My Ironman swim pace in Japan was 1:50 per 100m. Today, over a full 2,200m pool session, I averaged 1:35 per 100m - across the whole thing, warm up and cool down included.
The session is called Speed 200s, even though only 250m of it is actually fast. 600m warm up, four 50m preps to wake the coordination up, then the main set: five rounds of a flat-out 50m followed by a 150m easy. A 400m cool down closes it out.
How it broke down
| Part | Set | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Whole session | 2,200m | 1:35 /100m average |
| Warm up | 600m | 1:40 /100m |
| Fast 50s | 5 x 50m | 42 to 43 seconds each (about 1:24 to 1:26 /100m) |
| Recovery 150s | 5 x 150m | About 1:40 /100m |
| Cool down | 400m | 1:40 /100m |
The point isn’t to be wrecked by the end of it. It’s coordination, and getting more muscle firing at speed, so race pace feels easier when it actually matters.
Worth being honest about the comparison though - the 1:50 figure is from open water, in a race, under very different conditions. Today was a pool. It’s a fun contrast, not a clean like-for-like.
These are my own pace zones, built around my own CSS. Work out yours with the swim calculator linked below.
