FORUMS > Swimming Forum Rules

Alright so i'm definitely out of shape. i don't look it, but i've gone too long without swimming.

I have to be able to swim a 1000M ocean swim, followed by a 500M sprint ocean swim, by next month.

I went to the gym to see what i could swim, i really didn't think swimming a 1000 would be any problem. i got to a 500 and i was sooo out of breath it was ridiculous, i had to stop my side was cramping up too bad to go on. it's so sad!! haha. if we only swam a 5000 at practice we were lucky, and it we practiced 10 times a week. i hate that i've gotten this out of shape.

I know i didn't give myself adequate time to train for this, but i'm still going to try. so what would you suggest?
Should i just force my way through 1000's and then give body a couple days to rest after, and then repeat, trying to push my time down? or should i swim just a little bit everyday?

didn't get any replies, but here's an update.

I forgot to mention that half of that 500 was a butterfly sprint. tiring, but i really didn't expect to get as tired as i did, which worried me. a couple days later after my failed attempt i swam a little over a mile and wasn't even really out of breath. I've been training and pushing myself since, things are going to go just fine.

You won't build any muscle in that brief time, but you could improve your muscle tone a little, and also your breathing capacity. The risk is in overdoing it, and hurting your muscles, so that you won't be able to perform at all. Therefore I wouldn't try all-out efforts right away, but do swim every other day. Did you swim daily in your previous training, and were your muscles OK with that?

I think you should try to swim a little bit each session and gradually increasing what you have done in the previous session so that your body can gradually get back into shape. There is no short cut in getting back to your best shape and it will take time to get there.

the best way to train would be to do a variety of sets. I would do like a 300 w/u followed by something like 10x100 trying to hold the best time you can for the entire set, and then doing some longer distance stuff like 2x300 to lengthen out and work on longer distances. I would also do a time trial every week to see how fast I can do the 1000. Dont worry, on race day you will be able to go much further and much faster then in practce!