Tempo and Pacing: The Keys to Swimming Your Best Race
When swimmers think about going faster, they often focus on swimming harder. But swimming isn’t just about effort – it’s about tempo and pacing.
💡 What is tempo?
Tempo is your stroke rate – how fast you complete each stroke cycle. In freestyle, it’s how quickly your arms move through the water. In breaststroke, it’s the rhythm of pull, breath, kick, glide.
✅ A faster tempo generally means faster swimming, if technique stays strong.
✅ An optimal tempo balances speed and efficiency, preventing wasted energy.
Swimmers can train tempo using tools like a Tempo Trainer or by counting strokes per minute. Each swimmer has their ideal tempo range for different events.
🏊♂️ What is pacing?
Pacing is how swimmers distribute their effort throughout a race. For example:
Going out too fast in a 200 can lead to burning out on the last 50.
Going out too slow leaves too much energy unused at the end.
Good pacing means knowing your body and event. For a 50 sprint, it’s an all-out effort with tempo at its max. For a 200 or 400, it’s about balancing speed early on while saving energy for a strong finish.
🔑 Why tempo and pacing matter
✅ Improved endurance
When swimmers learn to pace, they can maintain stronger times for longer distances without dying off at the end.
✅ Faster times
Optimal tempo combined with smart pacing produces the best possible performance – strong, fast, and controlled.
✅ Confidence in races
Knowing your tempo and how to pace gives swimmers confidence on the block. They know exactly how they plan to swim their race.
📝 How to improve tempo and pacing
Use a Tempo Trainer in practice.
Experiment with different tempos and notice how it affects speed and efficiency.Do pace sets.
Practice holding target race pace over multiple repeats with short rest to build endurance and confidence.Count strokes.
Track how many strokes you take per lap at different tempos to find your most efficient rate.Visualize race strategy.
Before each race, mentally rehearse how you will pace each 25 or 50 to avoid going out too fast or too slow.
💛 Final thoughts
Swimming isn’t just about working harder – it’s about working smarter. By understanding and training tempo and pacing, swimmers can unlock new levels of performance and swim each race with confidence, control, and speed.