A former college swimmer and high school assistant coach, Margaret Cyphers has built a number of workouts that she uses to keep her stroke strong. All of these workouts involve some or all of the four strokes. They are all between 2,000 and 3,000 yards and take about an hour to complete. Cyphers has printed all of them out, laminated them, and now takes them to the pool with her.
Before we get to the drills, swimming newcomers (the so-called "adult-onset swimmers") may benefit from learning some quick terminology in the drills that you may not immediately understand:
- Kick: A set focusing on your kicking. Often done while holding a kickboard to prevent assistance from your arms.
- Pull: A set focusing on your strokes. Often done with a pull buoy to prevent assistance from your legs.
- Drill: These sets do not have goal times. Focus solely on your technique during drill sets.
- Descend: Swim each repetition faster than the one before it.
- Dolphin Dives: Dive down below the surface of the water, similar to diving under waves. Here is a video demonstration.
- IM Order: The order of medley swims are butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle.
- Dolphin Kick: A type of kicking (typically used in the butterfly) where both legs kick together in rhythm.
- Choice: Choose whichever stroke you want.
- Negative Split: The second half of the set is swum faster than the first half.
More: 6 One-Hour Freestyle Workouts
Mix Tape
Warm-up (800)
- 200 free
- 150 breast
- 100 back
- 50 butterfly
- 6x50 kick (odd: freestyle, even: breaststroke)
Main set (1600)
- 4x100 with 15-second rest (first 25 butterfly)
- 100 easy breaststroke
- 3x100 with 10-second rest (first 25 butterfly)
- 100 easy backstroke
- 2x100 with 5-second rest (first 25 butterfly)
- 100 easy breaststroke
- 8x50 freestyle (easy/fast)
Cooldown (400)
- 4 x 100 (free, back, breast, free by 100's)
Total: 2800 yards
The Medley
Warm-Up (400)
- 1 x 400 (75 swim, 25 kick of each stroke)
Main Set (800)
- 200 freestyle, moderate
- 2x50 drill breast/50 swim breast
- 200 freestyle, moderate
- 200 breaststroke, negative split
Pull/Kick Set (600)
- 8 x 50 Pull freestyle (10-second rest)
- 200 moderate kick
Final Set (400)
8 x 50, descend 1-4 and 5-8 Cool Down (100)
100 Easy Total: 2300 yards
More: 2 IM Workouts for Your Open Water Swim
Drill Sarge
Warmup (400)
Main Set (2000)
- 8 x 50 alternate free/stroke* drill by 50
- 400 kick (200 with board, 200 without)
- 400 pull (200 freestyle, 200 stroke*)
- 4 x 100 kick (stroke*, descending)
- 4 x 100 pull (free, descending)
Cooldown (300)
Total: 2700
*-Choice of butterfly, backstroke or breaststroke. Try NOT to do free when offered the choice.
The Middy
Warmup (200)
Main Set (3200)
- 8 x 400
- First four 400s are IM (descending).
- The last four 400s alternate between pull and kick per 200. (Kick with board and fins. For pull, use a pull-buoy and paddles.)
Cool Down (100)
Total: 3500
I Am IM
Warm Up (300)
- 100 free
- 100 choice
- 100 kick
Drill Set (400)
- 8 x 50 drill/swim by 25. IM order, 10-second rest
Main Set (2000)
- 100 freestyle
- 2x200 IM
- 100 backstroke
- 2x200 IM
- 100 breaststroke
- 2x200 IM
- 100 freestyle
- 16x25 sprint IM order
Cooldown (100)
Total: 2800
More: 4 Focused Swim Workouts
Flipper
Warm-Up (800)
- 100 free
- 100 choice
- 12x50s with fins
- 4 x (2x50 kick, 1x50 swim) with 15-20-second rest
Main Set (1400)
- 5 x 200 fins
- #1 Free/back
- #2 Free/fly
- #3 Breaststroke 100 breast pull w/ dolphin kick, 100 swim
- #4 Choice. 50 drill/50 swim
- #5 200 swim
- 8x50 with 15-second rest
- #1-2 descend
- #3 easy free
- #4-5 descend
- #6-8 easy
Cooldown (250)
Total Yards: 2450
400s Are Fun
Warm-Up (100)
Pre-Set (800)
- 400: 4 x (25 kick/25 drill/50 swim). Reverse order IM. Continuous.
- 400: 200 kick, 200 swim, choice
Main (1600)
- 400: 2x200 free
- 400: 4x100 pull
- 400: 8x50. Odds non-free; evens are free.
- 400: 16x25.
Cool Down (100)
Total Yards: 2600
Power Hour
Warm-Up (1000)
- 600: 200 Swim, 200 Pull, 200 Kick
- 400: 8 x 50 (25 drill/25 swim) Choice (mix it up).
Main (1500)
- 300 Continuous: 100 free, 100 choice, 100 free. Rest 30 seconds.
- 300 Continuous: 100 choice, 100 free, 100 choice. Rest 30 seconds.
- 300: 3 x 100 Pull
- 300: 6 x 50 (25 swim/25 kick, choice)
- 300: 4 x 75 Count strokes each 25, choice.
Cooldown (100)
Total Yards: 2600
More: Keep Your Feel for the Water With These 30-Minute Swim Workouts
4,3,2,1...
Warm-Up (1000)
- 200 swim
- 400 (2x200 pull), rest 15 seconds.
- 200 Drill/Swim by 25, choice
- 200 (4x50 kick)
Main (1500)
- 4x50 Free
- 4x100 Free
- 3x50 Choice
- 3x100 Choice
- 2x50 Choice
- 2x100
- 1x50 Choice
- 1x100
Cooldown (100)
Total Yards: 2600
The Pulley
Warm-Up (800)
- 4 x 150 (100 Swim/50 drill)
- 200 Kick (50 free with board; 50 free without board on side; 100 choice)
Main Set 1 (975)
- 200 pull free: think about a long stroke. Rest 10 seconds.
- 175 swim choice
- 150 pull free
- 125 swim choice
- 100 pull free
- 75 swim choice
- 50 pull free
- 4x25 sprint free
- 4x25 sprint choice
Main Set 2 (750)
- 10x75 choice. 25 fast/25 easy/25 fast
Cool Down (100)
Total: 2625
Fly With Me
Warm-Up (300)
- 100 free, 100 breast, 50 back, 50 fly
Main Set (1600) with fins
- 2x (200 fly x 100 kick free)
- 2x (150 fly x 100 kick breast)
- 2x (100 fly x 50 kick free)
- 2x (50 fly x 50 kick breast)
Cool Down (100)
Total Yards: 2000
More: 2 Swim Workouts for Triathletes
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