter of fact is I can't even use my arms much tonight because of the pain I felt later in the swim after the video taking... So it goes to show that a strong core goes a long way... lasts longer than what arms can do (sorry to mention this but Vincent is swimming with a lot of arms, and so is Lawrence and Sam and those of you who feels a lot of strain in the arms when you go through the swim training.).

Of course I have to admit the flipper swims I did last few weeks did make my kick pretty consistent and I felt pretty strong throughout the swim.. but the very important point I've proven (surprising even to myself) is that I finally realize what I had always been preaching about swimming with your core.

As you can see, from few weeks back, I've started a very strong emphasis on anchoring your arm in the water and then using your core to pull your body forward with rotation... I'm really expecting everyone to at least grasp and understand the concepts before we move forward to clocking some serious mileage in preparation for the next season of races.

I hope everyone is on the same page as I am as it is critical we move forward as A TEAM and leave nobody behind!

Cheers
KK