Today’s Coach’s Intel features two swim workouts from Paul Silver, head coach of North Carolina’s Marlins of Raleigh.
Silver has been voted North Carolina Swim Coach of the Year 3x in his 20 years of coaching, and is a Level 5 certified coach with ASCA. He was an assistant with the Bolles School Sharks from 1982-84, head coach of the Raleigh Swimming Association from ’84-2001 before becoming head coach of the Marlins in 2001.
His past swimmers include Martin Zubero from age 12-14, Kristen Linehan, 3 Junior National Champions, an Olympian for the 2008 Colombia squad, and most recently qualified 5 swimmers for the 2012 Olympic Trials and placed numerous consolation finalists earlier this year at the 2013 US Open.
Here are his two workouts:
1-Wed. 5-6:30am
This practice is an example from our power stations practice during our power/lactate weekly cycle. Goal is to develop strength and power and to be conscious of every .10 improvement.
2x {400 100 bow drill, 200 DPS Free, 100 IM drill 5:30
{2×75 K with snorkel/buoy on 1:25
10×50 2 turn on :55 4 Free with 2 flips separated by :10 wall flutter K at 1st wall. 6 IM work crossover turn.
Power Stations
Lane 4/5 Surgical tubing attached to block and belt on swimmer.
3×100 on 1:45 75 Free fast, rest :10, 25 fast choice. (time 25’s)
6 x50 broken on 1:10 :10 at 25. 3 Br, 3 Choice. (time 25’s)
Lane 3 Blue Parachutes. 2x {3×50 Breast on 1:05
{5×25 on :30 1-chute tucked in suit, 1 sprint Free
Lane 2 Fins/Paddles 3x {75 Fast on :40
{100 Bow drill 1:40
{2×25 Free race side by side on :30
{50 DPS with 8 strokes/25 on 1:05
Lane 1 Rope turns Place rope over lane at 17 meters
10×50 on 1:10 5 Back, 5 Back/Br
2×300 warm down on 4:00 pulse 24, 23
Total-4,600 yards
#2 Wed. 3:30-6pm This practice is done during our Aerobic Weekly cycle and is great for developing endurance for the 400 IM and teaching negative splitting strokes. Makes a 400 IM seem short!
10 minutes group stretching/dynamic warm-up routine
10 minutes Core strength through abs, planks, etc.
4×50 mid scull w/ snorkel/buoy on 1:05
2×250 DPS on 3:30
4×100 IM 1-SD on 1:40, 1-Fast turns on 1:30
2×250 IM 25 fly, 50 Bk, 75 Br, 100 Free-good turns on 3:50
4×50 IM/Fr by 25’s. IM is fast, Fr is no splash on :55
4×75 3-pull 1:10 25 fly, 50 bk 1-Free pull
3×400 IM 5:20 Fly is fr/fly by 25’s. Neg split each stroke
4×75 1:10 3-25 bk pull, 50 Br Doublepullouts, 1-DPS Free
2×600 IM 7:50 Fly is 25 Fr, 50 fly Neg split each stroke
4×75 1:10 3-25 Br, 50 Free overkick, 1-DPS Free
1×800 IM 9:20 Neg split each stroke. Top girls have been 9:09, top guys 8:57
800 K w/fins 25 underwater, 75 up on 11:30
16×25 K no fins 2 fast on :30+:30vert Kick, 2 Fast on :30 +10 Press outs
8×25 Race IM order. Add up 200 IM time and great finishes.
4×100 warmdown…take less strokes each 100
Total- 7700 yards
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I have personally witnessed the work ethic and detication these age 12+ MOR swimmers have, they are a great team with talent everywhere. Ashley McCauley (12) is elite athlete who stands out, being ranked #1 in the country for 100m Breast, Chloe Mikles (16) another very talented swimmer ranked in state 50m, 100m, and 500m free.
Coach silver knows what he is doing, he has the record and has produced enough swimmers to back him up. Slinging insults at a very talented team who puts in the work every day is astonishing, these swimmers deserve the most respect and should be taken very seriously; Before one can criticize and critique a great coach such as silver, put on a… Read more »
Silver is a great coach. The reason its hard for any team in the triangle to create more than a few swimmers that everyone knows is because of the number of teams in the triangle having 5 USA swimming team in one area is a little crazy. But having two teams created by one person is stupid RSA was started by Paul. Also the reason you don’t here of more great swimmers coming from mor is because they more high level athletes instead of a couple elite athletes that’s how they win. And ever hear of ashley McCauley ya the 12 year old who’s ranked #1 in the country going a 1:13 in her lc 100 breast ya she’s on… Read more »
I don’t know any good swimmers left on MOR. They all left or got injured…..
This is an ignorant and rude thing to say and proves how little you know about North Carolina swimming. Please continue to insult a group of 15-18 year old CHILDREN who work their hardest every day and have in fact produced much state and national success.
To say that shows that you probably swim for another triangle team. But many people are still uninjured and are doing things that haven’t been done in years and breaking records that are over 10 yrs old
Everyone has there own definition of successful.
A semifinalist at 2008 US Olympic Trials; 7 qualifiers
1st Place 2008 & 2011 NCS Senior Championship
1st Place 2008 & 2009 Fall States 12U Championship
2nd place 2010 NC Long Course 14&U Championship
4th Place Spring 2011 Senior Sectional Championship
More than 30 North Carolina Swimming State Records
Many of those higher accomplishments are not Paul’s swimmers but NC State swimmers who represented MOR over their summers in Raleigh
To clarify 08 Olympic Trials Semifinalist swam with Coach Silver from age 13 on. 08 Colombian Olympian joined Silver’s group in HS. 2 Others at OTrials in 08 trained with Silver in HS and came home in summers to train with MOR. 2 OT swimmers were Ncsu swimmers who were in some of Coach Silver’s practices and swam for MOR in summer. Also won 2013 NC Sr. Championship team title.
What successful swimmers has silver produced?
Coach Erik and Coach. Check this article by Paul Yetter:
http://createperformance.blogspot.com/2013/07/volume-velocity-and-rhythm.html
As an old colleague of mine once said, “there’s more than one way to skin a cat ….” I’d love to hear your thoughts on this article
…4100 yard IM set finishing with a 800IM is the pain, impingement and overuse issue a necessity or given when it comes to swimming success? Is it so hard to believe that someone can achieve great things in the water without sets, practices or coaching philosophy like this? I’m beating a dead horse at this point and I suppose we are going to end up agreeing to disagree.
I apologize for the tone, I am by no means meant to come off as defending the troll that got you fired up. It doesn’t invalidate the info and questions I brought up.
We haven’t seen them succeed because the methods out there have not been tested over long periods of time, like that of the “more is better” side of the argument. There are some of us out there that are trying it the other way and finding great success.
Those people you listed off achieved a high level of success, but what was the attrition rate in these programs? It may not be within the coach in questions group, but what about the path to that training group… Read more »