Workout Wednesday: Under one hour swim set

With the holidays upon us, it can be hard to squeeze in a workout in the coming days. This week’s Workout Wednesday is swim set that you can complete in an hour or less — perfect for if you have a bit of time to spare to head to the local pool. This workout packs as much as it can into the hour with a ladder that combines short distance efforts with some longer endurance work. The 50s before the ladder should gradually build to near-maximum effort. That pace should be maintained for the 25, 50 and 75 at the start of the ladder. With an elevated heart rate, the longer sets in the middle will be a challenge. Workout on holding the same time for the 100s, 150s and 200s on the ascent and descent of the ladder. The 400 in the middle should be a good effort, paced properly in preparation for the second half of the workout. It’s equipment-free so you can just get in and swim.

Warmup

200 easy swim

4 x 50 on 1:00, descend time 1 – 4

2 x 50 on 1:00 @ 90%

Main Set

Complete with 10 seconds rest between 25 – 100, 15 seconds rest between 100 and 200, and up to 30 seconds rest on either side of the 400.

25 / 50 / 75 / 100 / 150 / 200 / 400 / 200 / 150 / 100 / 75 / 50 / 25

Cool down

6 x 50 on 1:00, descend speed 1 – 3, 4 – 6

100 easy swim

Total = 2,500 m