Training Courses

Tactical Swimmer’s 2 Day Course | April 6th & 7th 

CODE: COMBAT20 - Use Code COMBAT20 at checkout for 20% off entire order! 

This course is a MUST HAVE for anyone in the Special Operation Community or has goals to get there.  

Course Description: The Tactical Swimmer’s Course is designed to help swimmers of all levels improve upon or gain the skill sets required to excel in the pool or open water training and tests they will encounter while qualifying for Special Operations Training.

This course is designed to prepare students for the swimming portion of BUDs (SEAL Qualification) training, Para Rescue training and other Special Forces swimming qualifications.  It is also designed for the operator who is already a part of a SEAL or Special Operations Community to improve upon and expand their skill sets for real life operations. Being part of an elite military command always requires maintaining competency and becoming better at a variety of disciplines.  Owning one’s environment when that environment includes a water element requires technical skills that can be improved upon with proper instruction.   

Course Goals:

• Become a more efficient/competent swimmer (measured in Time, Stroke Count, Heart Rate)
• Understand efficient swimming (maximize efficiency in ANY situation)
• Individual objectives
• Monitor self-progression and have ability to teach others main concepts
• Integrate new strokes-Combat Sidestroke/Underwater Swimming/Survival Strokes/Alternative Sidestrokes
• Application to fin and open water swimming-where applicable
• Benefits of training in the water (weightless environment) as per the alternative weightless training handout and the Blast article
• Basic understanding of how to use water time most effectively

Take Aways:

• Video analysis of stroke
• Current efficiency score and ways to measure improvement
• Train to your weaknesses, know what that is
• 4-week technique phase training
• 12-week training phase program
• Individualized program assistance
• Guaranteed improvements

In Summary: Give each participant the tools necessary to gain the skills and competency required to pass the water portions of their initial military training/testing and thrive in these areas well into their careers.

Syllabus

• Complete syllabus attached to link

What to bring:

• Suit
• Goggles and/or mask
• Training fins (Zoomer or TYR type short fin)
• Surface Fins
• Boots or footwear to swim in
• Top and bottom BDU’s to swim in
• Water bottle and snacks
• Towels
• Writing material

Testimonials From Previous Attendees: 

April 2022

"Great experience; some of the best Navy training I have gotten in my 4 + years." -Active Duty Individual

"Truly Appreciate Jeff and Rich giving extra time before class to help me improve, and their attitudes truly exemplified what it means to grow at swimming" - Active Duty Individual 

Sept 2022 - Did this class improve your swimming?

"1000% Prior to this class, I was able to stay afloat, but never knew exactly how to swim.  Just from the before and after video, it is clear how much I have improved my overall swimming." - Active Duty

"Yes 10000000% I knew I was a poor swimmer but I did not know why or how to fix it.  The visual feedback was very helpful." - Active Duty

"Completely 180 degrees. I thought I knew something. I knew nothing." - Active Duty

Freestyle Techniques for the Pool and Open Water

Recommended Attendees:   The Level 2 Course is for swimmers of all skill levels who want to understand, learn, and implement the best Freestyle stroke possible. Triathletes, Masters Swimmers, Fitness Swimmers, open water swimmers, high school or college athletes, military personnel or professional athletes.

Course Description:  The Level 2 course is a one day course that focuses strictly on the Freestyle, alternative open water and sighting strokes.  Learning the fundamentals of what every efficient and fast Freestyle stroke must have and understanding what options you have for building the individual stroke needed to achieve one’s personal best. A baseline efficiency test is given at the beginning of the course as well as a baseline video analysis. Strokes are critiqued and opportunities of improvement identified. We first learn proper technique and then the corresponding drills to reinforce. Tools will be given for continued improvement beyond the course. Technical gains can be achieved far faster than conditioning gains AND can be permanent if practiced correctly.  It is worth the time and investment made if you are taking time to swim at all. Let’s build it! You can do it, we can help.  The Level 2 course is a strictly technical skill building course.  Training courses start at Level 3. Although plenty of swimming will be done in this course it is not a physically stressful course for most attendees.

Course Goals:

• Establish an efficiency “Baseline”
• Understand Efficient Swimming
• Acquire knowledge to teach skills learned during course
• Build on strengths and know how to permanently improve weakest parts of stroke
• Understand the role of technique vs. training in your swimming program
• Become a more efficient Freestyle Swimmer
• Create the best individualized stroke for your goals
• Strive to meet Individual objectives
• Prepare to be ready (have the right stroke) to train the “right” way
• Achieve permanent improvements over temporary gains
• Create a plan to move to the next level
• Touch open water swimming basics

Take Aways:

• Personal Video via drop box
• Short Term Personalized Plan

Syllabus:

• Available through link

Items needed for the Course:

• Suit
• Googles and a spare
• Water bottle
• Zoomers or other type of sort training fin
• Front snorkel
• Writing material

“Own Your Environment” Open Water Training Camp

Recommended Attendees:  This course is a 2-day training course meant to be very strenuous. Only those who are ready to train and can complete at least 3k workouts at a time should participate.  Courses that do offer an open water swim training experience will only allow swimmers who have been in and feel comfortable with open water swimming.  More basic open water classes are available.

Course Description:  Attendees to this course will experience a wide range of training opportunities.   All energy systems will be tested and taxed.  Weaknesses in stroke technique and conditioning will become apparent.  Swimmers will learn how they should be spending their time training in the water in a more effective and efficient way.  Although it will be an intense training opportunity it is done in a fun and learning environment!  Come join us for a fun ride.

Course Goals:

• Experience a world class training weekend
• Discover new training systems and options
• Feel how your body reacts to training each system
• Find your weakest areas and make them stronger
• Become a faster and more efficiently trained swimmer
• Become the swimmer you want to be
• Know how to create your own training regimen and implement
• Suffer with other great swimmers while having lots of fun!

Take Aways:

• Video analysis
• Individual training plan guidelines
• Creating your own training season

Syllabus:

• Complete Syllabus attached to link

What to bring:

• Suit
• Goggles and a spare
• Wetsuit if applicable
• Front snorkel
• Zoomers or other training fin
• Water bottle
• Snacks
• Towels
• Writing material

Training the Right Way

Recommended attendees:  Participants must have completed at least one of the 3 prior courses to attend.  Triathletes, maters swimmers, fitness swimmers, military, or anyone interested in knowing how to get the most out of each minute spent training in the water will benefit from the instruction. Swimmers attending must be in reasonable swimming condition so as to be able to swim up to 400m repeats with moderate rest. 

Course Description:  Many people train for hours every week reinforcing the wrong techniques, training the wrong energy systems and swimming mindless laps of oblivion. Very little is gained in form or function. Training the right way is a one day class that takes what has been learned from the Level 1 through 3 courses and moves from proper form to focusing  on proper training.  Cut your time in the water and dramatically increase the results you get.  Triathletes, military personnel, business owners, and people in general are busy.  Learn how to plan the swim then swim the plan to make every minute of training time effective to an end goal, whatever that goal may be.

Course Goals:

• Take a baseline efficiency test
• Know what level a swimmer you currently are
• See the good, bad, and ugly from in depth Video analysis
• Dig deeper into Energy systems and how to train
• Become fitter, faster, and more confident in the water
• Understand primary and secondary focuses while training
• Know when to stop and rest (when am I being counter-productive)
• Implement cycle training into your program
• Create a Daily/Weekly/Monthly training schedule
• Plan a season
• Discuss taper strategies and peaking at the right time
• Have tools to swim faster, further, and easier
• Live the Improvement Cycle

Take Aways:

• Video analysis
• Tools to create your own practices

Syllabus:

• Available through link

What to bring:

• Suit
• Goggles and a spare
• Water bottle
• Snacks
• Front snorkel
• Zoomers or other training fin
• Towel
• Writing material

Freestyle Techniques for the Pool and Open Water

Recommended Attendees: The Level 3 Course is a 2-day course that all levels of swimmers (except beginners) interested in learning proper techniques AND understanding how to create and implement a training program while still improving on stroke technique.  

Course Description: This course includes the Level 2 technique day with an additional emphasis on technique work focused on learning to swim in the open water PLUS a day of implementing what was learned in the technique phase and applying it to a training environment.  Day 2 of the course is focused on ingraining skills learned from day one through in-water training sessions. All the goals and tasks of the Level 2 course are achieved while also learning more about open water swimming and an open water freestyle stroke.

Goals

• Implement all Level 2 Class Goals
• Learn the Fundamentals of open water swimming (in a pool environment)
• Create open water simulation swims
• Learn open water breathing
• Learn open water sighting techniques
• Use open water alternative strokes
• Comprehend survival skills used in open water
• Understand becoming the “BOB”
• Know skills needed to Swim straight
• Experience practice sets to ingrain proper form into stroke
• Understand energy system training
• Implement the “Improvement Cycle” in training
• Train to your end. “specificity of training”
• Know the fundamentals and variable in creating your own program
• Develop your own program
• Advance from theory to practice
• Know your level of swimming and how to progress

Take Aways:

• Video analysis
• Training tools to create own practices and advance to next swimming level

Syllabus:

• Available through link

Items needed:

• Swim suit
• Water bottle
• 2 pairs of googles
• Front Snorkel
• Training fins (Zoomers or TYR type short fins)
• Writing material

Fundamentals of Swimming and Open Water Drown Proofing

Recommended Attendees:  The Level 1 course is a one day course and is for beginning swimmers, those who feel uncomfortable swimming over 50m at a time without feeling tired, or beginning open water swimmers who want to become “drown-proofed” and build confidence through competence gained in a pool setting.

Course Description:  Although principles learned in this course can be applied to swimming any stroke the focus stroke will be freestyle and restful survival strokes. 

Improvements will be made through first understanding what creates efficiency and ease in the water and working to improve these skills with each swimmer. This is accomplished through a series of drill and video based feedback to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of individual strokes. Each stroke is triaged through video analysis to focus on the biggest areas of individual opportunity for improvement.  Classroom time is used to teach fundamental principles, share (or evaluate) individual goals, review videos, suggest process (building blocks or create a pathway) needed to progress or achieve individual goals, general discussion and questions and answer.

This course is strictly a technique based course. Pool time is not designed to be too stressful or difficult however attendees will get enough repetitions of each drill in to see improvements in their abilities.  Higher stress and training courses come at Levels 3, 4, and 5.

By the end of this one day course each swimmer will become “drown-proofed, improve on their ability to be efficient and comfortable in the water and have the tools to continue to improve on their own. 

Course Goal

• Become a more efficient swimmer
• Feel more comfortable in the water
• Understand the fundamentals of efficient swimming
• Learn to control or “fly” the body in the water
• Acquire drown-proofing skills
• Apply skills to pool and open water environment
• Have the tools to continue to self-progress

Take Aways

• Access to private drop box video
• Short Term Personal Plan
• Safe and confident in the water

Syllabus: (can be general or specific and need to discuss)

0830      Classroom: Check in, introductions, course goals reviewed, individual objectives shared

0900      Pool: Optional Pretest and video taken

0930      Pool: Swimming Fundamentals and drown-proofing

1030      Classroom: Fundamentals of Efficient Swimming and video review

1130      Pool: Short review and

1200      Lunch

1300      Classroom: Practical Practices and Implementing improvement cycle

1330      Pool: Progress to Swimming and video

1515      Video review, personal development plans, and Q & A

1630      Adjourn

Items needed for Course:

• Suit
• 2 pairs of goggles
• Water bottle
• Training fins (Zoomers or TYR type short fin)