Pull Buoy Only Swim: Upper Body Endurance Focus

Session Overview

This 45-minute pull buoy only swim removes your legs from the equation entirely, forcing your arms, shoulders, and core to carry the full load. It builds upper body endurance, improves catch and pull mechanics, and gives your running and cycling legs a genuine rest while still delivering a meaningful swim workout.

What You’ll Need

• Pull buoy (essential)
• Swimming pool access (25m or 50m)
• Swim cap and goggles
• Paddles (optional — adds upper body load if desired)

Warm-Up (8 minutes)

200m easy freestyle without the pull buoy first — get your stroke feeling smooth before removing leg power. Then insert the pull buoy between your thighs and swim 2 x 50m easy to settle into the changed body position and balance.

Main Set

All reps use the pull buoy. Focus on a high-elbow catch and a strong, early pull:

• 4 x 100m at steady aerobic pace (CSS + 5 seconds), 20 seconds rest. Long, high-elbow pulls throughout.
• 200m continuous bilateral breathing (every 3 strokes). Maintain pull buoy position between thighs.
• 4 x 50m at CSS pace, 15 seconds rest. Emphasis on a strong early catch — set the hand before pulling.
• 4 x 25m: maximum distance per stroke — count your strokes and try to reduce them each rep.
• 100m easy to finish the main set.

Cool-Down (5 minutes)

100m easy breaststroke or backstroke without the pull buoy to rebalance your body position and decompress your shoulders after sustained pull work.

Coaching Notes

• Without leg kick, your hips may drop — press your chest slightly downward to lift your hips to the surface.
• Avoid using an ankle band (which locks your ankles); the pull buoy alone is sufficient challenge.
• This session reveals catch weaknesses: if one side feels weaker, focus attention there in the drill reps.
• Scale up by adding a 400m straight pull at the end; scale down by reducing 100m reps to 75m.
• RPE target: 4–5 for the main set reps, 2–3 for steady sections.