Dynamic warm-up on deck and in the water

Setup

1. Deck work on a non-slip area at least a couple of metres back from the edge; walk, never run, on the poolside.
2. A lifeguard or qualified teacher on deck before anyone gets in. Swimmers grouped by speed, three or four to a lane.
3. Everyone puts a water bottle at the end of their lane.

How it runs

1. On deck, about 5 minutes: slow arm swings forwards and backwards, arm swings across the chest, streamline reaches up onto the toes, trunk turns, leg swings holding a wall, ankle circles. 8 to 10 of each, controlled, not flung.
2. Get in by sitting on the edge and sliding in feet first.
3. 200 m easy: two lengths each of freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle again, circle swimming with about 5 seconds between swimmers.
4. 4 × 25 m as kick, drill, kick, swim, with 15 seconds rest.
5. 4 × 25 m build: each length starts easy and gets faster to the wall, 20 seconds rest. Then a drink before the main set.

Coaching points

• Every deck movement is smooth and through a range that feels easy; nothing should hurt.
• Shoulders do most of the work in swimming, so give them the most time on deck.
• Warm-up lengths are easy: the swimmer should be able to talk at the wall.
• On builds, keep the stroke long as the speed rises.
• Drink water at the wall; swimmers still sweat in the pool.

Common mistakes

• Swinging the arms fast and hard from the start.
• Treating the first lengths as a race and stacking up behind each other.
• Stopping in the middle of the lane to rest instead of at the wall corners.
• Skipping the warm-up when the session is short.