Pool Training: Sample workout, Beginning/Intermediate, for 25 yard pool (DYN_SC_A02)

This is another pool workout, intended for beginning to intermediate divers. Again, the intervals and distances can be adjusted to suit your level and training intentions for the day.

How much distance should I be swimming?

Anything is better than nothing when it comes to training, but generally, to get benefit from pool training, at least 300 - 600 meters of underwater swimming should be the goal for each workout for divers who are newer to pool training. Surface swimming is not part of this equation because while it may be a great cardiovascular exercise that involves a certain amount of breath control, it emphasizes a different metabolic pathway than underwater/breathhold work. Easy surface swimming will do barely anything when it comes to apnea conditioning, although sprinting can have benefit since sprinting emphasizes anaerobic conditioning, which is very useful for freediving.

Should I warm-up? What about 'no warm-up' training?

First, the long technical answer: 'No warm-up' freediving is more of a competitive technique intended to maximize physiological changes related to mammalian dive reflex by shocking the body quickly and strongly into dive mode. In my experience, warming up with a reasonable amount of surface swimming will have no effect on apnea swimming--ie, I could do 300 yards of surface swimming to warm-up, then go for a max distance underwater swim and probably get the same dive response as if I skipped the surface swim warm-up. But if prior to my max distance underwater swim I had done a certain amount of apnea work, my dive response would be different and likely less pronounced for that max swim. 'No warm-up' is mostly used for pool competition where dive response triggers just can't be as strong as in the ocean since there is no depth and resulting chest compression.

My workouts involve a certain amount of warm-up swimming because I believe it's good for the joints and muscles and it doesn't have any detrimental effect on the underwater portion of the workout. Also, when it comes to actually diving in the ocean, even if diving from boats we by necessity do some aerobic surface swimming over the course the day, so if I'm doing a pool workout I want simulate my ocean days as closely as possible.

What's the purpose of the warm down? Is it necessary?

During ANY kind of anaerobic work--sprinting and particularly underwater/breathhold swimming--there will be an accumulation of metabolic waste. Blood circulation and oxygen in the muscles help them recover in both long and short term, and ultimately grow and strengthen. We can jump start this by concluding workouts or difficult sets with a little bit of easy, aerobic exercise like surface swimming.

No diver should ever train alone.

WARM-UP

- 100 easy crawl

- 100 easy crawl, ladder breathing every 3,5,7,5,3,5,7,5...etc strokes

- 50 easy crawl

MAIN SET, WEARING LONG FINS (find a rest time and breath interval that is challenging but doable)

2 x {

- 25 underwater, rest 30 seconds

- 50 underwater, taking two breaths at the turn/wall, rest 30 seconds

- 75 underwater, taking two breaths at each turn/wall, rest 30 seconds

- 100 underwater, taking two breaths at each turn/wall, rest 30 seconds

- 75 underwater, taking two breaths at each turn/wall, rest 30 seconds