Weeks 9 Through 12
For workouts 17 through 24, make the odd-numbered workouts Zone 1 to 3 intensity and the even-numbered workouts Zone 1 to 2 intensity. For the longer swims, try to swim them at a negative-split effort. This means that if someone were to time you, the clock would reveal that you swam the second half of each long swim faster than you swam the first half.
Week 9 - Workout 17: Swim 3 x (6-8 x 50 yards, take 15 seconds of rest between each 50 yards.) Take 1 minute of bonus recovery between each set of 6 to 8.
Week 9 - Workout 18: Swim 4 x 300 yards; take 20 to 30 seconds of rest between each 300 yards. Or, swim 1,200 yards at a steady pace.
Week 10 - Workout 19: Swim 3 x (6-8 x 50 yards, take 15 seconds of rest between each 50 yards.) Take 1 minute of bonus recovery between each set of 6 to 8.
Week 10 - Workout 20: Swim 3 x 400 yards; take 20 to 30 seconds of rest between each 400 yards. Or, swim 1,200 yards at a steady pace.
Week 11 - Workout 21: Swim 6-8 x 100 yards; take 30 seconds of rest between each 100 yards.
Week 11 - Workout 22: Swim 3 x 500 yards; take 20 to 30 seconds of rest between each 500 yards. Or, swim 1,500 yards at a steady pace.
Week 12 - Workout 23: Swim 6-8 x 100 yards; take 30 seconds of rest between each 100 yards.
Week 12 - Workout 24: Swim 1,500 yards at a steady pace.
If you use this plan as a stand-alone training plan, in 12 weeks you will gain a significant amount of swim fitness on just two swims per week. You can build on this fitness to complete an Olympic-distance triathlon, participate in some swim events or just maintain your swimming.
You can continue to build your swimming fitness by repeating workouts 17 to 24 or by branching out to new workouts. You can find more workouts in Workouts in a Binder for Triathletes, Workouts in a Binder for Swimmers or at the USMS website.
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