HOW TO TRAIN FOR A RIP SWIM

If you want to succeed in crossing “The Rip” you need to prepare thoroughly. While endurance and open-water experience are the main elements, speed can also be a crucial factor both for staying with your team and for making your way across the tide.

HOW FAST DO YOU NEED TO BE?

We recommend that you are able to swim 3km in less than 66 minutes to give yourself the best chance of success.

HOW SHOULD YOU TRAIN?

Each person will be different, but here are some basic guidelines

  • Aim to swim between 10 - 15km per week (3 - 4 sessions per week)

  • Do at least half of your swimming in the open-water

  • Do a mix of drills, endurance work and speed work

  • Enlist a coach or join a squad to get the maximum improvement and give yourself the best chance of success

BOOK IN FOR A TAILORED PROGRAM

STEP 1 - book a session to assess where you are currently with regard to your swimming technique and your fitness.

STEP 2 Complete the first program we write for you and make notes about how you manage.

STEP 3 Check in with us so we can adapt your program and make an ongoing plan. This will not be a generic program. It will be tailored to your ability and what you want to achieve. Your training regime will be carefully detailed and adjusted according to the way your body adapts.

 

THE FOUR PILLARS TO BETTER PERFORMANCE

  • Technical swimming ability

  • Endurance

  • Speed

  • Open-water ability

ABOUT YOUR COACH

Grant Siedle (The Rip Swim director and founder) has worked with people for many long distance open-water swims, including the English Channel, where he coached Donald Riddington to become the oldest Australian swimmer at the time, ever to swim this incredible stretch of water. Read more about this here. Grant has also coached pool swimmers from beginner to National level and has a very strong command of the technical requirements of swimming.

As a swimmer:

He has completed over 100 open-water swims ranging from 2 - 25km’s. He was swum The Rip in both Summer and Winter, and has completed 5 marathon distance swims (in excess of 10km).