Mode 1 @fruit_thief
Other useful sessions with the Tempo Trainer are with mode 3 which is strokes per min. It’s individual but my comfortable pool rate is about 71, occasionally we’ll do some intervals a couple of beats higher (what I’d call tempo). Obvs if you can maintain dps at a higher rate you’re going quicker.
My open water turnover is about 76 spm, I find it useful to try and make 76 feel more comfortable in the pool as OW season approaches. I realise it’s different for you racing all year round but I think it would be beneficial to have a play around with quicker stroke rates.
At least once per year in our swim club we will do a ramp pyramid test with increasing & decreasing stroke rates to see how it effects pace & RPE.
Think might try this today but off 2:00 cycle. If I have understood right this means I’ll get 2 minutes rest after the 400 before having to go again. Does that sound right, and also like something worth doing or would slower with shorter rests trump it d’ya reckon?
edit: aaah hang on. bleeper maths in the 20m pool, think it might have to be off 36s (2 beeps) rest per 100m swum. Alternative is 18s (1 beep) which I know I won’t be able to hold
So after the 400m will get 2m24s rest. But think I’ll need it.
edit: did it. Grim. 2nd 300 and 200 especially, had to really focus to hit the wall in time. That little yellow bleeper takes no prisoners.
Feels like progress - covered the distance at target pace in one session- but still a big way to go to a continuous 1500m at this pace, there were about 8 minutes of rest in that
Nice job
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Don’t you have a timer on your watch? I’d go off the timer or rest timer on my watch then reset the beep for each interval. For some reason it’s nicer to look at a timer than wait for the beep of doom to come
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My Wahoo watch is rubbish, it’s stopped recording any swim data at all. just says I swam 0m. Didn’t get round to picking up a new one yet. But am loving the tempo trainer, in a sort of love -hate way ![]()
thanks for recommending it. Great toy
Nice job ![]()
mine too…
Back in the 25m pool today with the bleeper set to 23s, which is 1m32 per 100m.
500/400/300/200/100 with 1 bleeps rest per 100m swum (so, 1m55s rest after the 500 etc…)
Was a couple of seconds off the pace on the 400 but otherwise held it together.
The metronome is definitely giving good feedback about pace v effort.
25m pool feels way bigger than the 20m though. Think I’ll definitely try for the 1500 in the small pool if I ever get to that point
I don’t know how great your technique holds up, but I’m not so sure strokes per minute/length is a sure fire way to speed.
Sometimes, particularly early in the session I’m amazed at how fast I go in “easy mode”.
Sometimes I’m amazed that for much faster stroke rate/effort that speed hasn’t increased.
…But you know this
I’m just interested in your experience with the tempo so pushing for your opinions.
Think he’s using beep per length rather than stroke rate.
Okay, so nothing for most of the length until you’re near the wall and hope you’re on time?
Yeah, I’m just using it like that. So yesterday it was set to give 3 short bleeps , once every 23 seconds, and just keep doing that.
Not the cutting edge of tech, but it still feels like pretty powerful feedback.
I use it in that way too, i find it really useful.
More water-torture tonight with the bleeper set to 22s per length which is 1m28 pace. 15x100m off 1m50 was the plan, and just about managed to hold the pace, although for the last few I had to let the rest roll on for a second bleep (=2m12).
Tried a race-the-bleeper swim this morning. See how far I could get swimming continuously at 1m30s per 100m.
Result: 725m
Bit disappointed by this & need to up my game over the next few weeks. Going to aim to swim at least 10km per week, with at least 2km at target pace or faster.
Still think 1500m in 22m30 is achievable, but it’s going to take work not just the usual bit of splashing about.
Pace is 1:30 isn’t it?
Reminds of the bleep tests back in secondary school. Brilliant but grim.
In the 20 or 25m pool? Still not bad going.
I was making good progress up to Christmas, incremental improvements each week, then I got a cold, had a week or so off & now I can’t get back to the pace I was at before.
Just got to keep at it & trust the process but it’s still a bit frustrating.
Yeah I’m cheating by using the 20m pool (need all the help…)
Unfortunately I don’t feel like I have made much progress in Jan & guess am probably just not doing enough swimming - 1500m about 5 times per week. So think am going to up the sessions to 2km each as a next step.
I tend to get a bit bored in the longer swims & generally want to get out and crack on with something else after half an hour ![]()
Your swimming was really impressive in December - some crackers in there IIRC
Now you’re talking. Proper sport, not this splashy nonsense that our ancestors long left behind. ![]()
That is not far off a Monday evening for the distance lane in El Nino’s squad
oh and they probably did 3.5-5k in the morning also, depending when they leave the pool for school
I jest but there does come a time when you need to be swimming considerably more to break that plateau.
