How Much Training Does a Young Swimmer Need?
Parent Guide Series - October 2026
At Bluefins, our Age Group Performance (AGP) swimmers are typically aged 10–12. They have five training sessions each week: two one-hour sessions and three 90-minute sessions, including one in a long-course pool. That gives 6.5 hours of pool time each week.
Typical distances are around 2,700 metres in an hour and 3,500–3,600 metres in 90 minutes, giving approximately 16 kilometres across a full training week. Individual sessions vary with their purpose, and sessions above 4,000 metres are rare.
These figures describe our current programme. They are not a target for every swimmer of this age.
Whether additional training would help depends on what a swimmer needs to develop, how consistently they train and whether they are ready for the extra demands.
What does “Performance” mean at this age?
The squad name describes the training environment and its expectations. It does not mean every swimmer has already developed a high level of skill.
Championship wins are worth celebrating, but even successful young swimmers have plenty of skills still to develop. Results alone do not show how consistently those skills are applied in training.
Selection places particular importance on how swimmers train: their ability to listen, act on feedback, work consistently and show maturity alongside their peers.
Learning to accept and apply feedback is central to training in AGP. Swimmers should also ask questions when they need help understanding a task or correction.
Training with others who share those habits helps establish higher expectations across the group. Swimmers are learning how to train better together.
What happens within the session?
Our sessions include stroke development, starts, turns, endurance and speed work. The balance changes with the purpose of the session.
A swimmer may practise a movement through a drill, then swim the same distance while applying it to their full stroke. During longer sets, coaches also look at pacing, stroke count and turns.
Technical expectations continue throughout the session. Coaches watch for consistency, give corrections and check how swimmers respond to feedback. Completing the distance is only part of the task.
Pool time also includes explanations, feedback and rest between swims. Starts, turns and short sprints with recovery can take a meaningful part of a session while adding relatively little distance.
The distance helps describe the session. Understanding what swimmers are practising explains more about its purpose.
Effort should match the task
Working hard includes paying attention to what the coach has asked swimmers to do.
When practising a stroke change, a swimmer needs enough control to apply it. During a pacing set, the challenge may be keeping each repeat close to the same time while maintaining technique. During speed work, the aim may be to swim fast and recover before the next effort.
Following those instructions is part of learning to train. A session does not have to leave a swimmer exhausted to have been worthwhile.
Learning to take responsibility
We begin introducing a simple self-check in AGP and use it more regularly in Youth Performance.
Did I:
Arrive early?
Complete a full land warm-up?
Read the set before the briefing?
Complete the full distance?
Achieve the three target outcomes within the set?
Do my own stretching at home?
The checklist helps swimmers reflect on how they approached training. Completing the distance matters, alongside achieving the specific outcomes their coach has set. These habits take time to develop, with swimmers gradually taking more responsibility for their preparation and learning.
When should training increase?
Additional training should have a clear purpose. It might provide more practice or introduce demands that a swimmer is now ready to manage.
Before adding sessions, coaches consider whether the swimmer is attending consistently, applying feedback and benefiting from their current programme. How they are managing the existing demands also matters.
Regular attendance and purposeful effort remain central to progress. Those expectations sit alongside the responsibility to keep training appropriate to the swimmer’s development.
What can parents do?
Parents see parts of a swimmer’s week that coaches may not: homework, other activities, sleep and how they feel between sessions.
When discussing additional training, ask:
What would the extra session help my swimmer develop?
How will we know whether it is helping?
How will it fit with school, other activities and recovery?
Could a short-term trial help us assess the change?
Speak to the coach early if your swimmer is repeatedly struggling to recover, becoming less enthusiastic or finding the overall week difficult to manage.
These observations help coaches understand how the swimmer is managing training alongside everyday life.
Sources and related reading
David Hemmings’ recent article prompted this discussion. The squad description, session figures and coaching examples above reflect current Bluefins practice.
Written by Spencer Turner
Head of Swimming, Basingstoke Bluefins Swimming Club
