Is getting in and swimming 500yds beneficial? If not, what’s the line of demarcation?
What’s the magic number that makes 2 workouts better than 1 (if you belong to the frequency is better camp)? Are two 2500 m sessions better than one 5 k session? What about two 1500’s > one 3 k? You see what I’m asking, I hope.
Thanks.
Is getting in and swimming 500yds beneficial? If not, what’s the line of demarcation?
What’s the magic number that makes 2 workouts better than 1 (if you belong to the frequency is better camp)? Are two 2500 m sessions better than one 5 k session? What about two 1500’s > one 3 k? You see what I’m asking, I hope.
Thanks.
ANY workout, swim bike or run is worth it. Short is better than nothing.
Depends on the individual.
For me, 500 isn’t even enough to get warmed up, let alone do anything. And that 8 minutes of swimming isn’t worth the hassle of getting to the pool, changing, putting in contacts, getting a towel wet, and so forth.
1500 is about my minimum as to the “worth it”.
My quality of workout starts to suffer when the practice gets beyond 4500m or so (most of mine are around the 3k mark). So I’d rather do 2 x 3000m practices than one 5000. (warmup is typically 1000 or so, so 2 x 3000 has roughly the same # of “quality” metres as a single 5000m practice).
But I’m also a pure swimmer, and don’t really care about anything above the 400m (or the 500 if I was an American). I won’t break up a 3000 into 2 1500’s, I don’t feel like I can get enough done that way.
TL:DR version - 3000m is the sweet spot for me.
The line of demarcation you seek is going to be all over the map for different people depending on their ability and where they are on their own swim fitness spectrum.
If what you’re saying is you are able to or willing to put (only) X hours a week into swimming (and per session to/from pool and locker room overhead are non-factors), how should you break it up…more specifics (e.g. what is X) would be helpful. As h2o said, any (swim) workout is a good workout. 500 yards is worth swimming if the alternative is no swimming. But, if you swim less than 3x per week OR less than…I’ll say 6000 yards per week, you might not improve for long unless you are just starting out. And at some point after that, if you can’t raise the yardage, you’re going to plateau.
If you’ve gotta have a formula (which won’t apply to everyone)- unless X/3 yields less than 1500 yards per session, split into 3 sessions to maintain frequency. And if X/3 results in > 4000 per session, add a fourth session.
If X/3 is less than 1500 per session, split into 2.
If X/2 is less than 1000 per session perhaps you might as well just swim once so you can actually get warmed up and spend some time swimming properly.
If you are swimming less than 5000 a week, you’re not going to get much fitness and all it’s going to help is your technique IF you diligently use the time to work on that so a counterargument might be that you should swim super frequently even if just for 15 minutes…but I just don’t see that paying off - whatever technique you develop you won’t really be able apply, since you won’t be fit enough to do it for very long.
More data about your current ability, past and potential volume, logistics, goals etc. needed to give any answer that isn’t just handwaving.
The line of demarcation you seek is going to be all over the map for different people depending on their ability and where they are on their own swim fitness spectrum.
If what you’re saying is you are able to or willing to put (only) X hours a week into swimming (and per session to/from pool and locker room overhead are non-factors), how should you break it up…more specifics (e.g. what is X) would be helpful. As h2o said, any (swim) workout is a good workout. 500 yards is worth swimming if the alternative is no swimming. But, if you swim less than 3x per week OR less than…I’ll say 6000 yards per week, you might not improve for long unless you are just starting out. And at some point after that, if you can’t raise the yardage, you’re going to plateau.
If you’ve gotta have a formula (which won’t apply to everyone)- unless X/3 yields less than 1500 yards per session, split into 3 sessions to maintain frequency. And if X/3 results in > 4000 per session, add a fourth session.
If X/3 is less than 1500 per session, split into 2.
If X/2 is less than 1000 per session perhaps you might as well just swim once so you can actually get warmed up and spend some time swimming properly.
If you are swimming less than 5000 a week, you’re not going to get much fitness and all it’s going to help is your technique IF you diligently use the time to work on that so a counterargument might be that you should swim super frequently even if just for 15 minutes…but I just don’t see that paying off - whatever technique you develop you won’t really be able apply, since you won’t be fit enough to do it for very long.
More data about your current ability, past and potential volume, logistics, goals etc. needed to give any answer that isn’t just handwaving.
I have a key to my community pool and unlimited access. I swim with masters 3X/wk…at about 2,200 SCY/per - currently. I’m recovering from a shoulder surgery and I’m not looking to swim less. I’m looking to swim MORE.
My last 3 tris have been HIM’s. 36:xx, 29:xx (current-assisted) and Choo 70.3 (shortened). I’m about a 1:45-1:50 swimmer in the pool. With a wetsuit, obviously I’m a little faster. Again, I’m trying to see if it’s “worth it” to go swim (_____ yds) or if I should just rest the shoulder. I’d like to swim more…not less…only if it makes sense.
Your shoulder changes the question a bit. It won’t hurt to get into the pool for just a few hundred and swim easy with really good form, then get out, as often as you can. Basically therapy sessions. If I had access to a pool like that, I’d probably get in twice a day just to work on something or the other.
I will be setting up a small above-ground pool at home soon, so I might be doing some of that with a tether and snorkel.
My rule of thumb is that you need 25min in the water. As Jason said, that’s probably about 1500m or so.
Basically, I figure you need about 1000m (or yds) of deliberate strokes. So figure 300-500 to get warmed up. Then 1000 or so of actual focused practice.
I HAVE an above ground (16x32 oval)…and have wondered about using tethers during the warm months. I’ve read a few negative opinions about tethers, so I never bothered. Sounds like your opinion of them is “good” (or better than nothing)? Maybe as supplemental to real pool sessions?
It would certainly beat the overhead of going to the pool sometimes…
Any tips on effective tether usage for a new-ish adult onset swimmer?
15 minutes all out is my minimum.
I’ve never used one.
Closest thing is in my swimming days 25 years ago, we’d have stretch bands tied to the blocks, swim against the resistance as far as you could, then sprint back with assistance. But that’s a rather different purpose.
My plan is to try it out as a supplement to real swimming. It may work, it may not. We have the pool and I’ll be setting up this weekend anyway, so there’s no real extra effort to set up.
Something is better than nothing especially in rehabbing. My though on distance it also depends on how long the swim in the races you are going to be doing is.
As a MOPer, 500 is better than zero.
You can do all-out 10 x 50s and hammer your strength pretty good in a short time.
As a MOPer, 500 is better than zero.
You can do all-out 10 x 50s and hammer your strength pretty good in a short time.
Recovering from a shoulder injury & surgery, with no warm up? Great way to re-injure it.
how close are you to the pool? for me, a crap swimmer, 500 yards of technique work wouldn’t hurt but I doubt I would go to the pool for anything less than like 20 minutes and I live less than a 5 minute drive to the pool.
how close are you to the pool? for me, a crap swimmer, 500 yards of technique work wouldn’t hurt but I doubt I would go to the pool for anything less than like 20 minutes and I live less than a 5 minute drive to the pool.
5 miles
As a MOPer, 500 is better than zero.
You can do all-out 10 x 50s and hammer your strength pretty good in a short time.
Recovering from a shoulder injury & surgery, with no warm up? Great way to re-injure it.
True dat!
if it serves its purpose its worth it. Whatever that means for the situation.
Looking to gain fitness: Worth it if it stresses your current ability
Looking to recover: worth it if it allows the body to recover
Looking to maintain: worth it if it maintains form
etc.
So… whats the purpose of your swim? Don’t have one… then you’re probably wasting some of your time.
As a MOPer, 500 is better than zero.
You can do all-out 10 x 50s and hammer your strength pretty good in a short time.
Recovering from a shoulder injury & surgery, with no warm up? Great way to re-injure it.
IMO, the shoulder surgery recovery controls this situation. I am an FOP swimmer (for tris…) but when I was recovering from shoulder surgery I was happy to be able to get 500 yds to 1K in, SCY. And very very slowly at that. So the question is really dependent on that sole issue.
For me, when healthy, I figure I treaded water so to speak at 2 x 3K a week, improved ever so slightly at 3 x 3K a week, and really only improved to any measurable degree 4X per week or more, which was rare. Accordingly, given the time required, I would not personally get in the water for less than 2500 if getting faster was the goal as opposed to just getting fitness or ROM back
I also wouldn’t typically go over 4K or so in a single workout unless I was training for something longer. I think the fatigue after 4K starts to diminish returns. Just my feeling on it though.
I try to get 2.5 to 3k per session around 3-4 sessions a week, it’s hard at this time of the year though in an outdoor pool during Winter.
As a MOPer, 500 is better than zero.
You can do all-out 10 x 50s and hammer your strength pretty good in a short time.
Recovering from a shoulder injury & surgery, with no warm up? Great way to re-injure it.
IMO, the shoulder surgery recovery controls this situation. I am an FOP swimmer (for tris…) but when I was recovering from shoulder surgery I was happy to be able to get 500 yds to 1K in, SCY. And very very slowly at that. So the question is really dependent on that sole issue.
For me, when healthy, I figure I treaded water so to speak at 2 x 3K a week, improved ever so slightly at 3 x 3K a week, and really only improved to any measurable degree 4X per week or more, which was rare. Accordingly, given the time required, I would not personally get in the water for less than 2500 if getting faster was the goal as opposed to just getting fitness or ROM back
I also wouldn’t typically go over 4K or so in a single workout unless I was training for something longer. I think the fatigue after 4K starts to diminish returns. Just my feeling on it though.
Define something longer. I have IM Lou on the horizon.