ROKA Guppy Challenge: Week 8

January 29, 2018

We've had a cool thing happen over the past year: a bunch of people posting swim videos of themselves, looking for instruction.

I mentioned during last week’s installment that we get these often for help with bike fit – Critique my fit! – but not for swim instruction. A number of you took me up on the offer, and we have a critique-my-swim forum thread now with a bunch of your videos on it (along with replies from me and others). Keep ‘em coming!

One thing I notice on many of these videos: dragging feet. Feet low in the water. Feet kicking, but kicking below the surface, feet often not clearing the water at all, not even the heels breaking the surface. I mentioned to one such person in that forum thread the notion of swimming “downhill”. This is a device used by a number of swim coaches. If you think of yourself as swimming downhill, perhaps at least you won’t be swimming uphill! Which is what a lot of you are doing.

For this reason I have you doing a lot of drills – kicking, 1-arm pulling – and one thing I hope you all can feel is your feet breaking the surface. At least your heels! And occasionally the entire foot. Just, not through bending your knees.

One seasoned Slowtwitcher who is a very good swimmer commented you “uphill” swimmers should, "identify by feel those [core] muscles by lifting your straight legs while lying stomach-down on the floor, then engage those muscles while you swim. Once practiced enough, it becomes second nature.” That’s a sound approach. Tim Elson, formerly of Finis, asked swimmers to lay face down on the top of the water and try to keep on top of the water, especially from the waist down. That becomes harder, because you often can’t do that regardless of how much of your core you engage. I think both techniques are worth a go. Eventually you’ll pick it up.

Just, with many of you the lower your head the higher your legs, and you’re still too high from your chest to your head. If you are able to do the 1-arm pulls the way I’ve been asking you to do them – with your attention paid to your off hand – and you think you have that mastered, then continue to do these now with the focus on your feet. it’s easier to keep your feet on the surface during 1-arm pulls, and if you can get the sense for how this feels, then try to replicate this when you’re swimming regular freestyle.

The only other element common to many of your videos with which I find minor fault is the lack of a robust extend phase after the catch. Your recovering arm should be at ear level before you begin your pull. Instead, many of you are beginning your pull when your recovering arm is barely out of the water. Dave Scott has a nice drill for you. It’s called "slow arm recovery with hesitation”.

The above – getting your legs on the surface; tuning your extend phase – that’s enough. I’m very happy with the way that most of you are catching with your hands in front of your shoulders, and I’m pretty happy with the way your stroke looks under the water. These two elements I’m asking you to focus on are reasonably advanced, at least for adult onset swimmers early in their development. I’m happy with the progress you’re making! We have 3 more weeks in this 10-week challenge and if we can get your feet up, and your stroke looking polished from the shoulders forward, you’ll be well on your way.

Guppy Challenge, Week-8, Workout-1

Warm-up => 6 x 50yd freestyle, easy, slow, establish a leave interval that gives you 10sec rest between each 50.
Style set => 3 x 100yd: Swimming with bound ankles, with or without snorkel.
Style set => 3 x 100yd: first 50, Slow arm recovery with hesitation (Dave Scott's drill); second 50 regular freestyle
Kick set => 4 x 50yd, with or without zoomers, but the last 2 should be without zoomers.

Main set => I like to do 250s. And 150s. There’s an arcane mathematical symmetry to these which I won’t go into. Calculate your leave interval for these.

GUPPIES => 4 x 250yd
TARPONS => 6 x 250yd
TUNAS => 8 x 250yd

Warm-down => 100yd, easy, alternate freestyle and “stroke”.

Total Guppy yards this workout: 2200

—

Guppy Challenge, Week-8, Workout-2

Warm-up => 6 x 50yd
Style set => 10 x 50yd: first 25 Slow arm recovering with hesitation; second 25 regular freestyle.
Kick set => 6 x 50yd, with or without zoomers, but the last 2 should be without zoomers.

Main set =>

GUPPIES => 1000yd, for time. See how much progress you’ve made since the last time you did this.
TARPONS => 1500yd for time.
TUNAS => 2000yd for time.

Warm-down => 100yd, easy, alternate freestyle and stroke.

Total Guppy yards this workout: 2200

—

Guppy Challenge, Week-8, Workout-3

Warm-up => 2 x 50yd, 2 x 100yd, 2 x 150yd
Style set => 3 x 100yd: Swimming with bound ankles, with or without snorkel.
Style set => 3 x 100yd: first 50, Slow arm recovering with hesitation; second 50 regular freestyle
Kick set => 4 x 50yd, with or without zoomers, but the last 2 should be without zoomers.

Main set =>

GUPPIES => 10 x 100yd, on your interval (5sec to 10sec rest between each)
TARPONS => 12 x 100yd, on your interval
TUNAS => 15 x 100yd, on your interval

Warm-down => 100yd, easy, alternate freestyle and stroke.

Total Guppy yards this workout: 2100

—

Guppy Challenge, Week-8 Workout-4 Extra Credit!

Warm-up => 6 x 50yd
Style set => 3 x 100yd: Swimming with bound ankles, with or without snorkel.
Style set => 3 x 100yd: first 50, Slow arm recovering with hesitation; second 50 regular freestyle
Kick set => 4 x 50yd, with or without zoomers, but the last 2 should be without zoomers.

Main set =>

50s party:
GUPPIES => 20x50yd swim
TARPONS => 30x50yd swim
TUNAS => 40x50yd swim

Warm-down => 100yd, easy, alternate freestyle and “stroke”.

Total Guppy yards this workout: 2100

—

Guppy Challenge, Week-8, Workout-5 Double Extra Credit!

Warm-up => 6 x 50yd freestyle, easy, slow, establish a leave interval that gives you 10sec rest between each 50.
Style set => 6 x 50yd: 2-beat kick first 25, natural kick pattern back.
Kick set => 3 x 100yd: first 50, Slow arm recovering with hesitation; second 50 regular freestyle

Main set =>

GUPPIES => 6 x 200yd, on your interval
TARPONS => 8 x 200yd, on your interval
TUNAS => 10 x 200yd, on your interval

Warm-down => 100yd, easy freestyle

Total Guppy yards this workout: 2200

Total weekly GUPPY yardage

If you do the first 3 workouts: 6,500yd
These plus the 4th workout: 6,600yd
All 5 workouts: 10,800yd