Swimming Phrases Each Triathlete Must Know

Use “IM” in triathlon and also you’re speaking about an IRONMAN. Use “IM” on the earth of swimming and also you’re referencing a complete totally different beast. Swimmers, similar to triathletes, have a language all their very own. You’ll see abbreviations and acronyms in written exercises, hear swimmers and coaches reference unusual issues and, even on race day you would possibly encounter some particular phrases. If you’re new to the game, listed below are all the essential swimming phrases that you must know as a triathlete. 

Stroke Abbreviations

Free/FR/Crawl: Freestyle 

BR: Breaststroke

BK/Back: Backstroke

Fly: Butterfly

IM: particular person medley. Swimming all 4 strokes within the order of butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle. If you might have 100 IM, meaning 25 meters of every stroke; 400 IM means 100 meters of every. 

Facilities and Gear

LCM – “Long Course Meters” which refers to swimming in a 50 meter, or Olympic dimension pool. 

SCM – “Short Course Meters” which refers to swimming in a 25 meter pool. 

SCY – “Short Course Yards” which refers to swimming a 25-yard pool. In the United States, that is the commonest dimension of pool you’ll discover.

OW – Open water swimming. In different phrases, something apart from swimming in a pool.

Fins – use swimming fins, rubber flippers particularly designed for pool swimming.

Paddles – plastic hand paddles designed particularly for swimming to extend the floor space of your palms. They come in numerous kinds and can be utilized for each method work and energy constructing.

Pull Buoy/Pull/Buoy – A specifically-designed float positioned between the legs at your higher thighs, as near your groin as doable, to alleviate the necessity to kick and help with physique place. 

Snorkel – a swimming-specific snorkel that lets you preserve your head in a impartial place whereas respiratory.

Kick Board – a floatable foam board particularly for pool swimming that you simply maintain together with your palms whereas kicking or doing different drills.

Band – a small stretchy band positioned across the ankles, restraining a swimmer from kicking.

Flags – A rope of small flags hanging width-wise above the pool at each ends, demarcating 5 meters (or yards, relying on the dimensions of the pool) away from the wall, particularly for backstroke so you possibly can rely your strokes and safely flip on the wall. 

Circle swim – when a gaggle of individuals are sharing one swimming lane so they comply with swim up one aspect of the lane and again down the opposite aspect, in a circle. 

Blocks/Podium – the raised platforms on the finish of the lane the place swimmers dive from throughout competitors and in follow. 

Training

Technique – the technical features of swimming. 

Kick – remoted kicking, both freestyle, breaststroke, or fly/dolphin kick.

Dolphin kick – the undulating kick used to swim butterfly and once you push off the wall, typically known as “fly kick.” 

Pull – swimming solely together with your arms (no kicking), sometimes utilizing a pull buoy and/or band.

Main set – the first a part of the exercise, after the nice and cozy up and earlier than the settle down.

Descend – primarily, “get faster” every consecutive repetition. For instance, “4 x 50 descend” means the primary 50 is the slowest and the final 50 is the quickest. It may also confer with a gaggle of repetitions inside a set. For instance, “10 x 100 descending 1-5” means you get quicker from the primary to the fifth repetition after which repeat the descend from 6-10, the place the primary and sixth rep are the slowest and the fifth and tenth rep are the quickest.

Build/Progressive – just like descending, however sometimes refers to effort quite than set occasions. It can be utilized inside a single repetition, for instance “100 build” means you begin straightforward and construct as much as ending robust or over a set of repetitions, like 4 x 50 progressive 1-4.

Leaving/Send Off – a set time you’ll push off from the wall. For instance, “4 x 100 on 1:45” means you’ll go away from the wall each 1:45, no matter how briskly you swim the 100. 

DPS – “Distance Per Stroke” is the gap you swim for every particular person arm stroke, used as an effectivity metric. 

SPL – “Strokes Per Length,” what number of strokes you are taking per size to measure DPS. 

Bilateral respiratory – respiratory on each side, alternating each breath. 

Drill – an train used to isolate one a part of the stroke to work on method 

Catch – refers back to the first a part of the arm stroke the place you provoke the propulsive part together with your hand and forearm 

Scull – a drill utilizing your palms in particular motions to enhance catch and really feel of the water (just like what synchronized/creative swimmers do with their palms). There are a range, every centered on totally different elements of the stroke. 

SKIPS – “Swim, Kick, IM, Pull, Swim” is an acronym referring to the particular sequence. If you might have 1000 SKIPS meaning 200 of every. Can usually seem with out the IM as SKPS.

Dive begin – ranging from a dive, both from the aspect of the pool or the beginning blocks

Cadence/Turn Over – the pace of your strokes (just like bike cadence)

Open Water

Australian/Aussie Exit – in open water swimming, swimmers should exit the water and switch round a marker on land earlier than re-entering the water. Often seen in triathlon when the swim course has two laps. 

Beach begin – an open water race that begins from the seashore, requiring swimmers to run from the sand into the water

In-water begin – an open water race that begins within the water.

Sight Buoy – a buoy within the water used for directional steering solely, not essentially to mark a flip.

Turn Buoy – a buoy within the water used to point a course flip.

Sighting – when a swimmer lifts their head to allow them to see above the water.

Drafting – when a swimmer swims behind one other, profiting from the vitality financial savings of their slipstream/wake.

On toes/ On the hip – when a swimmer is drafting, they’ll achieve this two areas: “on the feet” means straight behind the swimmer in entrance, “on the hip” means to the aspect of the entrance swimmer near their hip, roughly shoulder-to-hip.

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