Taking my Own Advice: a More "CSS-Based" Swim

After I had written up Monday's post about the CSS "swim style" but before I'd posted it, I decided to try a more CSS-based swim. I noted in that post that I'd been slowly moving away from the CSS style of swimming: I've been doing HARDER efforts with LONGER rest lately, whereas CSS is more about holding a (slightly slower) consistent pace with less rest between efforts.

I've posted about this workout a lot... I did the broken 3x400 and 2x300 workout that I like so much. I've been SLOWLY making the rests longer in that workout, but I cut it back down to 0:15 within the efforts, which felt SHORT! Therefore, I also tried to ease up on the effort a bit to hold that CSS pace as much as possible (which, because of my recent "testing" I knew was 1:34).

So I started with the 400, and was 1 second slower than my CSS pace for all of that: 6:17.

Then a 0:30 rest instead of the 0:40 rest I'd been giving myself over the last 2 years or so.

Next was 2x200, and I hit those both 1 second faster than my CSS pace: 3:07 each. The 0:15 rest between them felt SHORT and NASTY.

Then was 4x100 that should have been at my CSS pace of 1:34, but I knew they'd be faster... I'm always faster at the shorter efforts, and slower at the longer efforts. I did them in 1:30, 1:32, 1:31, and 1:31, and again, the 0:15 rest between those was something I was NOT used to. I was starting each one still gasping for air. (And I think that's part of the point - this workout was good for me!)

Then it was time for the 200s: I did another 1 second too fast 200 at 3:07. Nice.

Then 2x100 at 1:30 and 1:32.

Finally, 4x50 (with that nasty short 0:15 rest between) in 0:40, 0:42, 0:42, and 0:41.

This was good for me based on the shift from what I've been "used to" doing. Again, check out Monday's post about the CSS "swim style" if you're interested!