Training Principles – Competitive Swimming Trowbridge Swimming Club
I use a simple set of training principles that will allow the swimmer to develop during a swimming season.
I have an annual plan that will run from September to August. The reason for this, is that swimmers will return from holidays in August, will start to swim in September and will need to re-learn forgotten skills and regain lost fitness levels. The priority competitions for the swimmers are February/March – Wiltshire County Championships, BAGCATS and Youth, May and June, Regional Championships Youth and BAGCATS, Nationals, August BAGCATS and Youth.
Therefore the plan will develop and step-up through the season peaking at each competition for those who qualify. Those that do not qualify will have a multi-skilled programme to further develop their performance.
Based upon these simple concepts, the early season focus is on technique and fitness. This will go through to December. January to August will be cycles of technique, skills and competition preparation.
A swimmer can not effectively swim fast without great technique, therefore this needs to be a focus. A swimmer will not be able to sustain a fast swim with out high levels of fitness. This can only be attained through regular practise. Training once a week, or selective training will not improve performance.
Swimmers that have goals that include competing at the County Championships need to be swimming a minimum of four sessions per week, 4 – 8 hours per week. Swimmers that have goals that include swimming at Regional Championships need to swim all available sessions, every week, unless injured or ill.
The reason for this is that the planning of the sessions is similar to a jigsaw puzzle. If you put all the pieces in the right place you will have a complete picture. If the swimmer completes all the sessions they will be complete. In other words the swimmer will be as complete a swimmer as it is possible for them to be. They will have great technical skills, high levels of fitness that will allow them to cope with the challenging training sessions that mimic racing performance, allowing the swimmer to be competitive.
If you miss training on a regular basis, like the jigsaw, you will miss vital elements of your training, which will compromise your performance. You may not develop skill or fitness levels, which will affect you’re racing performance.
Like the jigsaw, each session complements the previous and preceding session. With the programme currently, the plan is to swim aerobic on Friday night at Bath. The reason for this is that the swimmers may not have swum since Tuesday at Trowbridge; therefore they need to re-learn their skills and get a ‘feel’ for the water. Sunday am Bath will be challenging, ask the swimmers who go, therefore Sunday pm at Trowbridge will be a recovery swim, aerobic and skills. Monday could be aerobic or threshold, Tuesday, speed or aerobic or threshold balancing Monday’s programme.
If a swimmer chooses to swim Friday at Bath, Sunday at Trowbridge and Tuesday at Trowbridge, based upon the above example, all they would swim is technique and fitness. They will not train to race. The opposite is true if a swimmer swam the opposite sessions, they would not cope with the intensity of the session as they would not have the skill and fitness levels required. The swimmer that swims all the sessions will improve the most as they have a balanced training programme that provides the best opportunity to develop.
In summary your commitment to training will have a direct result on your performance.
Steve Fivash – Coach - 5th March 2007
Should you have any questions regarding the number of sessions that your child swims, or whether there are any additional sessions available to you, please feel free to speak to a Coach, Teacher or member of the Committee.
At present, there are spaces available at Bath University on Sunday morning for our younger up and coming swimmers who can start by swimming from 9-10 and increase their training as they build stamina in a 50m pool. |