How to Swim Faster Off Just Three Sessions a Week

Swimming more laps won't make you a faster triathlete. A three-time Olympian who used to swim 80 kilometres a week is here to tell you why.

Brian Johns is a three-time Olympian, former short-course 400-metre individual medley world record holder and now Head of Coaching Science at FORM. He's spent the back half of his career figuring out why some swimmers keep improving and others stay stuck in the same lane (sometimes literally), and in this episode he brings that to the time-poor triathlete who swims two or three times a week.

In this episode you'll learn:

• Why more kilometres in the pool almost never equals a faster triathlon swim
• The exact plan for getting faster off just three sessions a week, no coach required
• How to tell the difference between working hard and actually improving
• The recovery trick Brian used between a late session and an early morning swim
• Why open water fear is really about exposure rather than fitness, and the simple fix that builds confidence fast
• How to practise sighting in the pool long before race day
• A one-word cue to keep you calm and swimming smooth when the start line gets choppy

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Welcome to Brian Johns, Olympian, coach and FORM scientist

01:13 From 80km swim weeks to his best ever Olympic final

05:08 The injury that taught him to read his body's red flags

08:37 Why more metres doesn't mean a faster swim

13:03 The fuel check before you add more volume

15:21 How to teach technique without overloading a tired swimmer

19:30 What FORM Score reveals about real swimming efficiency

22:37 The one habit that separates improving swimmers from plateaued ones

27:10 Why open water rattles even confident swimmers

31:47 Learning to sight, the skill most triathletes skip

36:52 Surviving a rough, choppy race day swim

42:00 The three-sessions-a-week plan for the unsupported triathlete

48:18 Brian's go-to drill for every triathlete

50:43 Where to find Brian and FORM Goggles

ABOUT BRIAN JOHNS

Brian Johns is a Canadian three-time Olympian and former short-course 400-metre individual medley world record holder. He's the most decorated swimmer in Canadian university history, winning 33 of 34 races at the University of British Columbia and earning Canadian Interuniversity Sport Male Swimmer of the Year three times. After retiring from competition, Brian moved into coaching and now works as Head of Coaching Science at FORM, the smart swim goggles company, helping swimmers and triathletes train and race smarter with real-time data.

https://au.formswim.com/

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