Presenting the Case for Speed as Greater Base for Anaerobic Capacity
In this short essay, I want to challenge the idea of high-volume anaerobic training to build anaerobic capacity. Instead, I want to showcase alactic development as a much greater base for building anaerobic capacity. Anaerobic capacity is typically looked through the same lens as aerobic capacity which is a mistake in my opinion. To build this case let’s first look at aerobic development.
One of the things to point out is that language is variable here so it is important to define what we are talking about. There are several systems of definitions that appear in physiology. The bottom line is we know how to divide up systems but there are several ways to refer to them. Let’s break down some definitions first.
Aerobic Capacity refers to mainly structural adaptations of the human body and building the body on a cellular and macro level to handle high volume training and races. This development aids the body in performing more work, more high-capacity work, higher recovery rates, etc. Specifically speaking, this refers to the heart size and left ventricular hypertrophy, lung capacity and growth, and cellular adaptions such as mitochondrial density.
Aerobic Power simply is the utilization of these specific attributes. In other words, how well can you use the tools you have? Utilization is the biggest word here. When we train to utilize it is tougher intervals, faster, and closer to threshold pace. When training utilization, mitochondrial activity is increased and enzymatic activity specific to high energy aerobic systems are used. This is moving away from fat utilization and moving into high krebs cycle turnover. A great way to visualize these attributes is that:
- Aerobic Capacity is building the ceiling higher and higher. (Longer Term)
- Aerobic Power is when we fill the ceiling. (Short Term)
Okay awesome we defined aerobic terms. Now what is the deal with SPEED?
The misconception: To build anaerobic capacity we need to do MORE. To Build anaerobic capacity we need to treat it like aerobic capacity by doing MORE reps at submax intensity.
This is logical but it defies how the energy systems work. While the aerobic systems are about GOING FOR LONGER. The anaerobic systems are about going faster. Increasing Lactic Production. Firing the CNS at a high rate to target specific muscle adaptations.
Anaerobic Capacity is about building out the speed reserve. Becoming faster and learning to be faster. The CNS is a major player in anaerobic capacity because the brain is the master of speed. The master of speed must be trained to be fast. If you don’t train fast how would you be fast?
So imagine if you drive a car and its max speed is 80 mph. Driving at 75 mph is much harder on the engine and at higher percentage (%) of its capacity. What if the max speed is 100 mph? Driving 75 mph is much lighter and sustainable on the engine and its components.
In the same way, if an athlete becomes faster they build their speed reserve and create MORE capacity to go fast.
Anaerobic Capacity is building the CNS ability to experience Top-Speed. This Top-Speed ability, which should be greater than 50 Pace ( <50 Pace) and touching top-velocity in the pool. By doing this specific muscle fibers in the Type IIx and Type II realm are stimulated and the brain will experience an immense amount of fatigue. This type of speed takes a long time to train effectively. Therefore I advocate for the majority of every season and off-season focused on this top-end, high velocity training.
Anaerobic Power should look more closely to slightly higher volume. This is the ability to sustain speed at higher and higher percentages of Top-Speed. This is very lactic while AnCapacity is alactic (meaning lactate is buffered at a higher rate than production). This is heavily training anaerobic enzymes that are vitally important to sustaining glycolysis such as NAD+ shuttles, phosphofructokinase (PFK), and lactate dehydrogenase. These enzymes are some of the major adaptations that will refer to sustained speed. This doesn’t take nearly as long to train generally and can be maximized quickly within less than 10 sessions in the pool for most high level athletes.
My favorite way to train each of these:
Aerobic Capacity: Longer Reps and progressively higher volume, operating at relatively low intensity but making it tough to sustain that low intensity due to the volume increase and increase in time under tension.
Example:
400 @ 65% + 16x25 :10 RI @75%
400 @ 65% + 8x50 :15 RI @ 75%
400 @ 65% + 4x100 :20 RI @ 75%
400 @ 65% + 2x200 :25 RI @ 75%
400 @ 65% + 1x400 :30 RI @75%
Aerobic Power: Faster intervals on a progressive rate. More time under tension near and at threshold paces (that is the pace where lactate production and removal are close to equal. Realistically, this is where the swimmer is taxed but isn’t feeling burning in the muscle from lactate accumulation and H+ ion accumulation).
Example:
30x100
#1-5 1:30
#6-10 1:25
#11-15 1:20
#16-20 1:15
#21-24 1:10
#25-27 1:05
#28-29 1:00
#30 0:55
Anaerobic Capacity / Top-Speed: Top-velocity training. Low reps, extremely low volume, extremely high intensity. Volume doesn’t need to change much but depends on training level. To maximize speed it needs to be in a low-fatigue environment with lots of recovery. Sometimes even as high as 1:32 work/rest ratio depending on many, many factors. Another great way to build capacity here that is not related to top speed Is getting strong. We know that strength need specific stimulus. So resistance and strength in the pool with parachute and paddles can build capacity by increasing time under tension as well.
Example
2x 4 Kicks + 8 Strokes MAX SPEED 2:00
2x 15m MAX SPEED 2:00
2x 20m MAX SPEED 2:30
2x 25 MAX SPEED 3:00
2x RUN DIVE 25’s MAX SPEED 4:00
Anaerobic Power: Slowly building from the capacity work. In other words starting with the same sets as above while extending work time in each repetition. The idea is to extend speed out to race distance. You can do this in a variety of ways with broken swims that are equivalent or greater than the volume of total race distance. I like to start with the same set extend out repetition distance, then lowering rest until the swimmer is experiencing heavy fatigue, then play with total distance to be greater than race distance within reason then slowly coming down to about equal and extremely race-specific. Not all broken swims are equivalent and the coach needs to understand what is happening with the swimmers physiology to elicit the proper adaptations.
Example
Progression 1: 8x25 MAX SPEED 2:00
Progression 2: 8x35 MAX SPEED 3:00
Progression 3: 8x50 o-1:00 e-3:00
Progression 4: 2 Rounds: (4x50 2:00 + 200 easy on 5:00)
Progression 5: 3 Rounds: (3x50 2:00 + 200 easy on 5:00)
Progression 6: 3 Rounds: (3x50 2:00 + 2x25 1:00 + 200 easy 5:00)
Progression 7: 4 Rounds: (2x50 1:30 + 2x25 1:00 + 200 easy 5:00)
Progression 8: 4 Rounds: ( 1x50 DIVE Fast 1:00 + 2x25 :30 + 200 easy 5:00)
It is always good to be said that you have to know who you are working with in order to determine adaptions.
Age: younger athletes can 100% train speed but you have to understand that they will not need as long to recover as someone who is older. They will not be able to utilize the CNS enough to recover. They also won’t be able to produce high lactate. So sometimes with younger athletes less rest is better because if you wait around for 10 min on them to recover they recovered for 3-4 min and the other 6 wasn’t the best use of their time. However, when replicating race environment this is ideal because this just the way races go.
Experience: Correlates with age. I like to think of a light bulb. More experienced and older athletes can burn the lightbulb very bright and very hot. A younger athlete can’t do this yet because their lightbulb isn’t as powerful or as big. If Caleb Dressel does a 50 Max speed he may need 24+ hours to replicate that same speed. But a 14-year-old male who has been swimming 6 years may only need 20 minutes. Then if you have someone the same age but with less experience and less refined technique it may be 2 minutes.
Distance vs. the sprint athlete: If someone leans into distance its good to try to guess what genetic capacity they’re starting with. Usually when someone leans in a certain direction they are leaning into their strengths. It’s great to train weaknesses and it’ll support their strengths, but their utilization of those aspects may be slim. It’ll take extremely focused and aware training to determine if they are working in the right way. You may have an athlete that is a sprinter but genetically they lean toward aerobic. In this case keep training as much speed as possible but use blocks of time to dig into the aerobic workload to increase their abilities and support their speed. A great way of thinking about this is that if someone has 60% fast twitch and 40% slow (yes, I know how this works but this is an example for simplicity) and you train only speed…there is 40% of their body that could be trained and gains that you are missing out on. A great way to test this is by using a test of 800 every 1st 25 is fast. Time each on and see what the time drop off looks like. If they can sustain their pace you can deduce that they may need more speed training. If they drop off like a rock, you may deduce they tend to be more fast-twitch. It is best to test this at the beginning of training to avoid confounding adaptations. You then decide which way you want them to train both for their strength and for their weakness.
