Preparing for Swimming Training

Last Updated on March 23, 2024 by admin

**It’s important that swimmers make the most of their training time in the water.**

In this article, we’ll provide advice, hacks and tips on maximising your performance by effectively preparing for swimming training.

Most swimmers don’t have unlimited access to a pool, lake, ocean or wherever they prefer to swim.

Therefore, whatever your level of swimming ability and your discipline, you must make the most of your training time in the water.
This can be maximised by effectively preparing for swimming training.

Failing to prepare is preparing to fail

Whether you are part of an organised club session, swim with a group of friends or swim on your own, to make the most of their training sessions swimmers need to make time to prepare.

Top tips for preparing for swimming training

There are several things that a swimmer can do to prepare which can help make your training sessions more effective and enjoyable.

Listed here are our top tips for preparing for swimming training.

Setting swimming goals

Whether the swimmer is a competitive, fitness or recreational swimmer, setting swimming goals can help them establish and focus on clear targets, priorities and expectations.

So, whether you want to achieve a new personal best time, swim with a better technique or get fitter, you should set some swimming goals.

Session training plan

Whatever your level of swimming ability and your discipline, you should have a session training plan.

This helps ensure that your training sessions are working towards your swimming goals.
A session training plan also helps ensure your training time is maximised effectively.
A coach or a teacher should provide this for club swimmers.
Fitness or recreational swimmers should ideally find a ready-made session training plan to suit their needs.

Related publication: Swimming Plus: FREESTYLE

Swimming Plus FREESTYLE is a publication designed for those swimmers who want to improve their freestyle swimming technique.

Swimming Plus FREESTYLE provides you with a series of structured and progressive session training plans, plus detailed drill descriptions and expert coaching tips.
With Swimming Plus FREESTYLE, you can progress at your own pace when it’s convenient for you.

For further details and ordering information please use the following link: Swimming Plus: Freestyle

Packing kit

You should ensure you have all the kit, equipment, nutrition and hydration you will require for training, to enable you to train at your optimum.

Therefore, correctly packing for swimming training requires some pre-planning and consideration.
Many swimmers train either in the mornings or in the evenings straight after school, college or work.
To ensure you have packed correctly and to avoid any unnecessary anxiety, it’s best to pack for swimming training the night before.

Leave for training in good time

You should ensure that you leave in good time for training.

This will help you avoid any unnecessary anxiety or stress before training
It will also enable you to ensure that you have sufficient time to get changed, warm up and mentally prepare before training starts. (see training warm-ups below)

Positive mental attitude

Having a positive mindset can help you increase their control over your attitude and mood.

This can enable you to be more positive and focused during training.
This can be especially useful when you start to become demotivated.
Morning training can also be a time when a positive mental attitude can be very beneficial.

Invisible training

**Invisible swimming training is a series of key disciplines to help ensure that swimmers continue to train at their optimum**

Swimming training day after day can become gruelling.

Invisible swimming training is a series of key disciplines to help ensure that you continue to train at their optimum.
This helps you to focus on ensuring you receive the correct levels of nutrition and hydration
In combination with rest, recovery, relaxation and sleep.

Nutrition

Proper swimming nutrition is essential for optimum swimming performance.

It provides you with the energy you require to cope with the rigours of swimming training.
Proper swimming nutrition also helps create new muscles and helps maintain and repair existing muscles.
Ideally, you should start to refuel within 20 minutes after training

Hydration

You will also need to be well-hydrated to perform at your optimum.

Although most of your training is conducted in the water, you still lose a great deal of body fluid through physical exertion.
This lost fluid must be replaced, as dehydration is one of the most common causes of poor performance.
For a training session lasting for an hour
- You should start drinking early during training, within the first 15 minutes
- Aim to drink around 500 ml per hour (A standard size water bottle)
- Continue to drink little and often, ideally every 15 to 20 minutes

Relaxation

The ability to be able to relax is of great benefit to any swimmer wishing to train at their optimum level.

Dryland relaxation techniques can help you reduce any self-doubts, worries or physical anxieties while increasing your concentration and performance.

Recovery Swims

A swimmer should perform regular recovery swims during a training session.

Recovery swims are those sets and/or repetitions (reps) that are performed at a slow swimming pace.
This enables you to recover from the rigours of training during a session.
The cooldown swim at the end of each training session is a particularly important recovery swim.

Training warm-ups

**Swimming with warm and supple muscles reduces the chance of injury**

Warm-ups are an area often overlooked by many swimmers.

Some find warm-ups ‘boring’, as they don’t understand their importance.
A swimming warm-up is of key importance to you because, in order to swim fast, your muscles need to be warmed.
This increases your muscle’s flexibility and enhances their range of movement, making them more efficient whilst swimming.
Swimming with warm and supple muscles reduces the chance of injury.
An effective warm-up also prepares your heart to pump larger amounts of oxygen-rich blood throughout your body whilst swimming.
There are usually two phases to a proper swimming warm-up. The dryland warm-up and the pool warm-up.

Dryland warm-ups

Dryland warm-ups are performed before a swimmer enters the water, to ensure their muscles are warm and supple before swimming.

These are sometimes referred to as blood-flow stretching.
They are usually performed in two parts, first some warming-up exercises, followed by dynamic stretching.

Pool warm-ups

As swimmers train at different intensities and for different periods of time, they have different warm-up requirements.

As a result, there is no standard distance or time for an effective pool warm-up.
However, most coaches prefer a pool warm-up lasting between 20 and 30 minutes.

Cooldown

After training, you require an effective cool-down to disperse any lactic acid which may have built up in your muscles, which can cause stiffness and/or soreness.

A 10-minute easy swim is an ideal way to cool down effectively.