You are fooling yourself if you think that just by getting into a pond or lake and swimming from one side to the other a couple of times, you are in some way helping your training. Sure, you can learn how to sight and maybe even learn how to draft (if you have a willing and able partner) but, for the most part, swimming open water without integrated hard work is similar to walking down a street and saying that it is preparing you for running a 10k.

Below are tested and demonstrated open water workouts which will make your open water workout more than a float session. As far as I know these are original so no credit being given out. If you “invented” these, tell me and I will mention your name as an originator. Before you do any of these you need to know several things about yourself as a swimmer:

1) First and foremost, you need to know how many strokes it takes you to swim a 25, 50, 100 and 200.
2) You need to know these stroke counts at 3 different speeds: cruise, 80% and Max. The variations will be subtle but important.
3) You need to know how long it takes you to swim a 25, 50, 100, 200 at the three above speeds. As a bonus, if you know your 400, 500, 800 and 1000 times, even better.

It does not matter whether you swim in a SCY, SCM or LCM pool, the above is relevant only towards the open water. Too much data for you to remember? No problem. Grab a sharpie or marker and write it down on your forearm or hand or put it on a piece of paper, laminate it and attach it to your wetsuit/swimsuit.

What I have done below is write “sets” that you can do in open water. You can mix and match them in so many possible configurations. You can do grouped bracket repeats or just do one “set” several times. These sets don’t care if you are at a beach, lake or bathtub. You should always do 10-20 minutes of relaxed to moderate swimming prior to a workout. Time spent warming up depends on the amount of time you have to swim. As in a pool workout, warmup to swim ratio should be about 25:75. Though watches are forbidden in the West Side program because of the imbalance they create in swimming, they are going to be required in open water. Specifically, you will want a watch that has a repeating countdown function.

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Set #1
4 x 100 strokes on :15r – alt. 10 strokes ez with normal breathing,
followed by 10 strokes hard and controlled with HU breathing
2 x 200 strokes on :20r – alt. 5 strokes ez no breathing, followed by
15 strokes hard and controlled with HU breathing

Set #2
8 x 50 @ 200 pace interval – HU breathing only (this is where knowing
your stroke count comes in – for example, if you swim a 50 in 32
strokes and your 200 pace is a 3:00, then you swim 32 strokes and stop
and your interval is :45 for the 50)

Set #3
10 x 25 fast on :30
10 x 50 fast on :50
1 x 300 – alt. 25 fast/50 ez/50 fast/25 ez

Set #4
(requires a partner)
One person, “the leader”, leads for 15 strokes. The other person follows in the proper draft position. After the 15th stroke, the follower has to do a proper out-of-draft pass at full speed and then take the lead. They then take 15 strokes and the same occurs. This continues for 20 strokes, 25 strokes and 30 strokes. Then it comes back down to 15 strokes. Total stroke count will reveal the total yardage.

Set #5
(requires a partner)
One person is the “leader” and the other is in the proper draft position as the follower. Every 30 seconds, the follower executes a proper out-of-draft pass and comes up next to the side of the leader and holds that position for 15 strokes. They then slip back into the draft. Once back in the draft, they swim for 30 seconds and then repeat swimming back up next to the leader. The follower does this 5 times and then, after the fifth time they have come up next to the leader, the leader then shifts back into the draft position and they repeat it for 5 times. Variations can be increasing/decreasing the amount of times the draft/retreat is done, increasing/decreasing the 30 second interval or changing the speed of the leader.

Set #6
(from Page Wasson – West Side SC)
Page’s Summer Salsa Swim

Know your Strokes Per Length for 25yds.

Mild = easy cruise, about 60%
Medium = 80%
HOT = MAX

50 Mild
50 Medium
50 HOT
50 HOT
50 Medium
50 Mild

100 Mild
100 Medium
100 HOT
100 HOT
100 Medium
100 Mild

6 x 150 (same pattern)
6 x 200 (same pattern)
6 x 250 (same)
Return to the dock for a Corona, chips and some spicy salsa!

Set #7
(from Page Wasson – West Side SC)

Know your Strokes Per Length for 25yds.

20 x 50’s
#1 – #5 cruise
#6 – #10 build
#11 – #15 finger tip/fists/catch up/head up/dps
#16 – #20 focus on perfect technique, add 2 strokes each 25

4 x 100: 25 R arm, 25 L arm, 50 build

10 x 200 at 90% effort, keep pace the same

500 pull – MAX/cruise/MAX/cruise/MAX by 100

Set #8
(from Page Wasson – West Side SC)

Know your Strokes Per Length for 25yds.

800 warm up

25 cruise
5 strokes FAST with BIG KICK
25 cruise
10 strokes FAST with BIG KICK
25 cruise
15 strokes FAST with BK
25 cruise
20 strokes F w/ BK
25 cruise
Keep alternating adding 5 strokes each FAST w/ BIG KICK until 50 strokes.
Then keep alternating as you go from 50 strokes back down to 5.
End with 25 cruise.

12 x
25 build then flip and keep going in the same direction
25 drill then flip
25 fast then flip
25 drill then flip
25 cruise then flip
50 kicking fast

1200 pull FAST

MORE SETS TO COME WHEN I GET A FEW MORE MINUTES TO TYPE — IF YOU HAVE ONE THAT’S ORIGINAL, SEND IT IN AND I WILL MAKE YA FAMOUS.