The first time I appeared at Sectionals, disaster struck. I was swimming the 400 meter Freestyle and was feeling more than a little nervous than normal. On the way into the first turn, I was feeling good – easy speed, out in front by a little, and then all of sudden… BOOM. I hadn’t intentionally warmed up in the Long Course pool we were racing in and therefore, didn’t notice the end of the pool had a double T.
In an effort to keep my head down (after all, not looking up into the wall was drilled into my head by my coaches), I saw the first tee and began to initiate my turn. After the quick maneuver, I started to flip where I quickly realized I was AT LEAST a body-length away from the wall. After going into the wall first, I came out last and never quite caught back up. All of this because I did not intentionally warm up well for this Long Course race.
Let’s Get Started
How To Warm Up PERIOD
Before we discuss the differences between warming up for Long Course races and Short Course races, we need to discuss the non-negotiables of every meet warm-up. You can read more about them in-depth HERE. In a way, you should treat warm up like a familiar checklist. The more you do it, the more your body and mind learns to connect and know what to expect with an upcoming race.
No matter if it’s Long Course or Short Course, the energy during a swim meet warm up is exciting and contagious!
Get your heart rate up. It is crucial to push the body a little during warm up. A slightly taxing set, some sprints, or some dryland movements will all do the trick. Find the combination that works for you. Some people’s bodies need more and some will only need a little.
Check the specifics of the pool you will be racing in. This means starting off the blocks (no matter how long the line is), observing how the flags look and where the officials stand is placed, and practicing on and off the walls. The goal is to compare and contrast what is similar and different to your home pool. Even though most pools are similar, the differences can throw us off in a racing situation. Clearly, this is the step I missed!
Have some fun. Laugh with teammates, sing along to the music, and do something to GET EXCITED to race!
Warm Up can and should be a fun time to help swimmers get beyond their nerves and ready to RACE!
Specifics of Long Course Warm Up
Warm up those legs! Long Course is, well, long. I like to recommend that swimmers perform a kicking set during a Long Course warm up that targets getting their heart rate up. After all, your kick speed determines your swim speed.
Drills. Although drills can be used for both Long Course and Short Course, I like to incorporate them more into a Long Course warm up. That’s because there is a lot more swimming involved. I try to get my swimmers to set their technique during their warm-up to get their brain prepared for action as well!
Practice odd turns. I find that Long Course pools tend to have more unique turn set ups. This makes sense, as we are oftentimes working with a moving bulk head. Have swimmers pay attention to where the T’s are, if there are no gutters (so the swimmer can’t grab on the wall), or any other abnormalities.
Specifics of Short Course Warm Up
Turns, turns, turns. It will come as a surprise to nobody that Short Course is turn heavy. I always recommend swimmers practice sprints in and out of the wall from 15 yards. I also recommend swimmers dive off the blocks and sprint into the wall until they get through their first turn and break-out. This practice really helps with overall confidence.
Dives. It’s more arguable that the dive for a Short Course race is more important than in Long Course races. The dive in the first 25 yards plays a bigger role in a swimmer’s average swim speed, versus the first 50m. I always recommend my athletes do 2 dives at the end of their warm up to a 15m breakout.
Underwater Dolphin Kicking. In the same vein, swimmers should focus more on warming up their Underwater Dolphin Kicking because they’re going to be spending a lot more time working those muscles than you would during a Long Course race. Swimmers should practice breaking out without breathing and getting as far down the pool while using as little energy as possible. After all, the momentum from the turn WILL make or break the race.
Pace Work. There is more variability to pace work in Short Course due to turns, than in Long Course. I find swimmers are more comfortable with swimming their paces in Long Course because the lack of turns, which is always why my club coach had us pace to 50m to a flip. For Short Course pacing though, let’s get those turns down and really hone in on your pace prior to your next day’s event! I recommend doing 2-4×50’s at pace at the end of your warm up to get your body moving at the same speed you plan to swim!
If you’re struggling to get a proper warm up in during the allotted time for your team or swimmers, remember to utilize deck space!
Overall Takeaways For Warm Up:
Warming up properly is setting a swimmer up for success. It is a form of taking care of the body. The name should also be taken literally. It’s a time to warm up the mind and body for race day.
Although all of these examples can be used for both Short Course and Long Course warm ups, we all know that space and time is limited in the warm up pool. If you have to make decisions on what to focus on, keep to the basics and these specific lists.
It’s amazing to see how the mind-body connection develops over time when a swimmer knows what’s coming during their meet day warm up. It really does translate to break through races in an otherwise stressful environment!
