04/15/08
Yes Virginia, Swimming Matters in Triathlon...
Some advice is timeless, and in the four years since the advice below was first issued, some things in triathlon continue to remain the same ... the same as in the previous four years, that is! And the next, more likely too...
The following is excerpted from an old client blog written by Alberta triathlete Ttrent Burton.
The following is excerpted from an old client blog written by Alberta triathlete Ttrent Burton.
Category: Training
Posted by: marc
Trent wrote: So, I went to my 16 year old brother-in law's swim meet the other weekend. He's a hell of kid and at 6'3 he can't weigh more than a buck thirty soaking wet. And 85 of those pounds are his hands and feet. But put those mitts and flippers in the pool and everything changes. His awkward "teenager-ness disappears as he slips seamlessly through the water. His arms churn over and over, each stroke a carbon copy of the last. His technique (to these untrained eyes) is flawless; his perceived effort (from my point of view) is virtually non-existent. It's a beautiful thing to watch, makes me proud as hell and quite frankly, bugs the living shit out of me…As someone who came to swimming in his late 20's, watching these kids can only be described as humbling. Hell, the Canadian 11-12 age group record for the 100 free is 57.20 seconds. In the best swimming shape of my life I barely scraped under 1:22. Head to head that kid would have eaten his dinner and done is homework and had his bed time bottle by the time I touched the wall.
So what do I do? There's the tired "Swimming doesn't really matter in triathlon ." That's a load of crap…While it might not win me a race (Hell, nothing is going to win ME a race), or find me a place at the top of my age-group, my swim as it stands (or sinks) has a tendency to take a little more out of me than I want…I need to "stop the bleeding" early. For me, that doesn't mean endless hours perfecting my stroke. It means I'll be working on my endurance to the point where my stroke (imperfect as it is) doesn't fall apart. It's a more than subtle shift from the school that says "You must work on technique and only technique". You see, ultimately it's an exercise in work vs. results. To shave substantial time off my 1500 time would take an incredible amount of time and effort. Time and effort, as an age-group athlete I just don't have in me. In other words getting to the point where I can leave the water fresh for the bike, is the best way to get the most out of my swim. I'll go faster not because I've necessarily become a better swimmer (though that will be true), but because I'll be an average swimmer who can swim that average pace indefinitely….
Mr. Becker chimes in: While the email I sent to Trent when I received this blog isn't fit for publication, I will summarize a few points here. Trent is correct in presuming a focus on endurance, but what he's not shared is that you can combine a focus on endurance with a focus on technique.
For example, once a week you can swim a huge set of 25's (say, 120x 25, or 60 minutes of continuous 25's, all with 10 seconds rest). The short distance shouldn't tax your muscles so much that your form falls apart. Since the set isn't physically as taxing as another of equal length, you can dedicate that extra bit of energy into a focus on getting the specifics right with every stroke and you can build endurance, strength and technique. It's ok to swim easy once in awhile in a recovery swim, but if there's work to be done, make sure that you are either i) working physically hard as prescribed by your coach; or ii) working mentally hard (concentrating on form and technique) if the physical effort isn't required. Give yourself a break during your recovery swims.
Now a little comment on Trent's visit to the swim meet. As someone who has stated he is focused on a sub-ten hour Ironman Canada in 2005, Trent has demonstrated somewhat of a . . . well, put simply, he's got an aversion to getting to the pool to do the work. And yet, he got himself to a pool to watch a swim meet! Well, maybe it's just me being a bit of a hard-ass, but to me this pattern is rife in the age group and semi-pro triathlon ranks. A focus on reading, watching, talking about, examining the details to the nth degree -- but seldom a focus on doing!
So what did I tell Trent? At times like this, you have to question your resolve, or question your goals. One or the other has to give. No one is saying you must accomplish what you say you strive to do, and no one is saying that your goals need to be lofty. But there is a hell of a lot more satisfaction to be gained in living up to the work required to achieve your professed desires than there is to be had by throwing in the towel yet again, and becoming just another triathlon talker. Success builds on success -- get yourself to the pool the first time, and the second time will be all that much easier.
The pain of discipline weighs ounces -- the pain of regret weighs tons.
So what do I do? There's the tired "Swimming doesn't really matter in triathlon ." That's a load of crap…While it might not win me a race (Hell, nothing is going to win ME a race), or find me a place at the top of my age-group, my swim as it stands (or sinks) has a tendency to take a little more out of me than I want…I need to "stop the bleeding" early. For me, that doesn't mean endless hours perfecting my stroke. It means I'll be working on my endurance to the point where my stroke (imperfect as it is) doesn't fall apart. It's a more than subtle shift from the school that says "You must work on technique and only technique". You see, ultimately it's an exercise in work vs. results. To shave substantial time off my 1500 time would take an incredible amount of time and effort. Time and effort, as an age-group athlete I just don't have in me. In other words getting to the point where I can leave the water fresh for the bike, is the best way to get the most out of my swim. I'll go faster not because I've necessarily become a better swimmer (though that will be true), but because I'll be an average swimmer who can swim that average pace indefinitely….
Mr. Becker chimes in: While the email I sent to Trent when I received this blog isn't fit for publication, I will summarize a few points here. Trent is correct in presuming a focus on endurance, but what he's not shared is that you can combine a focus on endurance with a focus on technique.
For example, once a week you can swim a huge set of 25's (say, 120x 25, or 60 minutes of continuous 25's, all with 10 seconds rest). The short distance shouldn't tax your muscles so much that your form falls apart. Since the set isn't physically as taxing as another of equal length, you can dedicate that extra bit of energy into a focus on getting the specifics right with every stroke and you can build endurance, strength and technique. It's ok to swim easy once in awhile in a recovery swim, but if there's work to be done, make sure that you are either i) working physically hard as prescribed by your coach; or ii) working mentally hard (concentrating on form and technique) if the physical effort isn't required. Give yourself a break during your recovery swims.
Now a little comment on Trent's visit to the swim meet. As someone who has stated he is focused on a sub-ten hour Ironman Canada in 2005, Trent has demonstrated somewhat of a . . . well, put simply, he's got an aversion to getting to the pool to do the work. And yet, he got himself to a pool to watch a swim meet! Well, maybe it's just me being a bit of a hard-ass, but to me this pattern is rife in the age group and semi-pro triathlon ranks. A focus on reading, watching, talking about, examining the details to the nth degree -- but seldom a focus on doing!
So what did I tell Trent? At times like this, you have to question your resolve, or question your goals. One or the other has to give. No one is saying you must accomplish what you say you strive to do, and no one is saying that your goals need to be lofty. But there is a hell of a lot more satisfaction to be gained in living up to the work required to achieve your professed desires than there is to be had by throwing in the towel yet again, and becoming just another triathlon talker. Success builds on success -- get yourself to the pool the first time, and the second time will be all that much easier.
The pain of discipline weighs ounces -- the pain of regret weighs tons.