Just a handful of swimmers, but great to have six keen swimmers with parents/guardians happy to bring them down to the pool during the holidays.
This was the set (with some adjustments on the day):
PC1 Wednesday 16 August 2023
Learning to Train F8 /11 // M9/12 [IM SL KIK]
| Phase | Activity | TRT/Rest | Dist: | Dur: | Total | |
| FOCUS | Drills, kit required, expectations … Name game with ballAnticipating the whistle game / streamlined jump | _ | _ | 5 | 5 | |
W/U | With FINS | 400m as:100 FC, 100 BC, 50 FC kick/50 Fly Kick OS, 50 BC Kick/50 FKOBLong and easy (best efficiency). | 30” | 400 | 10 | 15 |
| MAIN | 4 x 25m dive sprints with starts – IM Order Stroke and dive assessment for each swimmer. | 100/500 | 10 | 25 | ||
| TECH | 6 x 50m showing off turns as:2 x 50m FC emphasis on streamlined glide, fly kick and transition2 x 50m BC (as above)2 x 50m BR emphasis on the glide | 1:30 | 300/800 | 15 | 30 | |
| CHL | Plunge Dive Challenge. 3 tries, max different with glide | 0/800 | 10 | 40 | ||
| Mini Pyramid on IM x2 : | ||||||
| 1 x 25m Fly1 X 50m BC1 x 75m BR1 x 100m FC 1 x 75m BR1 x 50m BC1 x 25 Fly | 5” rest each swim | 800/1600 | 15 | 55 | ||
| S/D | 200m ( + FINS) + Pull Buoy ‘Piggy Back’ : as 1 x 25m kick, 1 x 25m arms only (Repeat x34) | 3:00 | 200/1800 | 5 | 60 | |
| TOT | 1800m | 1 hour |
KEY:
FKOB = Fly Kick On Back
FKOF = Fly Kick On Front
LC = Lane Clear
As I start to see what each swimmer has, and does I adjust the session plan accordingly. In this instance I did two things: ditched the need for fins in the warm-up as a couple didn’t have them (i’ll get the bins of fins out in advance for the next session), and I added drills to the 2 x 50s as in each instance there was a fix of kinds to think about. And I want to spoil them with a variety of drills and fun challenges.
Usually I annotated the session plan on the whiteboard as I go, adding a time, and crossing out/adjusting as things develop. I keep a record, ostensibly for things like this, but if nothing else for me to refer back to between sessions – even 20 years in as a swimming coach I know I can improve, which is the fun of it, and I have to confess, thanks to the splurge of video clips from coaches around the world showing off what they do.
Common problems to fix include: FC: arm crossing the central line on entry; BC: loose arm recovery at elbow and wrists, and angled hand entry; BR kick and arm strokes too wide.
Coaching and Teaching Swimming 