Swimming: The King of Intervals!

Swimming: The King Of Intervals

If you had to choose your favourite interval distance, what would you choose?

100 metres?

200 metres?

400 metres?

The Contenders

For me, 100s are great and a distance I use a lot in my own training and the Swim Squad sessions. 25s are excellent too, although I use them a bit more sparingly than the 100s. 200s & 400s, every now and again, but not a “go to” distance for our intervals.

But the winner, in my eyes, is the 50m.

“Why The 50” I hear You Ask

✅ Easy to adjust intensity.

We know what an easy 50 feels like. Similarly, we know what a very strong 50m looks and feels like. The same can’t be said for 400s. Often, a strong 400m is very similar pace to a steady 400m, as other things such as pacing and technique breakdown comes into play. And we can’t usually do a big set of 400s!

✅ Completely change the set by adjusting rest intervals by a few seconds.

Amazing how different a set of 50s feels if you add or remove an extra 5 seconds rest.

20 x 50m off 60 seconds? No problem.

20 x 50m off 55 seconds, and we’re blowing towards the end.

20 x 50m off 1.05 and we can really push the pace and recover well after each rep.

✅ Effectively work different energy systems by managing intensity & rest.

Compare these blocks of 8 x 50m.

Firstly, 8 x 50m off 50 seconds, just swimming fast enough to meet the time and set off again. More of an aerobic, endurance type set.

Next, 8 x 50m off 1.15 (30 seconds rest), best pace we can maintain for all 8. We’re thinking threshold type pace here.

Finally, 8 x 50m off 1.45 (1 minute rest) – max effort, hitting close to best times. Zone 5 swimming all the way!

The same set, yet very, very different.

✅ Ideal distance for a busy public pool.

Sharing a lane with other swimmers and having long intervals to do can be frustrating. You catch them every few lengths and then have to perform some high risk overtaking manoeuvres!

A 50m interval can usually be timed to make sure you don’t catch the swimmer(s) in front by leaving a big enough gap before you push off. Adjusting rest intervals and being flexible with the set and you can usually get a good session in.

✅ Short enough to hold good technique, whatever intensity you’re swimming.

We can all swim 50m and keep focus on what we’re doing. When the distances start to increase, particularly at higher paces, our focus becomes less about technique and more about breathing, about trying to hold pace, about making it to the end of the rep in one piece!

✅ Ideal for experienced and inexperienced swimmers.

Pretty much all triathlete swimmers can do a set of 50m intervals, which makes it ideal for a similar Swim Squad main set for each lane. We simply adjust the number of 50’s, or the number of sets of 50s, and adjust the rest intervals.

And just because you’re an accomplished swimmer doesn’t mean you have to swim long intervals ‘because you can’.

What do you reckon? Agree with me?

Are 50s the king of interval distances? I think so!

50s In Action

You want more? Here are some sample sets based entirely of 50s and would really make you work hard.

Grant Hackett 50s

What about the set made famous by Australian Olympic 1500m swimming legend, Grant Hackett? 2,000m of 50m efforts. You’ve probably seen it.

16 x 50m – every 4th strong (10s rest)

12 x 50m – every 3rd strong (15s rest)

8 x 50m – every 2nd strong (20s rest)

4 x 50m – every one strong (25s rest)

Done correctly, this set gives us …

Smooth, endurance type swimming, then changing gears to swim fast.
Learning to recover on the smooth efforts.
Increasing the intensity as the session progresses. Those 8 x 50m efforts bite, and then the 4 x 50m requires a bit of bravery!

Ariane Titmus 400m Race Pace 50s

Or the race pace set from gold medal winning swimmer, Ariane Titmus?

24 x 50m at 400m race pace, off 1.30 (roughly 1 minute rest between each 50m). ‘Easy’ to start with. Get past 10 and you start to feel it. The last few, bleurgh!

Reducing Rest 50s

Or a very simple 40 x 50m, holding the same pace throughout but reducing the rest as the set progresses. Swimming with high fatigue on the last 10, with very little rest as your reward. A set that feels better when you’re in the shower, reflecting!

1 – 10 with 25s rest

11 – 20 with 20s rest

21 – 30 with 15s rest

31 – 40 with 10s rest

Birthday Treat

Or my birthday swim set from this year. You’ll never guess which birthday it was!

50 x 50m off 50 seconds.

Holding the same pace throughout … or holding on for dear life, as I like to call it.

Some good ones in there!

You can’t tell me you wouldn’t want to get stuck into those sets, can you?

Have I convinced you yet?

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