Short Course (25yds) 'Different' Strokes Practice

[terry]

I swim almost exclusively freestyle between May and October. From November to April, I seek balance by putting more emphasis on honing my Fly, Back, Breast and Medley. Changing gears seasonally that way not only keeps both kinds of swimming feeling fresh; it also feels like I'm giving my neurons a new mission, twice a year.

Today was my first Different Strokes practice for the 2011-2012 'season.' I'll chronicle them here. Anyone doing similar practices is welcome to join in.

Set #1
Swim Backstroke
4x50+2x100+1x200+2x100+4x50 @1.35 tempo.
I averaged 16SPL throughout this set, with a few 17s in the latter half.
Then
4x50+2x100+1x200 @1.33
I was pleased to be able to maintain 16SPL.

I stayed quite relaxed throughout, never feeling as if my HR was very high, nor any fatigue. I hope to imprint relaxed, rhythmic swimming as a habit and by gradually increasing tempo, to improve pace gradually without having to work hard. There will be time for more intensive efforts in January and beyond.

Set #2
Swim Fly+Back
5 x 100 on 2:00
#1-4: 25 FL 75 BK
#5: 50 FL 50 BK
I did this set to test whether I could maintain the relaxed rhythmic feeling of BK -- and my SPL -- after swimming a bit of Fly. This is a key to swimming the Individual Medley well. I was very pleased with how relaxed I felt on both strokes. Pace? About 1:45/100.