Swimming · Endurance
How to swim further
How to swim so the lengths stop costing so much, the ladder from a single length to a kilometre, and how to build distance in the pool.
The movement
How to do one properly.
Every rep the same shape, so the numbers mean the same thing on day thirty as on day one.
- 1
Lie long in the water, head down and in line with your spine. Looking forward sinks your legs.
- 2
Breathe out under the water, so there is only air to take in when you turn your head.
- 3
Pull with one arm at a time, catching the water with a high elbow and pressing it back past your hip.
- 4
Kick small and from the hips, feet relaxed. The kick is for balance more than speed.
- 5
Swim most lengths at a pace where your stroke stays the same from the first length to the last.
The way up
How to swim further
Rung 1
One length
Twenty-five metres with your face in the water and your breathing settled.
Rung 2
100 metres
Four lengths unbroken. Rest at the wall, then again.
Rung 3
400 metres
Sixteen lengths. Now it is a swim.
Rung 4
One kilometre
Forty lengths, in sets at first, then in one go.
Swim in sets: four times a hundred metres with twenty seconds at the wall beats a four-hundred you limp through. Make the sets longer and the rests shorter over the weeks.
Two or three sessions a week. Technique falls apart when you are tired, so finish each session with a few slow, perfect lengths rather than a sprint.
How it is counted
On the board, however it got there.
Your watch or phone sends it. Garmin, Fitbit, Wahoo, Suunto, Apple Health, and Health Connect all report swimming on their own, so it lands scored without anyone typing. No watch? Say it out loud in the app instead.
Worth 100 points per kilometre in the app, so a challenge can weigh it against anything else you count.
Questions
Asked about swimming
I run out of breath after two lengths.
You are holding your breath. Breathe out through your nose and mouth the whole time your face is in the water, so the turn to breathe only has to take air in.
Does it count from a watch?
Pool and open water swims arrive from Garmin, Wahoo, Suunto, Apple Health, Health Connect and Fitbit, measured in kilometres. Most watches count lengths for you.
Does it count from my watch?
Your watch or phone sends it. Garmin, Fitbit, Wahoo, Suunto, Apple Health, and Health Connect all report swimming on their own, so it lands scored without anyone typing. No watch? Say it out loud in the app instead.
Is it free?
Yes. The athlete app is free: logging, challenges and every guide on this site. Coaches pay for their workspace; the people they coach do not.
Other exercises
Everything else we count.
Push up
How to do more push ups
Pull up
How to do more pull ups
Squat
How to do more squats
Plank
How to hold a plank longer
Sit up
How to do more sit ups
Dip
How to do more dips
Burpees
How to do more burpees
Lunges
How to do more lunges
Jumping jacks
How to do more jumping jacks
Skipping
How to skip rope longer
Extensions
How to do more back extensions
Battle ropes
How to last longer on battle ropes
Running
How to run further
Cycling
How to ride further
Rowing
How to row further
Steps
How to walk more steps every day
Hiking
How to hike further
Football
How to get fitter for football
Basketball
How to get fitter for basketball
Tennis
How to get fitter for tennis
Dancing
How to build stamina for dancing
Yoga
How to make yoga a daily habit
Do more swimming.
Let someone see it.
Get the app, log what you did or let your watch send it, and hand your friends the code.