English Channel Preparation

What is your goal?

How did you train for your other long distance swims?

Training CONSISTENCY IS THE KEY

Calendar
Plan out the big picture now

Weekly Yardage:Goal
Front End Load!

Monthly Yardage:Goal

Long Sets interspersed with speed work
Become used to swimming 1.5 to 2 hour sets regularly
Examples:
Straight 5,6,7000s (turns optional)
10 to 1 Ladder on a fast interval the whole way (1:15/100)
4 x 1500 desc. on 23-25:00
4 x 500 Easy/hard by 500

Long Pool Swims
2, 3, 4 hours in 50 meter pool if possible

For 3 & 4 hr swims, practice feeding

I did a 2 hour swim for time on January 2 (~9200 yards). After that, my 3 to 5+ hour swims were for time, not distance (~1:30/100 meters or slower). They occurred on 2/5, 2/26, 3/26. Move the clocks out of your range of vision. I had people swim in the pool at the same time (they didn’t pace me) for companionship. For you, if you’re doing your weekly yardage, there is no need to do a pool swim over 4 + hours. It’s too boring

Cold Water Swimming
Swim through the fall until the water is in the low 50s. Begin again in mid-May. Work up to a 6 to 8 hour swim in open water.
Time in England to acclimate: ~5 days

Weights
2x a week

Open Water Training Conditions:
Seaweed
Jellyfish
Waves
Night Swim(s)

8 to 10 hour Qualifying Swim
The CSA accepts 6 hours but your body goes through changes after 6 hours. 8 to 10 hours gives you a better idea of your strengths and weaknesses.

Physiological

Massage
Idea: Once every other week?

Diet/Weight Gain
See how your Q Swim goes. I have a feeling that you may not need to gain weight. I gained too much (20 lb.) 8-10 pounds would have been a lot better.
Snacks of nuts, cheese
Healthy high fat, not junk (refined sugar will just make you tired)

Teach your body to learn how to burn fat
Regularly do not eat for 6 + hours before your swims. Water is ok. (i.e. swim in the morning on an empty stomach) This will simulate what happens after 6 hours in cold water. Your system will learn to switch over from using it’s initial energy stores of carbohydrates/glycogen to fat right from the start of your swims.

Rest
Get enough sleep
I highly recommend taking one day off a week from swimming (you need the physiological and psychological break)

Miscellaneous

Financial Support

Involvement with Manhattan Race?

Work Responsibilities

You have a life
(But this year is not the year to perfect your downhill skiing or rollerblading skills)

Boat Reservations

B&B Reservations

Airline Reservations

Crew

Psychological preparation

Yes You Can Yes You Can Yes You Can Yes You Can

Every stroke takes you one stroke closer to France

Acceptance of the work involved to get across.
Having respect for the swim is one of the main components that enables one to do the type of work necessary.
It’s really hard but you can do it.
Willing to do what it takes to have a good swim.
You have the ability to swim the English Channel if the weather is good. Do everything you can to appease the Channel Gods so you get good weather.
You’re out there in the middle of almost nowhere and the outcome is entirely up to you.
It’s a really cool feeling to be swimming comfortably in the English Channel. You have this ability.
Get it together
Be self-reliant.
Every day for three years, I envisioned myself walking up on the beach in France.

In actuality, I had to crawl over some big boulders which turned out to be the short route. You have the ability to take an even shorter route than I did.

For approximately the last 2 to 3 hours of your swim, every minute is worth 100 yards of being pushed one way or another on the French Coast. Your aim is a straight line and this is what you’re training for and this is what makes the swim so challenging: you’re tired and the currents are very strong. You have the ability to make it no matter what but you must apply yourself.
Accept the concept of being tired, of going to practice again and again even though you feel you’re exhausted.
Remember your goal. Stay focused on it.
The building blocks you set up in December, January, February, March, etc. are what get you across the Channel in August.
Training Plateaus
Be honest with yourself; this builds confidence
Take responsibility for your training

December/January Workouts

Pick and choose as you wish. Modify whereever you want. Intervals are up to you. Mine are only suggestions. The fewer breaks you take between sets, the better for you. A water bottle (w/ carbo drink?) is a good poolside idea. Overall idea is to hold or progress pace. Open turns are completely ok. Swim downs afterwards are important even though the first part of most sets can be used as warmups. I threw in a couple of sprints sets because speed is important too. You don’t have to all of this in one day!

6 or 4 (5 x 200)
odd sets:#1/ 2:45#3/ 2:40#5/ 2:35
even sets:2:30

Use the first set as warm-up.
Go right in to each set (no breaks).
If you only do 4 sets, start at the (even interval + :10)
6 sets'6000 yards, Time: 78 minutes
4 sets'4000 yards, Time: 52 minutes

Ladder:
100-200-300-400-500-600-700-800-900-1000

Interval: 1:20 per 100.

Try to hold the same pace throughout.

5500 yards

Total completion time: 73:

4 x 2000

Interval: 25:00 (24:00 is 1:15/100 pace

Total completion time: 1:4

Hold even pace or decend

#4 can be swum as 4 x 500, easy/superduper fast “ Beat the Tide pace”

(this is a good set on it’s own)

Straight swims of 5000 or 6000 or 7000 yards
Do them often and keep track of pace.

Try to be in same or better ballpark over time (i.e. months)

Do open turns if you want.

Long pool swims: 3 to 4+ hours.

We can get together for these if you want

2x (4 x 800)
#1: 8 x 100 1:20, desc. 1-4, 5-8
#2: 4 x 200 2:45, easy/fast/easy/faster
#3: 2 x 400 5:30, easy/fast
#4: straight, negative split
6400 yards
Total time: almost 90 minutes

2 or 3 x (1 x 400,
2 x 300,
3 x 200,
4 x 100)all at 1:20/100
Progress the pace for each segment.
2 sets: 4000 yards, total time: 60 minutes
3 sets: 6000 yards, total time: 90 minutes

100 easy/500 neg. split/100 easy/10 x 50 :45 pace
100 easy/400 neg. split/100 easy/ 8 x 50 :45 pace
100 easy/300 neg. split/100 easy/ 6 x 50 :45 faster
100 easy/200 neg. split/100 easy/ 4 x 50 :45 faster
100 easy/100 neg. split/100 easy/ 2 x 50 :45 fastest
4000 yards
Time: about 60 minutes
Example of Qualifying Swim Letter

31 Terrace Avenue
Riverside, CT 06878
USA

To: Channel Swimming Association Application Committee
From: Marcia Cleveland
Re: Kathleen Hynes Qualifying Swim
Date:October 20, 1997

On Saturday October 18, 1997, Kathleen Hynes completed a swim lasting 8 hours 6 minutes at Greenwich Point in the Long Island Sound in Connecticut. The water temperature ranged between 59 ° F and 62 ° F. Both Robert Makatura (English Channel ’96) and I witnessed this swim. Kathleen was in good spirits throughout the entire swim and did not exhibit any signs of hypothermia either during or after this excellent effort.

This swim follows a 10 Hour Swim Kathleen did in mid-August 1997 in the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of New Hampshire and Massachusetts. The water temperature during this swim was a constant 60 ° F.

Kathleen is very qualified for her attempt to swim the English Channel in 1998.

Swimcerely,

Marcia Cleveland