Yes, Warm Up!
To warm up or not to warm up? Not really a question.
Lisa Wolf and the USMS Web site
No two swim workouts are exactly the same, but any workout should include a warm-up period at the start of practice. As a younger swimmer, you could jump in, race a buddy down the pool, and be ready to go in a few short minutes. As we age, it takes longer and longer for our bodies to acclimate to the pool, ease kinks and aches, and mentally prepare for a workout. Warm-up periods vary based on each individual swimmer’s fitness. A less-fit swimmer tends to warm-up at a different pace, as the blood flow to muscles increase the muscles contract and relax faster than in a more conditioned swimmer. Additionally, heart rate tends to elevate more rapidly in the less conditioned athlete. Conditioned swimmers take longer to warm up as it is a less taxing effort overall.
What exactly constitutes a good warm-up? Each person is unique and it varies from day to day. Play with it and don’t be afraid to change things in your warm-ups and find something that best prepares you for a good workout. Some people love variety in their warm-up, others prefer to do the same thing each time.
A general rule of thumb is to begin with low-intensity swimming, keeping heart rate in Zone 1 (60-80% maximum heart rate level) and gradually increase intensity as the warm-up develops. This can be done with a set similar (longer or shorter) to this:
- 300 easy swim, mixing up strokes as desired
- 4 x 50 kick, 15 seconds rest
- 4 x 50 swim, 15 seconds rest
- 4 x 25 build by 25 to 90% effort
When I coach my swimmers I usually have them start with a long swim of approximately 10 minutes, to allow for late arrivals, water avoiders, and chatters to get in the water, then start everyone off on a second warm-up set as listed above. This lets everyone get the basic warm-up in and still begin the workout as a group.
Providing yourself with a proper warm-up period prepares you mentally and physically for the rest of the workout, which helps to achieve maximum results.
Lisa Wolf is a Masters coach with the Montgomery Ancient Mariners and the District of Columbia of Aquatics Club in the Washington, DC area. She’s also a USA-S age group coach with the Rockville-Montgomery Swim Club and works with several other local swim programs. She is a certified USA Triathlon coach to better serve the growing triathlon community within USMS. Coach Wolf is a regular contributor to USMS publications, USAT Multisport Zone newsletter and local club newsletters. As current Potomac Valley Fitness Chair, she’s an avid recruiter to USMS, with the belief that “everyone is a swimmer, some of us just haven’t started yet.”