Peter is a former Victorian swimming, surf swimming and ironman champion.Former member of Victorian swimming, surflifesaving and surfboard riding teams. He is also a medal winner at Australian swimming and surf lifesaving championships, a former state league water polo player, Australian Masters swimming champion, and bay swimming enthusiast and has been placed in several Pier to pubs and Portsea swims. A Quick 10 Point View                 1. Once you have decided to swim either as an individual, pair or team be positive and plan your preparation. 2. Training –Try and train with a group. Write down your training schedule and try and stick to it. Practice bay swims. Frankston Pier @ 4o’clock Saturdays a group swims and any body can come along to and join in. 3. Make sure you have an efficient swim technique. If you can’t get a coach to look at you at least get an experience swimmer. Technique becomes even more important in longer swims. 4. Stay positive – During training, you will always have good and bad days. Just get through your training on the bad days and don’t get worked up. 5. Mentally rehearse  race day. Start from when you arrive the logistics for the day, and then include your warm up swim, race plan and finishing of the swim. Race day stay focused on these things. 6. Have your support crew organized, and have practiced with your crew, race pace, position they will be whilst you are swimming i.e. 2m on breathing side. Eating and drinking plan.                                      Whistle in boat so they can let you know when to change.etc 7. Plan and trial your nutrition for the day ie. type of food and fluids, how often these will be consumed. Remember your crew needs to eat and drink also. 8. Pairs and teams should have planned time in the water for each swimmer. Remember it can get cold sitting in the boat, swaping out every 10 to 15mins seams to work pretty well. 9. Rest and recover before race day. Build you training slowly and make sure the last few days before the race you taper and get enough sleep and rest. 10. Enjoy the event, what ever the conditions and the weather decides. HAVE A FUN DAY.

Training

Firstly decide if you are an, individual, pair or competing as a team member.

These are just some general guide lines. It’s far better to join a local swim/masters or tri squad with experienced coaches and swimmers to help you and make training easier and more enjoyable.

However if this doesn’t suit or a squads unavailable. Here are a few ideas.

• In a long swim your stroke becomes a lot more important, firstly for effenciey and secondly to prevent injury. Try and have an experienced coach or swimmer check you out.
  
  
• Remember slowly increase you distances and intensity at training. Ideally one or two longer sessions a week swimming at 60% to 70%, plus a couple of sessions with high intensity during the main set ie.80 to 90%.Even some shorter sprints i.e. 25m @ 100%.
  
  
• Distances are always difficult as there are many factors in our daily lives that affect our ability to train. However here’s a rough guide line. Most participants should be doing 3 to 4 sessions per week with individuals doing up to 4 a week and even 5.Can also incorporate some cross training i.e. Walking, Running, or even alight Weight program.  4 sessions a week at 4k would give you 16k per week,  Solo’s need to be up around this distance, for the enthusiast perhaps even 20k. Pairs should be around 12 to 16k and Team swimmers around 8 to 12k. Pairs tend to push harder each time they are in the water so it can be nearly as hard as an individual swim. Also even for teams one member may get tired or unwell so other team members may need to do more than expect.

• Rough Training Plan
  
  Warm up of 800m to 1000m
  Kick 200m to 400m can be done as 8x50m
  Sprints 25’s or 50m, 100 to 200m
  Main set – Solos 1500 to 2000m
  Pairs 1500
  Team 1200 to 1500m
  Other strokes 200 to 400m
  Cool Down     100 to 200m solo’s at least 400m
  Main Set can be broken up between 100m, 200m’s, 300 or 400m or even combinations.
  Ie.15 X 100m on a time turn over that gives you 10 to 15 sec rest @ 80% effort.
  Intensity Sets can be done in shorter distance sets with 1 minutes rest between each set.
  I.e. 4X 200m on a time turn over that gives you 10 to 15 sec rest @ 90% effort.
  100 to 200m mixed or easy freestyle.
  8 X 100m this time getting 20 sec rest @ 90% effort.
  
  Pyramid sets are another very good fitness workout. These are done with a small warm up and a few sprints then straight into this main set. Which is done continuously.
  
  For this example l will use a swimmer who can swim 100m @ 80% and come in on the 1.20sec time. You will need to adjust the times to suit your standard of swimming.
  
  Set   8 X 50m on 45 sec
  4 X 100m on 1.30
  2 X  200m on 3 mins
  1 X  400m (solos could do 2) on the 6mins
  2 X 200m on the 3mins
  4  X 100m on the 1.30
  8 X 50m on the 45 sec  

Total Distance 2.8k or 3.2k again you can adjust the distances to suit.

Mixed strokes and cool down after this set.

• Training sessions can be mixed and adusted to suit your requirements however they should include the following
  
  
• KICK –  you use your legs even  if its only a two beat kick you do, so leg strength is important also in rough seas you tend to use your legs more.
  
  
• MIXED STROKES – lts for your body to do other strokes as you use different muscles and mix the stress you get from doing freestyle most of the time. Also get more strength and more rounded muscle development by changing strokes. Even small amounts of butterfly is good for strength, however should you have any shoulder problems NO FLY.
  
  
• BANDS and PULL BOUY – these are good tools to do small amounts with.
  
  
• Rubber band (cut old car tube) use around ankles, this is good for strength training. Only do short sets i.e. 8 X 50m’s.Try and hold your bottom up even if your legs drop.
  
  
• Pull Buoy can be used for strength training as well as technique. Try slowing and lengthening your stroke whilst using the pull buoy.
  
  
• SPRINTS – Even in long swims you need to be able to vary your speed, also for start and finishes in swims. One shouldn’t get in the habit of always swimming the same pace at training, its good for the muscles and fitness to do some sprint work and mixing your speed.
  
  
• OCEAN SWIMS – Need to swim at least once a fortnight in the bay preferably once a week in your wetsuit over summer. This helps you aclimiatitize to the varying ocean conditions and wearing a wetsuit. Simulate a shorten swim at training, where you start from the beach wade out and dolphin then a solid starting pace and settling your expected race pace, finishing with a solid pace to the shallow water, wade and run up the sand.
  
  
• If possible find a swim group to do these sessions it makes for a lot more enjoyment.
  
  
• TAPERING – This is for recovery before the event. Reduce your training down by about 20% in distance for the last 10 days or so before such a big swim. The last couple of swims should only be about 50% of your normal training. Don’t swim the day before your event, if you have done the training you will actually swim better the fresher you are.