Long Swim Question

I'm going to see what you get back on this one, I have thought the same, that's why I do one 45min straight swim a week and I'm only up to olympic tri's, my other 2 swim work outs I mix it up with intervals and drills but still have at least a 15min straight swim in .

"Real" swimmers (folks who swam in HS or college) don't usually do the long swims, so that is why you always see that information.  I do them, though.  I've done the local 5K OW swim for 3 years now and I always work up to at least 5K continuous swimming, if not more.  Granted, swimming in a pool is easier than OWS because of the push off of the wall at the turns, but it is a confidence builder to know that you can easily swim the distance.  I'm not kidding about the continuous swimming - no putting a foot down to get water, adjust googles, check the time, nothing unless it's while treading water.

Most training plans for IM include occasional long swims. Just like you don't do a long run every weekend for the marathon, nor (usually) a weekly century to train for the bike, the long swims are fewer.

They are, however, going along with what you say, usually fewer than long bikes and long runs.

Training for long-distance swimming is a different animal than training for a long swim that's part of a long-course triathlon (same for cycling and running).

Distance swimmers do put in an astonishing amount of pool time doing, just as you say, intervals. (And work ceaselessly on form, as well: swimming is all about efficiency, and multiply that a heckuva lot with increasing distance).

Intervals ... you can swim 10x100 a lot faster than 1000, so you are training your muscular and aerobic capacities to function optimally at that desired, faster pace by doing intervals. You also do not get as tired, so that you can do MORE work. (Volume does count, like in running and cycling, but smart volume). You also hold your stroke much better in intervals than over a long swim: you're training your muscular memory correctly, more efficiently, ingraining perfection over and over, instead of having it slowly fall apart. (ramble, but you get the idea). Finally, consistency ... it's really easy to consistently hit and measure paces if you're doing 100s than continuous. You get a very, very sharp sense of pacing.

Also, with intervals, you can GET faster at them in less time than it takes to get faster at continuous long-distance swimming ... and then the idea is that you string them together to make them add up to a continuous swim. For instance, lots of rest will enable you to do the actual swimming part much faster, and then you gradually decrease the amount of rest but you'll still be able to hold that pace. (A simple example, there are many ways and types of swim interval training)

Finally ... frankly ... 2.4mi swim just isn't that long. It's not nearly comparable to the 112mi of biking and 26mi of running you do in an IM. If you want to be really competitive (and I use the following term VERY carefully), "speedwork" plays an increasingly important part in getting a lot faster on what is relatively the SHORT part of a distance triathlon.

I know I rambled a lot and didn't say it all perfectly or explain it well (nor do I vehemently assert everything I said is correct) but I think that's the basic ideas.

I think you said it pretty well. It makes sense.  Thanks.

I do throw a 2000 yd swim in every other week (limited by time) and do not touch the bottom or push off the wall.  Just a light touch to the wall.  I need that confidence that I can make it   I do swim with our club Mon and Wed and we do all sorts of intervals, drills etc and I am usually beat at the end of these sessions.

Thanks again everyone,
Duane

There's nothing wrong with a long continuous swim.  Just make sure you keep concentrating on form throughout the swim.  My swim coach in college used to remind us "practice makes permanent" -- in other words: avoid repetition of bad technique because it'll stick with you.

When I do swim training, I do long sets all the time. For example if I swim 2500 yards, I will do maybe 400 yards as a warmup, then go into some intervals with an active recovery, then a cool down - all without stopping. So if I'm doing 10 x 100, it's 100 then a slow length as a recovery, then another 100 and repeat. I do it the same as when I run on a track. Run the hard part, jog to recover, repeat.

I have also done this during OWS, but instead of fixed distances I use time as the interval. So it may be 10 x 1:45 with a 15 second recovery - all done as one long set.

I'm not a real fast swimmer, but when I train regularly I can do 1500 meters in about 24 minutes using the above training methods.

Beyond what Yanti said (great advice), when I do long sets, I get slower and slower as I'm practicing going long and slow. I know for some it is mentally nice to know you can do the distance and I get that.

I'd much rather do 4200 yds of different length intervals with different goals, then doing 2x2100 and doing intervals I practice swimming faster vs. practicing swimming slower.

^^^^the bolded stuff.

A long swim is fine if you need some confidence, but if you are looking to get better then you would be better off doing a set on tight intervals and keeping the pace constant. Chances are that if you are swimming a long swim your pace is going to be all over the place. Fast at first, increasing slower as your form fades, and then faster at the end as you stop rationing your effort. Unless you are watching your pace every 50 or 100 and making sure you pace is consistent, then you are better off skipping the straight swims.
The other thing I want to add is the walls. Not touching the walls does nothing but disrupt your pace, rhythm, and form (you'll chop your stroke to get up to speed). If you think you're getting a break using the walls then learn flip turns. If you think pushing off the walls are some sort of advantage, then swim more than the race distance to give yourself piece of mind.
Good Luck!

Certainly not going to argue with a swimmer like TJ (esp. since he's right in what he says)...but...

At some point, IMO, it's worth transferring the gains from longer interval sessions into at least occasional long continuous sessions.  Yes, indeed, it is easier to hold your form over 2000-4000 yards if you stop every 100 or so than if you swim straight through...but come race day, you don't have that luxury.  I'm not the fastest guy in the water here, but I'm not the slowest either, and I definitely get benefit from working on holding form for anywhere from 2500 to 4000 yards nonstop.  Someone commented that your pace will be all over the place on a swim like that...well, one of the focuses of a swim like that is to work on holding a constant pace in the face of fatigue.

This topic has come up before and there are people here who do mix in long continuous swims with interval and drill sessions.  Sometimes it's just for the mental dimension--getting used to not having rests, swimming long because you enjoy swimming long, or what-have-you.