Are you a swimmer or triathlete who is extremely busy? Do you sometimes find it difficult to get to a pool or the open water for your swim training? If so, take heart because you are not alone!
Expert swim coaches and elite athletes know that consistent, quality swim-specific training is critical to successful progression and improvement. One of the most frequently asked questions is whether swimmers and triathletes can effectively use Vasa Trainers and SwimErgs as a substitute for pool swimming workouts. The answer is an absolute yes!
Many swimmers, triathletes, and their coaches use the freestyle exercise to duplicate timed sets or long aerobic workouts. Using the Vasa SwimErg or Trainer Pro at home is a great alternative to save travel time or if you can’t find the time to get to the pool.
Want to know how you can get a total-body swim at-home workout? The video demonstrates how a total body conditioning workout integrates the Vasa SwimErg (or a Vasa Trainer swim bench) with key functional conditioning exercises that will build strength, durability, and fatigue resistance. Developing swim-specific and functional muscular endurance allows you to maintain an efficient swim technique longer while connecting the core to generate more power in all swimming strokes.
The Total Body Swim At Home Workout includes core, general conditioning, and swim-specific training. It’s ideal for swimmers, triathletes, surfers, and CrossFit athletes looking to improve their swimming and stamina.
Here is the swim-specific training workout used in this video:
1. Progressive warm-up – Freestyle swimming on Vasa SwimErg
Here are two warm-up routines you can use:
2. Main Workout
- Vasa SwimErg – 200m Freestyle set (beginners start with 100m)
- Push-ups on Swiss ball (tremendous core stability and upper body exercise)
- Vasa SwimErg – 200m Freestyle set (maintain your target watts and hold proper technique – beginners start with 100m)
- Jackknife on a Swiss Physioball
- Vasa SwimErg – 200m Freestyle set (maintain your target watts and hold proper technique – beginners start with 100m)
- Rollout on the Swiss Physioball
This workout will improve fatigue resistance and result in faster, more efficient freestyle swimming and maintenance of effective freestyle technique and high elbow catch throughout the swim. The variations are unlimited. Add your favorite functional exercises to strengthen your known limiters and weaknesses.
If you add the Trainer Strap System to the SwimErg, you can use it like a Vasa Trainer for many exercises. Also, use the bench as shown for strength exercises using light dumbbells, stretch cords or resistance bands, Bosu Ball, Medicine balls, or Physio balls. You can also choose Core Stabilizer exercises to do in between the swim-specific sets on Vasa SwimErg or Vasa Trainer.
More swim-specific training workouts
We hope this total body swim at-home workout will accelerate improvements in your swim technique, speed, sustained power, and stamina. To see our other training videos, please visit our Video Library. If you are looking for specific training workouts, our Training Resources can be a valuable resource to give you the training materials you need for both the Vasa Trainer and Vasa SwimErg—all in one place! Lastly, many of our blogs feature “swim-specific” workouts for you to practice at home, in the pool or in open water. Be sure to check out the BYO (Build Your Own) workout videos and our Lane 9 workouts in the Vasa blog, such as these examples: