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New training routine ideas
Replies
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Wow, I feel for you, Bruce. Don't let it get you down. I've started cycling and I love it.0
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Bruce, I'm sorry to hear that diagnosis - I know how much swimming means to you. I'm sure you will find your way to another passion, & you'll be hitting that as hard as you did the swimming.....0
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Thanks for your comments boys.0
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Sorry to hear that, Bruce. That's a real bummer.0
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Not the News any of us wanted to hear. Will you be able to do any swimming with a replacement, modified Breast stroke so less rotational stress on the joint?0
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Well that sucks. I'm really sorry to hear that. Will you be able to swim at all? You sound like the kind of person who will find a new challenge, but we all know how much you love to swim.0
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Thanks, all. Doc said I could swim just not at the distances I was. He expressed that a new shoulder would be fine just not at 1-2 miles a day. Right now he wants me to wait and see. The chips might settle down or dissolve but long range replacement required. But, I am too active to replace it, just yet. It's hell getting old. Have been on a stair monster and biking as my exercise, about an hour each. Got addicted to the endorphins and have to have my fix. Thanks again for all of yawls comments.0
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Find out the recovery time, it might be worth it in the long run if it gives you the relief you need to take a break now. I had both my hips done at age 36, it was the best thing I ever did & I'm so glad I didn't wait longer.....0
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Bruceapple wrote: »Agree: Listen to your body - it usually let's you know.
My doctor keeps reminding me "Don't wright a check your body can't cash".
Update on my body, shoulder is bad, "free bodies" / 2 chips (nickel size) in the joint, NO more swimming!!
,
long run I will need a replacement, and the new one will not stand up to swimming 365 miles a year,
and you do not want to wear the new plastic one out
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Bruce man ...so sorry to hear about your shoulder ...Where there is a will there is a way.
Ok so here is my workout plan until I come up with another workout plan ...
My audiobook chapters average about 20 minutes long. However its highly variable, sometimes 10 minutes, several this week that were 50 minutes. But in most hours i listen to part or all of about 3 chapters. So I'm going to start breaking up my workout by chapter using combinations of modifications and strokes.
Kickboard, Pull Bouy, Closed Fist, and then normal stroke.
With Front Crawl, Backstroke, and Breast stroke (I can't make butterfly work).
So the combo gives me 12 modified strokes to cycle through. Should take me 3-4 days
I'll also try to do a sprint length at the end of each set, and possibly increase the number of lengths as time goes on. (Atho i feel a little silly calling a kickboard sprint a 'sprint' considering how slow it still is)
Also planning to try to do 3 days of swimming, an 4th day do something else. 4th day will alternate with trying other exercises and rest days.
I'm thinking once every two weeks or so I'll do a timed/counted swim to measure my progress.
One other thing. I saw so many folks at the gym using what looked like the same kickboards I assumed they were gym equipment, but when I went to find one today they weren't there. So I'm using one of those standard styrofoam water weights that they use in water aerobics as both my 'kickboard' and 'pull bouy'. Thoughts? Is this workable?
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Good plan Stephen. I see that is what you did tonight. It gives you a good working plan that you can use as your base and modify as you improve your skills. Good plan throwing in the random 4th day exercise/rest.
You might have to ask the attendants/staff where they hide the Kickboards.0 -
Congratulations Stephen - and I like the FITT thinking. I too need to up the intensity - and I do it by adding in sprints... (Well, sprint by my standard.)
Bruce - oh I am so sorry to hear this. What a blow. (Has the doc any ideas on what Excercise will suit your body now?)0 -
ok so after 6 weeks of this routine with the drills my mile time only went down by one minute. Which was fairly disappointing. So I'm going to heed some of the wisdom here and make incorporating sprints the priority. I'm going to have to incorporate at least some counting. But hopefully I 'll see improvement.
My current thoughts:
Go back to mixed strokes (front, back, breast)
Do decreasing sets. 8 endurance pace lengths, 1 sprint length., 7 endurance 1 sprint, etc
Once I get to just 1 sprint lap start increasing sets. 1 endurance, 1 sprint; 2 endurance, 1 sprint etc
I picked 9 because the total lengths would be 89 lengths. So far my personal best has been 82 lengths in ~hour. So if I can do the whole thing then I'll be improving.0 -
stephenrhinton wrote: »ok so after 6 weeks of this routine with the drills my mile time only went down by one minute. Which was fairly disappointing. So I'm going to heed some of the wisdom here and make incorporating sprints the priority. I'm going to have to incorporate at least some counting. But hopefully I 'll see improvement.
My current thoughts:
Go back to mixed strokes (front, back, breast)
Do decreasing sets. 8 endurance pace lengths, 1 sprint length., 7 endurance 1 sprint, etc
Once I get to just 1 sprint lap start increasing sets. 1 endurance, 1 sprint; 2 endurance, 1 sprint etc
I picked 9 because the total lengths would be 89 lengths. So far my personal best has been 82 lengths in ~hour. So if I can do the whole thing then I'll be improving.
Sprints are a great idea.
They are uncomfortable and have you gasping for breath and your heart really pumping fast, much more than a long steady controlled swim.
They work different physiological systems then long slower steady swims do, and impose different demands on your body!
They develop the body's capability to rotate through the swimming motions at a much faster rate, and sustain that for increasing periods of time (measured in seconds as opposed to minutes or hours).
They train your body to be able to ramp up the intensity to a far greater extent, then the demands that long slower swims place on the body!
The gap between your highest speed and your cruising speed becomes increasingly wider!
And ultimately, they make the longer swims more enjoyable, once the body eventually figures out that when you're on a long swim, it can't operate like it would during the sprint, then the longer swims feel abit more lea surely, and less rushed, in comparison to the frenetic pace of a sprint!
In the immediate aftermath, your long swims may even get slower. But then the magic kicks in and you speed up, once the body begins to adjust!
This was my graph soon after I began sprints. The times drop within 3 to 4 weeks in a big way.
Then I stopped the sprints and got erratic, and yesterday I was at 57, so yeah. Consistency is key, and you have no problem with that!
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AQ, you are a wealth of information.
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For what it's worth, these are the two sprint/faster-paced sets I like, repeated as many times as desired/time allows:
8x50s, rest in between each:
2x:
50 easy
50 medium
50 snappy
50 hard
5-10x100:
25 easy, 50 hard, 25 easy
I pick an interval that allows me to get about 10 seconds of rest after the first one. It is not 10 seconds of rest by the end.
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I'm very nearsighted, and goggles don't help. For me to even read the clock on the wall means stopping, taking off the googles, squinting, maybe waiting for a number to change ... it is at least a 30-45 second process. So I try to avoid any workout routine that involves timed intervals or timed rests0
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stephenrhinton wrote: »I'm very nearsighted, and goggles don't help. For me to even read the clock on the wall means stopping, taking off the googles, squinting, maybe waiting for a number to change ... it is at least a 30-45 second process. So I try to avoid any workout routine that involves timed intervals or timed rests
Have you considered wearing a waterproof watch?
I mean, you don't have to do intervals if you don't want to! Just, if you *do* want to, there are options even for the squinters. (I am saving up for LASIK, myself. ) 0 -
So I discovered something in the last couple of days implementing my new plan. With my standard rotation front, back, breast. And starting with an interval of 9th length sprint and decreasing or starting with 8th length sprint and decreasing. None of my sprint laps are front crawl! The sprint lap always ends up on a backstroke of breast stroke rotation. Heh. I rather prefer sprinting using those strokes, but probably not best for training/challenge.
I'll have to switch up my starting length type ...cheshirecatastrophe wrote: »Have you considered wearing a waterproof watch?
I've considered it, but I'm not sure I could really see it any better, and they are expensive. I've actually ordered one of the Instabeat Heads-up HRMs. But it is a start-up company and they are still in the working out kinks in production/delivery phase. So I have been on back-order for months.
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cheshirecatastrophe wrote: »stephenrhinton wrote: »I'm very nearsighted, and goggles don't help. For me to even read the clock on the wall means stopping, taking off the googles, squinting, maybe waiting for a number to change ... it is at least a 30-45 second process. So I try to avoid any workout routine that involves timed intervals or timed rests
Have you considered wearing a waterproof watch?
I mean, you don't have to do intervals if you don't want to! Just, if you *do* want to, there are options even for the squinters. (I am saving up for LASIK, myself. )stephenrhinton wrote: »So I discovered something in the last couple of days implementing my new plan. With my standard rotation front, back, breast. And starting with an interval of 9th length sprint and decreasing or starting with 8th length sprint and decreasing. None of my sprint laps are front crawl! The sprint lap always ends up on a backstroke of breast stroke rotation. Heh. I rather prefer sprinting using those strokes, but probably not best for training/challenge.
I'll have to switch up my starting length type ...cheshirecatastrophe wrote: »Have you considered wearing a waterproof watch?
I've considered it, but I'm not sure I could really see it any better, and they are expensive. I've actually ordered one of the Instabeat Heads-up HRMs. But it is a start-up company and they are still in the working out kinks in production/delivery phase. So I have been on back-order for months.
I use the waterproof watch below. It only costs 15 bucks. I'm short sighted too and wouldn't be able to use a pool clock!
http://www.amazon.com/Casio-AE1000W-1BVCF-Silver-Tone-Black-Digital/dp/B003DZDYMU/ref=sr_1_26?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1438540126&sr=1-26&refinements=p_n_feature_two_browse-bin:379318011,p_89:Casiocheshirecatastrophe wrote: »For what it's worth, these are the two sprint/faster-paced sets I like, repeated as many times as desired/time allows:
8x50s, rest in between each:
2x:
50 easy
50 medium
50 snappy
50 hard
5-10x100:
25 easy, 50 hard, 25 easy
I pick an interval that allows me to get about 10 seconds of rest after the first one. It is not 10 seconds of rest by the end.
I need to try that Cheshire - perhaps they can get me whizzing along at even half the speeds you do
So, do you pick either the 8x50s or the 5-10x100s?
Also, the 10+ seconds of rest is between what?
Where do the 50s (easy, medium, snappy, hard) fall in all this?
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AquaticQuests wrote: »cheshirecatastrophe wrote: »stephenrhinton wrote: »I'm very nearsighted, and goggles don't help. For me to even read the clock on the wall means stopping, taking off the googles, squinting, maybe waiting for a number to change ... it is at least a 30-45 second process. So I try to avoid any workout routine that involves timed intervals or timed rests
Have you considered wearing a waterproof watch?
I mean, you don't have to do intervals if you don't want to! Just, if you *do* want to, there are options even for the squinters. (I am saving up for LASIK, myself. )stephenrhinton wrote: »So I discovered something in the last couple of days implementing my new plan. With my standard rotation front, back, breast. And starting with an interval of 9th length sprint and decreasing or starting with 8th length sprint and decreasing. None of my sprint laps are front crawl! The sprint lap always ends up on a backstroke of breast stroke rotation. Heh. I rather prefer sprinting using those strokes, but probably not best for training/challenge.
I'll have to switch up my starting length type ...cheshirecatastrophe wrote: »Have you considered wearing a waterproof watch?
I've considered it, but I'm not sure I could really see it any better, and they are expensive. I've actually ordered one of the Instabeat Heads-up HRMs. But it is a start-up company and they are still in the working out kinks in production/delivery phase. So I have been on back-order for months.
I use the waterproof watch below. It only costs 15 bucks. I'm short sighted too and wouldn't be able to use a pool clock!
http://www.amazon.com/Casio-AE1000W-1BVCF-Silver-Tone-Black-Digital/dp/B003DZDYMU/ref=sr_1_26?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1438540126&sr=1-26&refinements=p_n_feature_two_browse-bin:379318011,p_89:Casiocheshirecatastrophe wrote: »For what it's worth, these are the two sprint/faster-paced sets I like, repeated as many times as desired/time allows:
8x50s, rest in between each:
2x:
50 easy
50 medium
50 snappy
50 hard
5-10x100:
25 easy, 50 hard, 25 easy
I pick an interval that allows me to get about 10 seconds of rest after the first one. It is not 10 seconds of rest by the end.
I need to try that Cheshire - perhaps they can get me whizzing along at even half the speeds you do
So, do you pick either the 8x50s or the 5-10x100s?
Also, the 10+ seconds of rest is between what?
Where do the 50s (easy, medium, snappy, hard) fall in all this?
Yes, normally I would swim a mile nonstop, and then do a set of 8x50s/12x50s OR 5-10x100. If I have time after that, I do an IM thing, but that almost never happens.
So what I do is I swim the first 50 or 100, making note of my start time on the pace clock (easiest to start at :00). When I finish, I check the pace clock for my time. That time plus 10 seconds of rest is my interval for the set, or as long as I can hold it. So it's usually 10 seconds of rest for the first couple 100s, less for the rest.
Like, the most recent time I did the 100 set, I did the first one in about 1:38-1:39. I like round numbers, so I called it 1:40, left for #2 on 1:50, and then just counted each subsequent one by 1:50. So for #3 I left on 3:40, etc.
On the 50s, obviously the faster ones get more rest--but I need it then!0
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