Past Clinic: Speed, Power & Sprinting!
The St. James
6805 Industrial Rd,
Springfield,
VA 22151
A description of what was covered at this past clinic is below the upcoming clinics.
Upcoming Swim Clinics and Camps
Within 250 miles of Springfield, VA.
Past Clinic
Introduction
Fitter & Faster is returning to the beautiful complex at The St. James in Springfield, Virginia to produce a two-day swim camp focusing on Speed, Power & Sprinting on June 30 & July 1, 2022! SAVE when you purchase a "Full Camp Bundle" for your swimmer's age group.
ELITE SPEED & POWER (Swimmers 13 & Over):
DAY 1 (Thursday): Generating Power
DAY 2 (Friday): Creating & Maintaining Speed
SPRINTING & FAST 50's (Swimmers 12 & Under):
DAY 1 (Thursday): Establishing Speed
DAY 2 (Friday): Racing Skills
Click the “Curriculum Menu” below for details on each camp! Availability is limited to ensure the highest level of learning experience!
Select a curriculum below
(13 & Over): Elite Speed & Power Camp - June 30 & July 1, 2022
Due to the advanced concepts covered in this camp, this camp is exclusively for swimmers ages 13 & older. Swimming fast requires good technique, efficiency, power, and a hard working athlete. Elite swimmers are always working on this. At the Elite Speed and Power Camp, participants will advance their skills that apply to fast swimming in every stroke.
- DAY 1 - GENERATING POWER! (June 30): Developing power will help your swimmer be more efficient and stronger in the water! To strengthen swimming specific movements, the elite clinicians will work with participants on improving power in their strokes, using resistance training and dynamic warm-ups to their advantage.
- Gear to Bring with You: Please bring a t-shirt to swim in, your snorkel, paddles, fins and a pair of gym sneakers to this camp!
- Dynamic Warm-up: In order to go fast, you need to be warm! The clinicians will take participants through a combination of light cardio exercises and dynamic stretches to get the blood flowing to the muscles and loosen joints in preparation to SWIM FAST! Remember: Bring your Gym Shoes!
- Establishing Your Catch to Maximize Power in Your Stroke: The only way to generate maximum power in your stroke is by “holding” as much water as possible. That process begins with “your catch” at the top of every stroke. At this camp your clinicians will work with you to ensure you are grabbing onto and holding water throughout your stroke.
- Resistance Training: Resistance is an excellent method of building power - especially in the water. It also helps to expose areas within your technique that can be strengthened. The clinicians will take your swimmer through resistance training methods! Properly swimming with hand paddles and a T-shirt will add resistance and develop power! Remember: Bring a t-shirt to swim in and your hand paddles!
- DAY 2 - CREATING & MAINTAINING SPEED (July 1): Your swimmer is going to learn how to swim at top speeds while continuing to leverage the powerful stroke that we worked on the day before! On Day 1, participants swam slower than they normally swim because of the resistance we added to establish a “powerful stroke”. Today is about swimming FASTER than you normally swim with assistance from fins and paddles.
- Gear to Bring with You: Please bring a t-shirt to swim in, your snorkel, paddles, fins and a pair of gym sneakers to this camp!
- "Overspeed Training": Practice how to swim with good technique at speeds faster than you’ll ever go in a race with the assistance of fins and paddles. We will utilize overspeed drills in and out of turns, in their breakouts and finishes. Remember: Bring your fins and hand paddles!
- Tempo: One way to increase efficiency is to take fewer strokes. Improving technique to decrease the number of strokes your swimmer takes will enable them to go further faster - that’s when times DROP!
- Maintaining Technique Through Fatigue: When swimmers get tired, their technique can break down. We are going to work with participants on how to handle fatigue. Competitive swimmers who focus on technique through fatigue in practice and in races reap the rewards of faster times.
- Speed Set: At the end of this session your swimmer will do a short and fast swim set to practice everything they have learned over the past two days.
(12 & Under): Sprinting & Fast 50’s - June 30 & July 1, 2022
Swimmers ages 12 & under are fortunate to still have 50's to race in every stroke at just about every swim meet! Now is the time for young swimmers to establish and cultivate habits to swim their shorter races as fast as possible with good technique that will position them for success as they mature.
- Day 1 - ESTABLISHING SPEED (June 30): At this session your swimmer will practice the essential components to high performance sprinting.
- Body Position: A competitive swimmer’s body position is the key to fast swimming. Most swimmers are NOT hydrodynamic in the water - and that has a big effect on how fast they “allow” themselves to swim - especially as they get older. Let’s find the right body position for your swimmer.
- Length of Stroke: Lengthening their stroke will enable your swimmer to “catch” and hold onto more water to propel them as they swim. Whereas a short stroke is inefficient and not sustainable for very long. The clinicians will work with participants on this important skill for fast swimming.
- Tempo: When sprinting short races young swimmers often tend to take too many strokes (“spin their wheels”) and not “hold onto the water”. At this camp we will find the appropriate tempo to maximize their own personal speed.
- Day 2 - RACING SKILLS (July 1): On Day 2, your swimmer will apply the skills that we practiced on the first day of this camp to important segments of every sprint race, including the moment your swimmer pushes off the wall; breakouts; finishes and all out sprinting!
- Breakouts: Many swimmers add movement within their breakout that creates drag and destroys all of the power created during their underwaters. Participants will work on timing their breakouts to accelerate to explode into each lap.
- Sprinting: On Day 1 your swimmer worked on body position, tempo and length of stroke. Today we are going to apply those skills to swimming “all out” on top of the water with efficiency and power.
- Walls, Walls, Walls!: Approaching the wall at top speed in preparation for the fastest turn is vital. Swimmers will work on techniques to get in and out of every wall faster!
- Finishes: Dropping time and even winning or moving up a few spots in the results can all come down to the last stroke! A well-timed finish at full speed, with full-arm extension and head down can make a difference of up to a full second in a race! Your swimmer is going to learn how to take advantage of the finish to drop time!
- Sprinting Application: Swimmers at this session will work on applying their newly developed skills during racing scenarios. As with all the other segments of this camp, the clinicians will provide feedback for your swimmer to take home and apply at upcoming practices and meets.
START TIMES FOR BOTH DAYS
- 12 & Under: Check in 9 AM. Camp: 9:15-11:45 AM
- 13 & Over: Check in 12:45 PM. Camp: 1-4 PM
ASK QUESTIONS
Swimmers and parents are invited to ask the clinicians questions during a Q&A session. Gain insight into their training regimen, diet and nutrition, and recovery tactics.
WATCH THE CLINICIANS
Observe clinicians swim at full speed and demonstrate a progression of perfectly executed drills to achieve powerful, efficient and fast swimming.
PUT YOUR SKILLS TO THE TEST
Swimmers will get to practice what they've learned by taking their stroke to your top speed with some of the best swimmers and coaches in the world! They'll work on holding onto their form while challenging themselves.
Take a photo with the clinicians, get autographs, and ALL PARTICIPANTS receive a FREE Fitter and Faster GIFT!
Joao De Lucca
Joao Delucca is one of our most experienced top level clinicians as a two time Olympian, having competed in London in 2012 and his hometown of Rio de Janeiro in 2016. Winning a Gold Medal on a world stage in the sport of swimming requires the utmost discipline, attention to detail, work ethic, and passion for being the best. Joao Delucca brings all of these skills to the table as a Fitter and Faster clinician and gives his all to the swimmers he coaches.
Mark Hesse
Coach Mark Hesse is Fitter & Faster's Director of Education and Swimming Performance! Mark is widely known for proactively working with coaches and swimmers at each progressive level: from the beginner swimmer to the Olympian. He studies and teaches trends in stroke technique, training, nutrition, seasonal planning, use of video and race stats, goal setting, psychology and much more! He is a master of developing healthy, highly successful athletes and teams with an emphasis on coach mentorship, relationship building, team dynamics and communications.
Inquisitive, Educated Swimmers are Faster Swimmers! Sign up today!
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