Weekend Swim Workout: 2, 4, 6, 8

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Variety is the spice of life – and of swim workouts, too. Though it can be tempting to just hop in the pool and zone out with a long, all-freestyle endurance swim, short sets with a mix of strokes and drills are the way to build the muscular and aerobic capacity needed for a faster race-day swim. Try this set from Coach Sara McLarty, which uses multiple strokes and sets of 100 in duplicate (2, 4, 6, and 8), each with a particular focus.

A
300 swim/200 pull/100 kick
8×50 on 1:00 (choice/free by 25)
6×50 on :55 (drill/swim by 25)
4×50 on :50 (build)
2×50 on :45 (fast)
300 pull/200 kick/100 swim
2×100 on 1:50 (IM [butterfly, back, breast, free], switch strokes every 25)
4×100 on 1:40 (25 fast/75 easy)
6×100 on 1:30 (pull steady)
8×100 on 1:25 (swim strong)
200 cool-down
Total: 4400

RELATED: Why Triathletes Should Swim Different Strokes

B
200 swim/200 pull/100 kick
8×50 on 1:15 (choice/free by 25)
6×50 on 1:10 (drill/swim by 25)
4×50 on 1:00 (build)
2×50 on :55 (fast)
200 pull/200 kick/100 swim
2×75 on 1:45 (back/breast/free)
4×75 on 1:45 (25 fast/50 easy)
6×75 on 1:30 (pull steady)
8×75 on 1:20 (swim strong)
100 cool-down
Total: 3600

RELATED: A Complete Guide to Triathlon Swimming

C
200 swim/200 pull/100 kick
6×50 with 10 sec rest (drill/swim by 25)
4×50 with 10 sec rest (build)
2×50 with 5 sec rest (fast)
200 pull/recovery
2×50 with 15 sec rest (non-free)
4×50 with 10 sec rest (25 fast/25 easy)
6×50 with 10 sec rest (pull steady)
8×50 with 5 sec rest (swim strong)
100 cool-down
Total: 2400

Shake up your swim routine with more weekend swim workouts from Coach Sara McLarty.