Posted 26/09/2022 by Jenny Lucas-Hill

For most of us triathletes, we know our swim needs work. It might only be a small part of a triathlon, but where you are versus the rest of the field after the swim – and importantly, how you feel coming out of the water – can have a huge impact on the rest of your race. Knowing we need to improve, and knowing what sessions to actually get in the pool and do are two different things. It’s easy to fall into the trap of just doing the same old swim sets, or ploughing up and down the pool at the same old pace. Getting out of your comfort zone in the pool and trying out some new sessions can be a great way to not only make the sessions a bit more varied, but also to finally get those oh-so elusive swim gains.

Following on from his Five Tips for Improving Your Swim This Winter, Tom Epton – triathlete and seriously speedy swimmer – shares some great pool sessions to help you up your game in the water.

Swim Gains: Pool Sessions to Level-Up Your Triathlon Swim

“You can’t win a triathlon in the swim, but you can lose it” is a saying that’s thrown around quite a lot. It’s repeated because it’s true. You can still flop after a good swim. But it’s a lot harder to win a race without one. This is why it is perplexing that most triathletes are a long way from fulfilling their potential in swimming. Part of the explanation probably lies in the fact that swimming isn’t fun. A bike ride with your mates is more exciting than a 6am aerobic swim session – but boring isn’t always a bad thing. Boring training often leads to good results and gains in fitness.  These swim sets will not be fun – they are either boring or hard – but doing them regularly will see you make fitness gains and will take minutes off your swim time come race day.

Swimming with friends can help you to stay consistent. Having someone to meet at the pool before work, for example, will increase accountability. It will also introduce a social aspect to swim training which will make sessions more fun. If training is fun then you’re more likely to do it.

The sessions are split into three categories: aerobic, CSS and speed sessions. Aerobic swims are designed to help build an engine, they serve a similar purpose to long runs and rides and are important for central aerobic fitness and muscular conditioning. CSS, or ‘Critical Swim Speed’, swims are designed to improve your threshold pace. They normally involve shorter reps with short rest periods, at around your 1500m pace. Speed sessions are designed to improve “takeout speed” – being able to hit a strong pace at the start of the swim so that you can get into a good swim group and benefit from the draft of swimming on the feet of fast swimmers.

Swimming faster sessions also has a neuromuscular benefit and can lead to being more efficient at high speed, allowing you to move your race pace along.  If you are able to swim three times per week then complete one of each type of session, if you can swim more than this complete one CSS session, one speed session and the rest should be steady aerobic swimming.

Aerobic Sessions

1k Repetitions (3-6km):

Warm Up

  • 5 x 100m steady with 30s rest
  • 2 x 50m kick with 10s rest

Main Set

  • 2-5 repetitions of 1000m with 2 minutes recovery between each

Cool Down

  • 400m mixed strokes

Pyramids (3.1 – 5.1km):

Warm Up

  • 5 x 100m as two easy, two steady, one at 1500m pace with 30s rest.
  • 2 x 50m kick with 10s rest.
  • 4 x 25m FAST! 45s rest between each

Main Set

2 – 4 times through with 15s between each repetition…

  • 400m easy
  • 300m steady
  • 200m steady
  • 100m at 1500m pace

Cool Down

  • 400m mixed strokes.

Straight up distance swim (2 – 6km):
Main Set

2-6km steady swim. This session is better in open water but can be done in a pool!

CSS Sessions

 20 x 100 (3.4km):

Warm Up

  • 3 x 200m easy with 30s rest
  • 4 x 50m build stroke rate to FAST, 45s rest
  • 4 x 50m kick easy to hard, 30s rest

Main Set

  • 20 x 100m at 1500m pace with 10s rest

Cool Down

  • 400m mixed strokes

Pyramid (3.6 – 4.6km):

Warm Up

  • 400, 300, 200, 100 building as easy, steady, CSS, fast with 30s rest
  • 4 x 50m kick easy to hard, 30s rest

Main Set (Repeat 2-3 times)

  • 400, 300, 200, 100 all CSS pace with 25s between reps
  • 90s rest

Cool Down

  • 400m mixed strokes

10 x 200 (3.4km):

Warm Up

  • 3 x 200m easy with 30s rest
  • 4 x 50m build stroke rate to FAST, 45s rest
  • 4 x 50m kick easy to hard, 30s rest

Main Set

  • 10 x 200m at 1500m pace with 10s rest

Cool Down

400m mixed strokes

Speed Sessions

10 x 25m (2.2 – 3.2km):

Warm Up

  • 5 x 100m easy aerobic, 30s rest
  • 4 x 50m kick HARD!, 60s rest
  • 4 x 25m build from easy to fast, 30s rest

Main Set (repeat 2 – 4 times)

  • 10 x 25m FAST! 30s rest.
  • 250m easy aerobic. 60s rest.

Cool Down

  • 400m mixed strokes

Overpaced 100s (2 km):

Warm Up

  • 5 x 100m easy aerobic, 30s rest
  • 4 x 50m kick HARD! 60s rest

Main Set

  • 10 x 100m max pace with fins on, 2:30 rest

Cool Down

  • 300m mixed strokes

Swimming is something triathletes traditionally find the most difficult, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. Swim as much aerobic volume as you are able to find time to, aim to complete one speed session and one CSS session per week and you’ll find you can make big gains. Getting comfortable with repetition and embracing boredom will help you to step up your swim. And, by reducing the amount of time spent on technique drills and doing more volume you’ll become conditioned to the demands of swimming in a triathlon, so you can take minutes off your times from previous years. There’s no escaping the fact that to swim fast you have to swim a lot but if you’ve only got time to swim three times a week then one aerobic session, one CSS session and one speed session is a great place to start.

STOLEN GOAT SWIM RANGE 

About the author
Tom Epton is a 23-year-old early career pro triathlete, based in the South East of England. He graduated from the University of Southampton with a first-class BSc in Physics, spent a year working as a computational physicist at the Optoelectronics Research Centre and is now completing a master’s degree in Data Science. He’s also a cofounder and co-inventor of training plan building software ‘The Running Algorithm’ and can be reached on Instagram.  More information on Tom’s racing, training and writing can be found on his website.

More off-season training tips:

How to Have Fun and Get Strong for the 2022 Race Season
Five Tips for Improving Your Swim This Winter
How to Run Strong Off the Bike
Turbo Charge Your Training: How to Make the Most of Indoor Riding