Swim Squad 03032010

Warmup:
100m each
Swim Kick Swim Kick Swim

Main Set:
10x50 on 1:20

200 easy

10x50 on 1:20

400m easy cool down

For Wilson and KianMing and Robert, the second main set was a pyramid set from 50 to 200 and down.

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Approximate (per lap) timing for first set of 10x50s.
Ryan: 0:55
Gen: 0:56
Sam: 0:55
Chang Jie: 0:58~1:04
Jia wei: 1:00
Marianne: 1:03
KK: 0:51
Kian Ming: 1:10
Wilson: 1:06

Approximate (per lap) timing for first set of 10x50s.
Ryan: 0:56
Gen: 0:58
Sam: 0:55
Chang Jie: 1:03
Jia Wei: 1:03
Marianne: 1:04
KK: 0:50
Leon: 0:51

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This is a good indicator set of how much race fitness we have. Having long rest allows quality swim laps/sets and thus the timing was quite consistent for most people.

Below are list of people whose timing dropped usually from 5th set onwards.
Marianne
Jiawei
Kian Ming
Chang Jie

This shows a lack of swim endurance base and thus in ability to hold a race pace power output. More swim will help and this is clearly shown in Marianne's case. There has been a huge improvement in pace maintenance for her and I believe it is due to the extra swim sessions she's done herself.

A word of advice to those who're using pull buoy for practice. Try not to over use it as it gives a false conception of isolating the arm to do the work and also it takes away the work of the erector spinae (lower back) and glutes and hamstring and calves in keeping the back extended and floating. Those muscles are important core muscles needed for keeping a streamlined position in water whilst rotating and applying power through the water with your arms and back muscles.

When you use the pull buoy, make sure you are working on the following point:
- Keeping your body locked straight at the hip area and don't let the body bent.
- Lock your body out from lateral swaying movements
- When doing the catch and pulling, remember to incorporate body rotation and not just use your arms.
- At all times, press your chest down and extend your legs far far behind with toes pointed to get a streamlined position, do not just make use of the buoy to help you float as it gives the body a crippled feeling once it is removed.

The pull buoy in a way takes away the floating problem from the hips but it magnifies the problem of any swimmer whose core is weak and unable to keep body locked in a straight line without kicks. Use it wisely to teach yourself of mistakes you're doing and correct them.. don't use the pull buoy as a mean to become lazy with the lack of neeed to kick.

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Chang Jie:
A small review for chang jie, the body rotation towards the non breathing side is incomplete and as a resul the recovering arm is forced to be dragging along in the water and the high elbow cannot get a high enough clearance to recover.

Next time when yu finished breathing and is starting the next pull, remember to rotate MORE towards the none breathing side.

Also, when you pull, your non breathing side tend to pull only half way especially when you're panting for breathe. It is more like shortening the non breathing side's pull so you can start the breathing side pull faster to come up and breathe sooner.
Bad habit to have as it reduces the amount of glide you have.

Kick is very weak and cannot help in propulsion too..

Last but not least, breathing is abit on the high side. Keep abt half the face in the water if possible in calm water situation.

Ryan:
A short review for ryan.
From this practice it confirmed my finding for your swim.
1) You got a strong back and glutes probably from running with a straight body. Thus your body streamlining is good.
2) Kick is weak and does not help in propulsion

I saw you working on the high elbow. Most important thing to do now is to consciously add them into the moderate effort sets and warm up sets. I can understand when its race pace, it is hard to incorporate but still, you'll have to add them into the race pace set sooner or later..

The thing about swimming is you need to practice a skill at speed after you practiced it slow. Its just when you swim slow and you finally got it on how to recover with a high elbow, but when you swim fast, your body won't be able to ccope on the coordination due to different exertion level.


Leon and Sam
Leon and Sam have this same problem of the lower body sinking like nobody's business at the end of the sets which is very detrimental as that is when energy is very depleted already and you're trying to use every single ounce of energy you have left to move forward and not fight the drag forces.

You guys have to do more back extension or prone superman exercises. Also when you kick, kick from the hip and glutes.. try to resist the urge to just wack the legs flexion from the knee downwards.. very detrimental to streamlining of the body with too much bending at the knees.

Wilson:
Loads of anaerobic power.. very respectable. Remember to work on the slow easy swims for now.. you need to learn to master the finesse as that will give you a much bigger return in the future.. anaerobic fitness are always trainable and thus even if you lose abit of them now it is ok.

Try to pay more attention to your body's relaxation during the non race pace set and make stroke counts. Break 1 long lap into 2 counts (first half and second half) then find out which part has the most increase (usually last 10 meters)..
Then next time pay attention to what happen to the body and what are you doing (how you breathing and are you gliding? etc..) during that part of a swim when strokes are increasing alot.

Gen:
I see conscious effort in pulling all the way back but when you have to still pay more attention to what you're doing when you're feeling like dying already.. usually the last 2 sets. Technique falters quite a bit during the last 2 laps.

Jiawei:
Eh bro.. can you explain why on the 1st 30m of the very first set you DAMN FREAKING FAST... like going at 25secs 50m pace.. then you always die off... and you never recover for the rest of the sets!?
Can you try to curb the temptation to chiong on the first set and aim for 10x of 50seconds instead? Use your energy wisely. You only got 2seconds of ATP stores and the glycolytic system only last for 10secs.. you chiong all out for 10 seconds then you need time to recharge liao.

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Everybody's kick is still pretty weak.. Next time must do timed kick sets AND vertical kicking liao....

Last but not least, I know this sounds a bit narcissistic but when any of you swim beside me.. try to take a look at how I do things in the water. I usually go 2 seconds after i said "Go" so you're definitely in front of me and have a good view of what I do when I pass you...

Sam caught a glimpse of how I drive my hip and chest into the water with my strong body rotation and how it helps me to gain a huge load more gliding with each pull and she broke her PB for her 50m that night.. 51secs. :).

This is a true form of practice as I often watch the olympic swimmers in youtube and I find myself swimming faster too due to the silky movements that I try to mimic from the video... try it!

Gen, I know liao.. it is not my pull or kick that is creating the wave.. but its more like my rotation and I'm consciously activating my back and core muscles through rotation.. Arm and leg muscles only cannot create such wave to push you away one la.:)

Cheers
KK