Things You'll Need:
- Pool
- Assistant
- Stop watch
- Clipboard
- Calculator
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Step 1
Stretch before getting in the pool and swim an easy warm-up. Make sure you do not spend the majority of your energy on your warm-up; remember you still have to swim 2,000 to 3,000 yards.
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Step 2
Have your assistant number a sheet of paper either 1 to 20 if you are swimming the timed 2,000, or 1 to 30 if you are swimming a T-3,000.
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Step 3
After your warm-up, take a three-minute break and then start your timed distance. Start from a push from the wall. You want true 100-yard pace times.
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Step 4
Your assistant should record the time of each of your 100-yard intervals, four lengths of the pool. For additional information, have her count the number of strokes it takes you to complete the last 25 yards of each 100.
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Step 5
After finishing the swim, complete your workout or do a slow, easy 200 to 300 yard cool down.
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Step 1
Look at the recorded, raw 100 splits. Are they consistent? If they get faster, you went out too slow; if they get slower, you went out too fast.
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Step 2
Take the aggregate time and divide it by 20 or 30 depending on the length (2,000 or 3,000) you swam.
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Step 3
The average time is your aerobic threshold (the pace that your body can maintain before moving into anaerobic status). Theoretically, one should be able to train at her aerobic threshold for hours.
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Step 4
Base your aerobic training pace on the average 100 times. Only train at this pace no more than 30 percent of your weekly training volume.
