Make Your Memorial Day

Workout guru and chief set designer Ken DeMont came up with an interesting and challenging set the other day. He is a master at presenting things that seem rather simple dare we say almost benign. Then presto! You realize you've been "had". It goes like this.

4 Rounds...you can figure out your intervals that work for you. The ones listed here are for our senior training group in their first regular workout after two to four weeks of taper. After rounds one & three do 2x100 pull/1:40 doing some sort of drill work; after rounds two and four do 2x100 kick/1:40

1x150/2:30 each 50 gets faster
1x75/1:30 each 25 gets faster
1x50/.50 at 80%
1x25/.40 fast no breath fly or free
1x50/.50 at 80%
1x25/.40 fast fly or free no breath
1x50/.50 at 80%
easy 25 back to starting end then go into the 2x100 as noted above

Round two is exactly the same except the 50's are at 85%; round 3 the 50's = 90%;
Round 4 the 50's = 95%

So the sets = 1900 plus the 800 yards of pull and kick give you a total of 2700 for the set plus your warm up and cool down.

We altered this for a masters workout as follows. Again we had 4 rounds with the 100's pulling and kicking after each round.

1x100 negative split
1x75 each lap faster
1x50 at 80%
1x25 fast
The only difference in the rounds 2-4 were the 50's went up to 85, 90, 95%

This series = 1000 + 800 of kicking and pulling or 1800 plus your warm up and cool down.

It is fun to see how the swims unfold. Typically everyone starts out with a variety of reactions and then - Bingo! - you are in the set rolling along working with your lane mates and next thing you know, your heart is pounding, you are reaching for your water bottle...and life is oh so sweet!

Geese...and What They Teach; What We Can Learn

Tanveer Naseer who describes himself as a "Business strategy coach, writer and overall nice guy" (we especially like the third part!) discusses what happens when Canada geese work together on their many thousands mile migration. We found it very instructive and will share it with our team in tomorrow's team meeting. We hope you enjoy it...

Migrating Geese – A Lesson in Leadership and Collaboration

Thoughts for Champions & Championship Meets

Here in Northern California it is high school swimming championship season. Many swimmers are putting their hopes (and fears) on the line figuring out how to coax a little (or a lot) more speed out of their bodies. Also, the National Masters Championships are next weekend as well. We have a number of swimmers heading into that meet with high expectations.

It seems to us that the trick is to dance on the fine line of exertion balancing the complimentary/contradictory forces of power and grace. When we see someone practicing their craft exceptionally well often the phrase that we use is, "They make it look so easy." Indeed, that may be a very good definition of someone combining power and grace.

Mull that one over a little and see where it leads you.

The following quotes are contributed by Coach Allan Kopel. Thanks for sharing Allan. If you are racing soon, perhaps one of these is the "pearl of wisdom" you have been searching for.

+ Hall of Fame basketball great Jerry West was asked about his message in an upcoming graduation talk. West hoped to encourage the graduates to embrace three attributes that let people be particularly successful.

- Take Risks
- Have Lofty Goals
- Be Able to Bounce Back From Disappointment

Some Quotations:

+ "Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm." (Winston Churchill)

+ "Energy and persistence conquer all things." (Benjamin Franklin)

+ "Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." (Benjamin Franklin)

+ "Your attitude, not your aptitude will determine your altitude." (Zig Ziglar)

+ "You do not pay the price of success. You enjoy the price of success." (Zig Ziglar)

+ "Friendships born on the field of athletic strife are the real gold of athletic competition. Awards become corroded, friends gather no dust."
(Jesse Owens)

Holiday Speed

No matter what type of swimmer you are every now and then it is necessary and or fun to do a simple little set that gives you the feeling of how it feels to swim fast. It is a nice break from the usual routine of yardage based workouts. Think of it as a special holiday just for you!

After you get warmed up for 30 to 45 minutes give this set a whirl and see if you don't end up with a smile on your face.

Go 4-6 rounds of the following taking no extra rest between the rounds:

1x75/1:30 with the first lap at 75%, the second at 80% and the third lap at 85%
1x50/1:30 smooth easy recovery
1x25/1:30 fast as you can but remain in control of your stroke

Remember to go right into the 1x75 in round 2 after the 1 minute and 30 seconds you are allowed for the fast 25. You can mix in different strokes anywhere you want.

This set gives you enough rest to really hit the 75, 80, 85% efforts. We have used this set with our elite senior trainers, younger age groupers and Masters as well. Make certain you loosen down well after any speed set.

If you have something similar in the speed department please let us know and we will share it with our swimming community. Have a great week in the water!

What a Gem

We hope you find this enlightening as well as entertaining. This is how it feels to be "right there." Annie captures this very private moment exquisitely. Enjoy!

Last Stand on Land; By Annie Chandler