Legendary swim sets — workouts from the world’s best swimmers

Legendary Sets is a curated library of real swim workouts — the main sets, threshold sets, sprint sets, and IM sets that elite swimmers and their coaches actually used. Every set lists the distances, the target pace or send-off interval, and a short note on context: where it came from, why it matters, and how to scale it for U.S. Masters Swimming.

Browse practice sets associated with Olympic champions and world-record holders including Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky, Caeleb Dressel, Ryan Lochte, Leon Marchand, Janet Evans, Bobby Finke, Cameron McEvoy, Alexander Popov, Kate Douglass, and Gretchen Walsh, plus signature sets from coaches such as Bob Bowman, Eddie Reese, and Gregg Troy. Workouts cover every stroke — freestyle, butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and individual medley — from 25s of pure speed to 10,000-meter distance grinds.

Filter the library by swimmer to see every set attributed to a particular athlete or coach, or open a swimmer’s page directly. All sets are reproductions for training reference, with original sources linked where available.

Swimmers and coaches in the library

Sets in the library

  • Bowman's Fast/Easy 100s — Bob Bowman · 8-10× 100 fast + 100 easy @4:00
  • Bowman's Underwater Resistance 25s — Bob Bowman · 4× 25 swim + 4× 25 underwater fast (with fins)
  • Hackett/Cotterell 30x100 Progression — Grant Hackett / Denis Cotterell association · 30× 100 free @1:40, HR -30 → -20 → -10
  • The Grant Hackett-Style 50s — Grant Hackett-style community tradition · 16/12/8/4 × 50 with 200-pace inserts and opening sendoffs
  • 8000 IM, Nonstop — Steven Munatones / WOWSA reporting · Non-stop 8000m IM: 2000 each stroke
  • Phelps's Favorite Hard Ladder — Michael Phelps · Ladder 4×25 → 4×200 → back down (~1:01-1:05 / 100)
  • Phelps's 30x100 Free/Fly Pain Set — Michael Phelps / Bob Bowman · 30× (50 free :35 + dive 50 fly :28) @1:30
  • Ledecky's Threshold 300s — Katie Ledecky / Bruce Gemmell · 5× (3×100 cruise + 300 Pink + 3×100 cruise + 300 descending)
  • Douglass's Descending 100s — Kate Douglass / Carle Fierro (Westchester Aquatic Club) · 18×100 descending to a T100, then 50 of each stroke
  • Walsh 12 Kicks Every Wall — Gretchen Walsh · 12 dolphin kicks off every wall — count every push-off
  • Lochte's Brutal IM Set — Ryan Lochte / Gregg Troy · 4× (2×100 fly dive + 2×50 back + 100 free + 400 IM max)
  • 30x50 Fly From a Dive — David Marsh / Ryan Lochte group · 30× 50 fly all-out from a dive @1:10
  • McEvoy's Hardest Sets — Cameron McEvoy · Menu: 18×400, 12×200 + 40×50 back, and more
  • Phelps's 200 Fly Package — Bob Bowman / Michael Phelps · 3 rounds of 10×50 fly control + 5×50 fast, plus volume sets
  • Eddie Reese's Ladder — Eddie Reese · 2 rounds: 5×100, 4×200, 3×300, 2×400, 1×500
  • The Finke Finish — Bobby Finke / Florida distance group · 20× (100 swim cruise + 50 kick fast)
  • The Death Spiral — Michael Bohl / Bill Sweetenham · 1500 → 1400 → 1300 ... → 100, all @1:15 base
  • Popov's 400 + 100 Rounds — Alexander Popov / Gennadi Touretski · 10× (400 free aerobic @6:00 + 100 VO2 @2:00, ~:54-:55)
  • Evans 20×400 IM — Janet Evans / Bud McAllister · 20× 400 IM nonstop, long course (8,000m)
  • Evans IM Ladder — Janet Evans / Bud McAllister · 200 → 800 → 200 IM, interval tightens coming down
  • Perkins 30×100 — Kieren Perkins / John Carew · 30× 100 free, held :56-57, heart rate capped at 150
  • Perkins Broken 1500 — Kieren Perkins / John Carew · 6× (4×50 @1:30 + 2×25 @:50), all top speed
  • Wellbrock 6×1500 — Florian Wellbrock / Bernd Berkhahn · 6× 1500 free starting every 20 minutes (10k)
  • Troy's Split Buster — Gregg Troy · 500-400-300-200-100, each beats the prior’s split
  • Sandpipers Broken 1500s — Jake Des Roches (Sandpipers of Nevada) · 3× (4×100 snorkel DPS + 500 for time)
  • Fratus Speed Endurance — Bruno Fratus / Brett Hawke · 4 rounds: 8×25 @100-pace + fast kick + dive 75s
  • Fratus Engine Building — Bruno Fratus / Brett Hawke · 48×50 @1:30 kick/swim ladder, held :27-28
  • Schneider Dive 50s — Josh Schneider / Mandy Commons-DiSalle · Dive/push 50 pairs, then 3×50 all-out from a dive
  • Bousquet Running-Dive 50s — Fred Bousquet / Dave Durden · 8× 50 free fast from a running dive @2:00
  • Dressel Tower Work — Caeleb Dressel / Gregg Troy · Power-tower sprints + surgical-tubing pre-2017-Worlds
  • Skinner Lactate-palooza — Jonty Skinner (Indiana) · 5× (4×25 fast + 100 fast), no recovery
  • ASU 400 IM Fly Ladder — Bob Bowman / Arizona State 400 IM group · 40×50 free/fly ladder; Marchand held :23 fly
  • O'Neill Fly Strength — Susie O’Neill · 5×50 fly: 25 back-kick w/ gear overhead + 25 sprint fly
  • Murphy Underwater 8×25 — Ryan Murphy · 8×25 dolphin kick, tighten amplitude / lift tempo
  • Looze 200 Breast Pace — Ray Looze (Indiana) · 4×50 @200-pace, hold stroke count, descend interval
  • Bruner 100×100 — Mike Bruner / Bill Rose · 100×100 free @1:00, sub-minute for 10,000 yards
  • Salo Broken 400s — Dave Salo · 5×400: fast portion shrinks, cruise grows each rep
  • Dutch Team Pyramid — WOWSA reporting (Dutch National Team, 1978) · 16×50 up to a 1500 and back, inside 3 hours
  • Lecat 25K Negative Split — WOWSA reporting (Stéphane Lecat) · 25,000m in a 50m pool, negative-split, sub-5hr

Frequently asked questions

What are legendary swim sets?

They are real practice sets — main sets, threshold sets, sprint sets, and IM sets — that have been written about, demonstrated, or attributed to well-known swimmers and coaches. Each set on Openlane lists the distances, the target pace or send-off interval, and a short note on where it came from, why it matters, and how to scale it for Masters training.

Which swimmers and coaches are included?

The library features sets associated with Olympic champions and world-record holders such as Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky, Caeleb Dressel, Ryan Lochte, Leon Marchand, Janet Evans, Kate Douglass, Gretchen Walsh, Bobby Finke, Cameron McEvoy, and Alexander Popov, plus signature sets from coaches including Bob Bowman, Eddie Reese, and Gregg Troy. Every swimmer and coach has their own page collecting each set attributed to them.

Can I do an Olympic swimmer’s workout as a Masters swimmer?

Yes, with scaling. Every set includes a Masters scaling note that shrinks the volume, opens up the send-off intervals, or substitutes strokes so the workout fits adult training. The elite versions are shown for context, not as a prescription — build into them gradually.

Where do these swim sets come from?

Sets are reproduced from interviews, coaching talks, podcasts, articles, and training features, with the original source linked wherever one is available. Openlane reproduces them for training reference and credits the swimmer, coach, and publication behind each one.

Do I need an account to view the sets?

No. A core archive of sets is free to browse without signing in. Signing in unlocks the full library, including additional sets and swimmers.