Swim Sessions
Swimming tends to be the most difficult modality for new and intermediate athletes unless you have a swimming background. We have 4 structured swim sessions per week because we believe in tackling our weaknesses, not running from them.
Your Very First Swim Session –
Whether you’re a complete beginner or an elite swimmer, whether you haven’t been in a pool in years or you swam in college, the very first thing you will do is swim 200 yds freestyle (8 laps) without any instruction. We’re just going to watch. After you complete those 8 laps, we’ll know what kind of a swimmer you are, what you need to work on first, and how to structure your training.
Down the road we will administer a CSS Test (Critical Swim Speed) to determine the fastest aerobic speed you can hold for 1,500 yds.
How We Structure Swimming Throughout the Week –
Now, let’s break down the weekly swim schedule and the efforts you will give in each session:
Monday – Longer volume sets based on your CSS
Wednesday – All aerobic work (Zone 2, Blue)
We build your endurance and replicate your times with good form.
Thursday – Speed work (Zones 3 & 4, Green/Yellow)
This is designed to resemble race conditions. It hurts the most, but you CAN do it.
Friday – All aerobic work (Zone 2, Blue)
We further build your endurance base.
Breaking Down a Swim Session –
Every swim session is segmented the same way:
Warm-up: (~300 yds.) – loosens your body up
Tech: (~ 400 yds.) – slow everything down so you can focus on technique and sharpen your skills
Kick Set: (~ 300 yds.) – develops muscle strength in your kick
Main Set: (~1800-2500 yds.) – aerobic or anaerobic sets depending on the day
Cool Down: (100-300 yds.) – helps restore your body and regulates blood flow back to normal
TOTAL = 3,000-3,800 yds. – depending on the speed interval of your specific lane
Learning to Freestyle Swim
Learning how to do a proper freestyle stroke is perhaps the most important skill when you begin swimming. It is also the swim stroke you will use during a race in the open water. Here is a great video that will help you understand movement in the water and how to swim freestyle.
Understanding Your CSS (Critical Swim Speed)
Critical Swim Speed is a simple way to measure your swim fitness. The CSS test reveals the pace / 100 yds that you are capable of maintaining for 1500 yards, just below threshold.
The test encompasses endurance and speed. You begin by swimming 400 yards, rest for 5 minutes, and then swim 200 yards.
We break the CSS test down in detail in our upcoming Guide “The 3 Threshold Tests”, releasing in March.
Getting Open Water Experience
Similar to riding your own bike outside on the road, you can’t replace gaining open water experience. There are many variables you will encounter in open water that you don’t have in a pool. Not to mention, you will always race in open water and usually not in a pool.
The best way to understand and “feel” the difference is to set up a time to swim in the open water early in your training. Do not wait till your first race to step into open water.
Talk to one of our coaches and we’ll either suggest where to go swimming or invite you to a weekend open water swim with Coach Scott Berlinger in Connecticut that we do when it is warm.
Our Annual Trial By Fire Race
“Trial By Fire” is the ultimate relay race, held annually at Chelsea Piers in February at our training facility in New York City. The race is a long-standing Full Throttle tradition – 36 teams of 72 athletes are paired together to compete in a grueling swim/run relay, totaling a 1500-yard swim & 5-mile run.
You can watch a video of our most recent Trial By Fire race here: