How To Insert Drills Into Practice?

[Admin Mediterra]

Here are some examples of drill patterns below.

Please take liberty with the distances suggested, experiment and modify to suit your own condition and goals. The variations may be virtually endless, yet there are some important principles we use to design drills to create an ideal brain-training pattern which I won’t go into right now.

Examples are given for a 25 m/yd pool. FP = Focal Point. WS = Whole Stroke.

The point of the Nasal-Only breathing rest (mouth closed, not talking) is to activate your para-sympathic nervous system which helps regulate heart rate more effectively, and to keep your mind reflective on what you just did and what you are going to do better on the next length. Drills are predominantly about brain-work after all.

Drill-Only

• 3 rounds
• Choose Focal Points A, B, and C
• Assign one focal point to each round.
• Round 1:  2x drill for 8 seconds, with FP A
• Round 2:  2x drill for 8 seconds, with FP B
• Round 3:  2x drill for 8 seconds, with FP C
• Stop to breathe after each drill segment

Or, try this variation:

• 3 rounds
• Choose Focal Points A, B, and C
• On each round do:
  • 25 drill with FP A
  • 25 drill with FP B
  • 25 drill with FP C
• Use interrupted breathing during the length of drill
• 6 -8 deep nasal-only breaths at the wall between each

After doing one of the previous sets successfully take the next step in complexity:

• 3 Rounds
• Round 1…
  • 1x 25 drill with FP A
  • 1 x 25 drill with FP A and B
  • Nasal-breath rest at wall
• Round 2…
  • 1x 25 drill with FP B
  • 1x 25 drill with FP B and C
  • Nasal-breath rest at wall
• Round 3…
  • 1x 25 drill with FP C
  • 1x 25 drill with FP C and A
  • Nasal-breath rest at wall

Drill With Whole Stroke Mixed

Pick 3 Focal Points A, B, and C

• 3 rounds
• 2x 25 drill
• 2x (1/2 length drill, 1/2 length whole stroke)
• 2x 25 whole stroke
• Round 1: use Focal Point A
• Round 1: use Focal Point B
• Round 1: use Focal Point C
• Do the following sequence 3x (for a total of 450 m/yd), with FP A on #1, B on #2, and C on #3
• 6 -8 deep nasal-only breaths at the wall between each

You can increase complexity by blending (=holding attention on) two Focal Points at the same time: AB, AC, BC

Or to increase challenge you can increase duration: increase the distance of each repeat, or increase the number of repeats.

Whole Stroke Intervals with Drill Tune Up

The possibilities are endless…

• 3 rounds
• 25 drill + 50 whole stroke
• 25 drill + 75 whole stroke
• 25 drill + 100 whole stroke
• 6 -8 deep nasal-only breaths at the wall between each

You may use FP A on cycle #1, B on #2, and C on #3. To increase complexity, you can blend Focal Points (AB, AC, BC), and/or increase distance of the repeats, or add more repeats.

Here is one I might do as a marathon distance swimmer:

• Repeat this cycle 4 to 6 times (for a total of 1600 to 2400 m/yd).
• 300 m whole stroke + 100 m drill

I would do the 300 at higher intensity, then use the drill as active rest (no rest at the wall, just flip into drill mode and keep swimming). I might pick my Focal Points based on the observations I made during the WS swim. The one or two FPs I used during the drill I would also use during the next WS swim to test my focus.

An open-water version of this is to simply count strokes – 3x 100-strokes WS swim, and 100-strokes drill.

Whole Stroke Swimming with Focal Points

This is more straight forward. You swim any continuous distance or set of distance intervals. You simply pick a set of Focal Points and cycle through them as you swim. You change Focal Points after a certain distance, or certain number of repeats.

An example:

Swim a continuous 1500

with a Focal Points A, B, and C. Break the mental part of the swim down into 5x (3x 100, with FP A on #1, B on #2, and C on #3). You can place a rest interval in between each 100, or between each 300 if you need to, or just swim continuous without a break and simply change the FP at each interval.

As you achieve your improvement objective for each particular Focal Point you can increase the complexity by blending FP’s, as I mentioned previously: AB, AC, BC, and even ABC. Or pick new ones as you discover things to work on during the swim. Or you can challenge the endurance of your attention by increasing the duration you will hold those Focal Point blends.

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