Swim Training on a Time Basis?

I asked a similar question here many months back.  The answers I got were generally based on what kind of watch the person had and how they kept time.  So, some people used watches that just tallied up the swimming time and not the rest time, so those people used that number.  Like those using a stopwatch such as on a timex ironman watch.  Others just took the total time they spent, including rest times.  there is no right or wrong way- just different ways.

That said, just swimming straight for 44 minutes is likely not your best use of that training time.  Swim training typically involves shorter, more intense sets.  but that's a whole other discussion.

I wouldn't take the workout prescription so literally.  If it calls for 44 minutes, and you have an hour...go for an hour.  The extra 16 minutes won't kill you...regardless of whether the time includes rest intervals or not.

I think the more important thing to pay attention to is how the plan is structured as far as builds and recovery.  So if you see a 44 minute workout, and then 4 weeks later there is a 65 minute workout...know that whatever baseline you have set for your 44 minute workout, you need to do about 50% more.

How long are you resting? If you're on a time basis, you should swim on the clock. Find your pace and swim accordingly. Warm up, then time the distance in which you want to focus. 50 yards/meters, 100 y/m, 200 y/m... If it took you 1:45 to do one distance, then swim at 2:00.

Using the pool clock, wait for the second hand to reach 0, then swim your distance. When you're back at the wall watch the clock and rest while the second hand ticks back to the 0 mark and repeat your distance.

Depending on your comfort level - warm up (200-500 y/m easy pace), do your main set, and a cool down (100-200 y/m easy pace). Toward the end of your set the 1:45 will become closer to 1:55. This is always initiative to swim faster so you can rest longer. 

Is the pool meant for swimming? If so, go for it. I could be lucky, but people like that at the pools I go to seem to understand. Can't say for sure no one has ever been irked, but haven't had any complaints. Actually get some respect from that same crowd (and others). It's in how you conduct yourself.

If you're swimming quite hard in the sets and taking appropriate recovery time it's not really that hard to swim continuously for those events. Doing an HIM swim hasn't been difficult after killing it for 2,000-2,500 yd main sets as I just back off the pace. Really watch the recovery time in the sets and it should come fairly well even without any specific practice. Too long and yes, it could be an issue. Not often that I'll be truly recovered, just enough to lessen the burning.

Leading into the event it will help to optimize things some more to at least get some bigger intervals in there, but there isn't a need to do the really long race-length continuous swims on such a consistent basis. Farther out from the event do what you can to get as fast as possible. Many can make enough gains this way that their pacing could be a bit off and still come out ahead in both time and energy spent.

there's probably a big 'mental' benefit to doing some long sets.  i.e. being comfortable that you 'can' do it.  Also, I find long sets helpful for getting the feel of endurance pacing.  How hard can you go, and sustain it without making your arms feel like lead.  So, yeah. I definitely include this in my training.  I do 500's, 250's, 100's and 50's.  I've never done 25's.  hmmmm.  Probably not a bad idea.

Anyway; here's most of what I know about endurance training.

90% of the benefit come from volume and consistency.  everything else we talk about here is merely to optimize what you're getting out of that volume and consistency.

And 90% of that remaining 10% can be answered by this method:

Running:  Mostly easy, sometimes hard

Cycling:  sometimes hard, sometimes easy

swimming:  mostly hard, sometimes easy

So, if you're talking about whether you should do 100's with 15s rest or 50's with 10s rest.... then you're really just talking about optimizing that last 1% of your training.  Getting to the pool is the important part.

I understand that feeling as well. But the suggestion was to take another look at the training scheme if the long swims are so "necessary" to combat that feeling they "need" to be in there weekly. Particularly for someone only swimming three times a week.