Masters Monday 16 OCT 2017 A (COMPETITIVE) COACH COPY

Too ambitious and doesn’t cater for the hesitant starts as the competitive swimmers join the late. This can delay the warm up by 5 minutes. Another 5 minutes can be lost in catch-up chatter 🙂 Once underway they swim like clockwork and can often, but not always, make up lost time. The (brackets) indicate where times have been adjusted. 2/3rd of the way through a set was cut and the swimmers given an ‘either or’ option over 8 x 25m CH with dive sprints or 4 x 100m CH. The ‘official’ Swim Down was also reduced, but the 4 x 100s meant they were there already.

Phase Activity TRT/Rest Dist: Dur: Total
Increasing feel for the water and design to help you master stroke rate
W/U 1 x 400m FC/BC Mix up as you wish Continual swim 400m 8 8
MAIN 8 x 50m FC

Work on underwater DLK. Fast Break Outs. High Stroke Rate

1:00 400m 8 16
4 x 100m

FC Arms or BC Arms Only. Aim for distance per stroke.

02:00 400m 8 24
1 x 400m Super Slow Swimming – Controlled, feel how far you can travel 01:00 rest at end of 400m 400m 8 32 (40)
8 x 50m FC (or CH and adjust TRT)

Set a target for the number of underwater DLK you will do and stick with it!

Fast Break Outs. High Stroke Rate. Tight Streamlines mandatory. Keep your core braced.

1:00 400m 8 40
EITHER 4 x 100m CH 01:45

02:00

400m 8 48 (56)
OR 8 x 25m CH (dive from deep end if prefered)

Work on underwater DLK. Fast Break Outs. High Stroke Rate

0:20 200m 4 52
1 x 400m Super Slow Swimming – Controlled, feel how far you can travel 400m (100) 8 60
Totals 3000m (2700m)  1 hour

 

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How to teach backcrawl (BC) to swimmers age 7-12

Backstroke for 9-12 year olds, MSM Grades 4 and 5 (ASA equivalent NPTS 9 to 10) (+G8 additions)

Poolside

Image from ‘The Swimming Drills Book’ Ruben Guzman.

By the wall, left shoulder, palm facing thigh, rotate arm as if bringing it out of the water, rotate so that the palm faces the tiles, twist shoulder, drop and ‘pull’ down to the thigh. Repeat. x3. Then turn and face the other way. Use Ruben Guzman. To this I add practice of the ‘hesitation’ drill where the swim raising one arm to the perpendicular, counts ‘one mississippi’, rotates the hand, couns ‘two missippi’ then lowers the hand to the water little finger first. We do this drill during the session. Good to get an idea of how to do it correctly here.

On a bench, sitting over the edge of the pool.
Sitting down. Leg position. Long pointed toes. Flutter kick.

Image from ‘The Swimming Drills Book’ Ruben Guzman.

In the water

Streamlined push off in the water
Push and glide off the wall for start and turns.
Kick on the back with a float over the knees to reduce cycle of legs, with a float over the head, or as soon as they can as above in the streamlined position, even starting with a push, glide and dolphin kick.

Warm Up

1 x 50m BC

Emphasis on body position, head back as if resting on a pillow.

Main Set
2 x 50m BC kick
1 x 50m Float over knees. Knees should not touch, float should not bounce. Keep the legs long.
1 x 50m Ideally, kicker float above the head, held at sides.
Stretch. Body position flat on the water.

Drills
2 x 25m Pull along the lane rope
Instruct them to swap arms / Help them get the drill right
or 2 x 50m from Grade 5 upwards.
i.e. pulling along the lane rope with one, then the other arms.
Watch out, some will use both arms!!
It doesn’t matter if they don’t actually pull, touching will do to get them to rotate and bend the arm on the pull.

Applied Fun

Double arm down the lane 1 x 25m
Emphasis on a steady flutter kick
Off the block with a pencil jump then streamlined bounce to the shallow en

Plastic cup balanced on the forehead + BC fullstroke
Great challenge and surprising how many can do it without losing their cup
2 x 25m

Sea Otter
1 x 25m
On front, duck dive to the bottom, up to the top, swim along on your back, roll over.
Swim it as short or long arm doggie paddle.
All about love for the water and fluidity. Duck five for tumble turns and diving, push of bottom for dives and turns too, rolling out the back and kick … all skills they need 🙂

G7+ (maybe stronge Grade 6)

Single arm BC – stretched out and under the water
Swap arm after 25m

Single arm BC – arm raised for entire length.
Swap arm after 25m

Push and glide on the back in the shallow end
Add a dolphin kick
Start the stroke with ONE arm while stretched out

Other Favourite Drills

2 x 25m Submarine periscope
During stroke HOLD the arm in the vertical, laser the ceiling, then continue the stroke
Emphasis on a steady flutter kick

Repeat 2 x 25m Typically have the best one demonstate
Emphasis on counting three seconds when the arm is raised

2 x 25m Have them go down in pairs, side by side, synchronising the raised arm

Start

Image from ‘The Swimming Drills Book’ Ruben Guzman.

BC Start
Hold the bar on the block
One foot slightly below the other
on ‘Take you marks’ both get into a ball AND put your head back
Backwards dive
Emphasis on holding the arms in the streamlined position
Add a few dolphin kicks
Start the stroke with one arm keeping the other raises.

Race Pace – can they retain skill when the speed up?
1 x 25m race pace BC
From the shallow end
Streamlined glide
Dolphin kick into stroke
Steady breathing

1 x 25m race pace BC

Using the grip on the block
Dive backwards into glide and dolphin kick

Fun end – Grade 6 and under
Handstand
Streamlined bounce
Mushroom float
Somersault

Swim Down – Grades 7+
As 4 x 25m
BC – BR – FC – FLY
BR – FC – FLY-BC
FC – FLY-BC-BR

A programme of club swim teaching

The programme I’ll be following for the next three months. A simple check sheet for the groups I teach each week. I see between 60 and 80 kids a week, most of these in our teaching groups. Typically age 9-12, a few a little younger. We have groups 1 to 8. Grous 1-3 can swim … they can do a 25m length. These are our beginner groups. Typically I take from Grade 4 upwards, including some who have gone through to our ‘training groups’ – these are club members who want to keep swimming, but haven’t made the grade to join a competitive squad.

Teaching lessons are 30 minutes for groups 1-3, 45 minutes for groups 4-8 and an hour for training groups.

April 13th-July 20th 2015

 

Date wc

Stroke/Activity

Contrasting Activity

Notes

Mon 13th April

Frontcrawl FC Turns
Mon 20th April Backcrawl BC Turns Stroke Count to flags.

All B/C finishes remain on back

Mon 27th  April

Breaststroke BR Transition

Start/Turn

Mon 4th May Starts & Turns

(Prepare  for Dev galas)

Comp Start sheets

Mon 11th May

Butterfly Diving Dev gala 1

Tues 12th Grades 1-4

Sat 16th Grades 5-8

Mon 18th  May

Breast-stroke BRS Transition
Mon 25th  May Butterfly Fly Turns

Mon 1st June

Backstroke B/C Turns
Mon 8th June Frontcrawl Starts

Mon 15th June

Individual Medley IM turns/finishes

Mon 22nd June

Assessments Intro/use of pace clock
Mon 29th  June Starts & Turns Prep for Dev gala
Mon 6th July Breast-stroke BRS Transition Dev gala 2

Tues 7th Grades 1-4

Sat 11th Grades 5-8

Mon 13th July Revision/Teachers choice
Mon 20th July Relays

Backstroke for 9-12 year olds, MSM Grades 4 and 5 (ASA equivalent NPTS 9 to 10) (+G8 additions)

Backstroke for 9-12 year olds, MSM Grades 4 and 5 (ASA equivalent NPTS 9 to 10) (+G8 additions)

G4/G5 G8
Streamlined position against the wall
Post registration Pre-Pool By the wall, left shoulder, palm facing thigh, rotate arm as if bringing it out of the water, rotate so that the palm faces the tiles, twist shoulder, drop and ‘pull’ down to the thigh. Repeat. x3. Then turn and face the other way. Use Ruben Guzman. X
Sitting down. Leg position. Long pointed toes. Flutter kick.
Streamlined push off in the water

Push and glide off the wall for start and turns.

X
WARM UP 2 x 50m FC

Emphasis on ‘long legs’ and ‘silent, smooth swimming’.

100s
1 x 50m BC

Emphasis on body position, head back as if resting on a pillow.

MAIN SET 2 x 50m BC kick 50s
1 x 50m Float over knees. Knees should not touch, float should not bounce. Keep the legs long.
1 x 50m Ideally, kicker float above the head, held at sides.

Stretch. Body position flat on the water.

2 x 25m Pull along the lane rope

Instruct them to swap arms / Help them get the drill right

100m
Applied FUN Double arm down the lane 1 x 25m

Emphasis on a steady flutter kick

Off the block with a pencil jump then streamlined bounce to the shallow end

+G8 Single arm BC – stretched out and under the water

Swap arm after 25m

50
Single arm BC – arm raised for entire length.

Swap arm after 25m

Push and glide on the back in the shallow end

Add a dolphin kick

Start the stroke with ONE arm while stretched out

DRILLS 2 x 25m Submarine periscope

During stroke HOLD the arm in the vertical, laser the ceiling, then continue the stroke

Emphasis on a steady flutter kick

50m
Repeat 2 x 25m Typically have the best one demonstrate

Emphasis on counting three seconds when the arm is raised

2 x 25m Have them go down in pairs, side by side, synchronising the raised arm
RACE PACE 1 x 25m race pace BC

From the shallow end

Streamlined glide

Dolphin kick into stroke

Steady breathing

1 x 25m race pace BC

Using the grip on the block

Dive backwards into glide and dolphin kick

Sea Otter

1 x 25m

On front, duck dive to the bottom, up to the top, swim along on your back, roll over.

Swim Down As 4 x 25m
BC – BR – FC – FLY

BR – FC – FLY-BC

FC – FLY-BC-BR

FUN END Somersaults (towards BC turn)

Backstroke for 9-12 year olds, MSM Grades 4 and 5 (ASA equivalent NPTS 9 to 10) (+G8 additions)

G4/G5 G8
Post registration Pre-Pool By the wall, left shoulder, palm facing thigh, rotate arm as if bringing it out of the water, rotate so that the palm faces the tiles, twist shoulder, drop and ‘pull’ down to the thigh. Repeat. x3. Then turn and face the other way. Use Ruben Guzman. X
Streamlined positon against the wall X
Streamlined bounce in the water

Push and glide off the wall for start and turns.

X
WARM UP 2 x 50m FC

Emphasis on ‘long legs’ and ‘silent, smooth swimming’.

100s
1 x 50m BC

Emphasis on body position, head back as if resting on a pillow.

MAIN SET 2 x 50m BC kick 50s
1 x 50m Float over knees. Knees should not touch, float should not bounce. Keep the legs long.
1 x 50m Ideally, kicker float above the head, held at sides.

Stretch. Body position flat on the water.

2 x 25m Pull along the lane rope

Instruct them to swap arms / Help them get the drill right

100m
Applied FUN Double arm down the lane 1 x 25m

Emphasis on a steady flutter kick

Off the block with a pencil jump then streamlined bounce to the shallow end

+G8 Single arm BC – stretched out and under the water

Swap arm after 25m

50
Single arm BC – arm raised for entire length.

Swap arm after 25m

Push and glide on the back in the shallow end

Add a dolphin kick

Start the stroke with ONE arm while stretched out

DRILLS 2 x 25m Submarine periscope

During stroke HOLD the arm in the vertical, laser the ceiling, then continue the stroke

Emphasis on a steady flutter kick

50m
Repeat 2 x 25m Typically have the best one demonstate

Emphasis on counting three seconds when the arm is raised

2 x 25m Have them go down in pairs, side by side, synchronising the raised arm
RACE PACE 1 x 25m race pace BC

From the shallow end

Streamlined glide

Dolphin kick into stroke

Steady breathing

1 x 25m race pace BC

Using the grip on the block

Dive backwards into glide and dolphin kick

Sea Otter

1 x 25m

On frony, duck dive to the bottom, up to the top, swim along on your back, roll over.

FUN END Somesaults (towards BC turn)

Hard work

The set is the kind of thing we give 10 and 11 years olds who are lighter and more flexible and probably than this overweight and unfit 50 year old. After a week in the sea I had hopes for staying the course, though up late to watch the Opening of the London Olympics left me tired.

Warm Up 200m FC

6 x 100m FC as 50 drill, 50 Swim

Drills:

Short arm doggie paddle
Long arm doggie paddle
Single arm (left)
Single arm (right)

6×50 FC on 1.15

4×100 alternating between FC and something else

8x25m in IM Order

Swim Down

Surely I’ve missed something?

The doggie paddle was surpringly hardwork as you have to kick hard to keep the head up. It got me thinking about the shape of my hand – as I started doing on my sea swim I closed the thumb to creat a paddle. I don’t know if this is better but it feels more efficient.

Between the FC I do BR, working hardest on my transition, often getting half-way down the pool. I must have been feeling chipper as I tumbled all the 50s and for a few moments felt I was finding something – too much of it remains a slog, my lungs become sticky, I still get cramp in the my feet and towards the end I feel sluggish. I did push hard on the 100s and 50s now and when asked to swim Fly I will complete the length.

Wonderful support from our coach David who is so attentive even though he has three lanes of Masters swimmers. Tips for me on FC and BC.

FC to slide the hand in (last week it was relaxing rather than lifting my head)
BC to breathe (last week it was straight arm recovery)

This was a surprising and effective fix – by breathing as if I was on my front I found balance and stability that allowed a steady, synchronous set of strokes. My legs are ek though.

20120728-111123.jpg

Masters

I should be able to remember the session – I’m traumatised enough from the experience (in agood way).

200m FC Warm Up
6x50m on 1:10

BC Drills
4 x 50m BC single arm
2 x 50m BC Torpedo kick
2 x 50m BR kick on back
2 x 50m Old English (the only one I enjoyed)
6 x 100m FC on 2:20
6×75 as FC and alternative stroke (I did BR)
100m swim down

I was warmed up enough for the 6x100m to go out first and compete. I got well into the grove or zone on the first, boyed up by the tips and support I’d had from the coach on head position and positive remarks a out the fluidity if my stroke. I even did flip turns. If I can retrieve this level of fitness to continue throughout the session THEN I’ll get fit and find my form (for a fifty year old)

Constructive criticism and positive feedback delivered in the right way works wonders, David watches his swimmers and has some useful pointers which I apply, slavishly, however awkward it may feel.

Masters IM

I haven’t trained in ten years and when I was doing so it was distance swims for Triathlon Relays and charity swims. I haven’t trained with a club for over thirty years. My return t club swimming, with the Masters at Mid-Sussex Marlins SC has been a gentle affair unitl now, not helped by a three week break I join today and have to do a sessions that takes in all strokes, including kciking for fly, back, breast and front. I give it my best shot and struggle.

As a swimming teacher and coach I hear my own voice trying to get the technique right; I also have informed instruction from the coach which feels as if I am being bent double, insome parts my stroke has been doing the wring thing for decades: raising the arms too high during front crawl, failing to bring the feet together in breaststroke and bending my arm ahead of the entry in backstroke. It iis therefore with surorise and delight when I recieve praise for my butterfly, a stroke I have not attempted in decades. Once agai I hear the instructions I give to 7 to 11 year olds aout kciking fromthe hip and turning the hand upwards on the recovering, enter the hand at shoulder width and accelerate back to the ‘pockets’ with a flick. It works. Though in my very unfit state I don’t even manage a length, 20m at a time in four bursts is all that I do.

Exhausted, my heart racing (I check) and out if breath I finish early. I need to be in the water during the week too, possiblly three swims a week to crack it.

Backstroke (Teaching Grades 4-7) ASA NPTS 9-10

I used Swim Drills as a prompt.

Poolside I don’t have time to read the tips (I know the book inside out anyway). What I can do is glance at the images as a reminder. Each chapter runs in a logical chronology in terms of ability and the drills that are likely to be appropriate.

We start poolside for a few moments before entering the water.

From the brilliant ‘The Swimming Drills Book’ Ruben Guzman. (2007) p.44

I want the swimmers’ shoulders against the tiled walls. Usefully there are protruding columns too, so that I can demonstrate and have them all in vision. I have to have them in reverse hight order so that the smaller ones can see.

We run through the drill three times with each arm, raising the hand like a dagger, turning the palm to face the tiled wall when it is perpendicular, then brining it above the head, as if entering the water, little finger first.
I repeat this for the other arm.

WARM UP

2 x 50m FC
1 x 50m BC

MAIN SET

From the brilliant ‘The Swimming Drills Book’ Ruben Guzman. (2007)


Repeat from the deep end.

Streamline stretch in the water.
Bounce up an down.
Get this right then have them do a length of kicking on their backs.
None of the groups required a float (perhaps the 7 year old in the Grade 4 group)

Using the lane rope they swim 50m in one direction, then 50m in the opposite direction.

From the brilliant ‘The Swimming Drills Book’ Ruben Guzman. (2007 )

This is the’pull lane rope’ drill in which the outside arm touches and takes the lane rope, this helping (as the drill by the wall) to get the swimmers to rotate into the stroke.

More kicking, one arm stretched out, the other by the side doing a ‘sail boat’ drill.

FUN ONE

Roly-polly straight down the black line down.
Jump in off the block into a pencil jump.
Bounce all the way down to the shallow end.

Double-arm pull

From the deep end to use the blocks.

Racing start on backstroke, with a streamline glide ‘Like a harpoon’, a few dolphin kicks into the stroke at race pace.
Get them to count (or recount and verify) the number of strokes it takes them to get from the 5m flags in the shallow end to the wall.

From 2m beyond the flags in the shallow end
Swim in demonstrating a Backstroke tumble turn.
Repeat

FUN ONE

‘Sea Otter’ to the deep end
(Duck dives to the bottom of the pool collecting imaginary oysters that they bring to the surface and crack open on imaginary stones on their chests)

Drill

Raise arm to the perpendicular,
Pointed up at the ceiling.
Pause to rotate the hand then lower into the catch

(The grade 4 & 5 swimmers got this, while it took several goes and a variety of tactics before the grade 7 swimmers go it. More to do with the group than their age).

Used an image from the Swim Drills Book (have it on a Kindle)
Demoed upright from the poolside
(This worked for most)

Identified the swimmer who could do it and had them demonstrate.
Had them count ‘One mississippi’ with the hand paused and pointed at the ceiling, then another ‘Mississippi’ once they had rotated the palm.

THIS WORKED!
Finally had them swim in pairs, over one length, checking on each other to synchronise the drill.

Synchronised Backstroke Drill (one to repeat)
(I do something similar with single-arm fly drill. They enjoy working like this and concentrate enough on the synchronicity to get it right)

Another RACE PACE swim
Start using the block
Correct position of feet,
Tucked in, head back
On my command using the whistle

A 3 lengths IM of BC, BR, FC,

Depending on timing a FUN FINISH

Handstand
(Straight legs, legs together, pointed toes)

Somersault
Mushroom or canon ball float

‘Dead swimmer’

Sitting on the bottom of the pool

On this occasion flyers were handed out for the next Gala. What is the best solution for this? They take them wet, into the showers, some then forget them, most hand over a dripped on or soaked flyer to their parents?

ON REFLECTION

The swimmer who can’t dive can’t do a somersault either. Indeed, when doing a mushroom float they are likely to lift their head even here.
There is rarely any group cohesion, so working in teams of two or three for a drill or for something fun like ‘sea otter’ make it more like party games.
To get them into race mode I use a whistle; I should have a stop watch too.

IM our Grade 5

IM with 8-11 year olds
Warm them up
3x50m FC each time with emphasis in turn on high elbow, long kick and transition.
Huge praise for each as they come in, some with a stroke tip or correction.
2x50m as BC into BR so that I can watch their transition.
Despite doing this a few weeks ago some don’t get any part of the transition, some only the first part and this on the surface.
Mushroom Float (use Kindle)
Dead swimmer into streamlined position then dolphin kick into FC shallow end and deep, on the ‘T’ or under the flags.
BC to BR from the flags
No. Storkes to the wall.
Drop the legs, pivot into the transition.
We run through this out of the pool walking it through against the wall.
BR into FC again a pivot.
In all cases they have to learn to go deep in order to do the transition.
By now I know who will gipet it, who will give it a go and who will do it the same way thry have always done it but believe they were getting it right. As well as the one who doesn’t listen at all.
Fun ones
Sea Otter
From a pencil jump off the blocks into a streamlined bounch all the way to the shallow end.
Use diving into BR to get the depth for the transition.
From the deep end a full IM.
From the deep end a 25m sprint.
With assessments so early I point out that afterall one swimmer now has legal BR.
Our problem is making these decissions half way through the tem often with another two months swimming to go.