Will USRPT Grow Through Group Training? Coach Peter Andrew Begins Hawaii Experiment
In sports, evolution is essential. New science and research lead to constant growth, as we find new methods to create greater performance. It’s a movement that has touched swimming time and time again, from the emergence of the underwater dolphin kick to the invention of the technical suit.
Evolution is what coach Peter Andrew will look to accomplish as he strives to change swimming through his new swim program in Hawaii. The father of Olympian Michael Andrew, the coach’s new program will utilize “USRPT,” short for Ultra Short Race Pace Training, at the American Renaissance Academy in Oahu, Hawaii. It’s the same style of training Michael practiced for years, leading to controversy due to its lack of traditional aerobic training. Michael Andrew has seemingly moved on from the method, training under coach Herbie Behm at Arizona State. His father, however, has continued his strong belief in the method.
“I do think swimming needs to change the way things are done [in training],” said the elder Andrew. “Other sports don’t train the way we do.”
Can Andrew’s experiment in the Aloha State break the mold? Is swimming less yardage truly effective? I spoke with Andrew and others practicing USRPT on the science behind the method, and how it could shift swimming training.
Shifting the Script in the Water
For young athletes across the country, swimming training has looked similar for a long time. A large focus is often placed upon establishing an “aerobic base” for swimmers, leading to sets of heavy yardage on short rest. According to Andrew and fellow believers in the “USRPT” method, however, this base is unnecessary.
“The current swimming structure across the world is an epidemic,” said Paco Navarro, an associate of Andrew, who coaches swimming in Spain. Navarro spent years studying the work of Brent Rushall, the founder of USRPT, after experiencing his children training with their local club team, and viewing it as ineffective.
“There was just so much slow swimming,” explained Navarro. “And they were doing things they had never done before, like skipping flip turns.”
Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Too much yardage in the pool performing at a non-race pace is unnecessary according to believers in the method, and can be harmful to mechanics.
“You have to be training at the pace you’re going to be racing,” said Andrew. “Your brain codes every movement, and too much load can break the specifics of how you swim with technique.”
By practicing the correct movements consistently, USRPT coaches believe they’ll be replicated on race day. In Oahu, Andrew pairs his swimmers, instructing them to time one another as they rest in between races. This approach allows Peter the freedom to collect film, which they analyze for stroke analysis.
“We try to work on one major thing at a time,” said Andrew, explaining that the work centers around one specific mechanical change, until it is improved. This style of coaching differs from other programs that practice USRPT, where the feedback largely revolves around the ability to hold a specific time. Andrew pointed to it as a challenge, but a necessary one.
“When I was working with Michael, it was different, as I could just give immediate feedback,” said Andrew. “It’s different, but we’re looking to replicate that with a group.”
Redefining Dryland
It’s easy to ask: Will this experiment lead to the same results experienced by Michael after the Tokyo Olympics, which included a dropoff in performance. Time will tell. But Peter Andrew pointed out a key variable that he’s changed while working in Hawaii: His views on dryland.
“I felt like right after the (Tokyo) Olympics, we felt like it was really a good time to start building power (out of the pool),” said Andrew. “But it was wrong. There was no science behind this.”
Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Andrew and Navarro, whose background mainly lies in strength training, both believe that there’s no benefit to the traditional weightlifting behind swimming. This idea is in line with the thinking of the late Rushall. It’s why Navarro is helping Andrew create a new program, one they believe fits the needs of swimmers better.
“The point of weightlifting for swimming is not to build strength for the sake of strength. It’s to build strength for the sake of performance,” Navarro said. The Coach advocates for what he calls “pre-specific” exercises instead. These focus on the movements of “pushing, pulling, throwing, and jumping” at a fast pace during the season.
These exercises help prevent “overloading to fatigue” in swimming, an idea Andrew warns against. They serve as supplementary to the ideas of USRPT in the eyes of the coaches, through emphasizing movements important to swimming, while ensuring the majority of the workload stems from the water.
It’s an idea, however, that former USA Swimming Data Scientist Corey Manley does not support. The statistician, who also formerly coached at Arizona State, experimented with USRPT on his 50-meter sprinters while at the school. He described the experiment as successful, but believed the power they created while weight training was a key piece.
“The fear is that weight training will teach you different movements at different resistances, contradictory to what you’re doing in the pool,” said Manley. “But all season, we were doing Olympic lifts, explosive movements, movements you wouldn’t try in weight training relating to swimming (with the sprinters), and they still showed great results.”
The debate makes the data that Coach Andrew is collecting in Hawaii even more interesting. It’s research which could determine not just whether USRPT is practiced, but how USRPT is practiced among peers. The experiment has the potential to be groundbreaking, even among supporters.
The Mental Effect
Improved performance in the pool is the obvious goal for USRPT. But according to the coaches who practice the method, it’s mental health effects are just as important.
Navarro is currently writing a book on USRPT, based on his 10 years of research of existing swim training, and covering his ideas for the “evolution” of USRPT. The coach claims he has collected 32 cases of depression and suicide, relating directly to the stress created by current swimming training methods. He believes USRPT is the solution.
“USRPT is tailored to every swimmer, as they train until they fail,” he said. “It respects the scientific principles of sports; specificity, individuality, progressive overload, recovery, and variety, where traditional swimming training does not.”
Sean Niewold and Tessa Giele both compete for Alvion Swimming, one of the top clubs in the Netherlands. The club practices USRPT with all of its swimmers. Both agreed that USRPT has created greater enjoyment for swimming than traditional training, which can be monotonous.
“It takes more focus and determination,” said Neiwold. “But it’s also more fun, it keeps swimming interesting.”
Concerns and Critical Conclusions
While the methodology of USRPT, and the way Andrew looks to practice it, seem sound, there’s still reason for concern. Some, including Manley, believe that training longer for longer-distance events is still important.
“For longer events, I still believe you need to train to higher stressors,” said Manley. “For this method to truly work, it has to be someone with a high energy output, who has trouble sustaining it.”
As Andrew also pointed out, the method requires a high level of focus. This attention to race detail isn’t always seen with children on a pool deck.
“You can see the ones who are buying in, and the ones who are on the fence (about USRPT),” Andrew said. “It can be a challenge.”
The reward for said challenge could be priceless, though, beyond its impacts on swim training.
“These kids, they have dreams,” Andrew said. “If I could help them drop their times and get college funding, that would be fantastic. That’s why I love this.”
