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Exercises

Swimming warm up: 6 minutes on deck, then an easy build in the water

Published October 24, 2026

On the pool deck, do 1 minute of jumping jacks, then 2 minutes of mobility: 10 arm circles each direction, 10 leg swings each way per leg, 10 ankle circles per foot and 4 walkouts. Activate the shoulders with 15 band pull-aparts, 12 face pulls and one slow round of plank IYTWs, plus 10 dead bugs per side. In the water, swim 200-400 easy, then a few short pieces that build to race pace. Six minutes on deck, about ten in the pool.

  1. Jumping Jack Calves, Quads
  2. Arm Circles Shoulders
  3. Leg Swings Hamstrings, Glutes
  4. Walkout Abs, Shoulders, Chest
  5. Band Pull-Apart Shoulders, Upper Back
  6. Band Face Pull Shoulders, Upper Back
  7. Plank IYTW Abs, Upper Back
  8. Dead Bug Abs

Get warm on deck: 1 minute

A minute of jumping jacks gets your heart rate up and your shoulders moving before you get wet, which helps most on cold pool decks.

Raise

Jumping Jack

Calves, Quads

It gets you warm on the deck in a minute and takes the arms overhead as you go.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall, heels touching, arms hanging at your sides.
  2. Hop your feet out a little wider than your shoulders while your arms sweep up overhead.
  3. Hop back to the start as your arms come down, and keep a steady, springy rhythm.

Cues

  • Land soft on the balls of your feet
  • Arms travel all the way up

Common mistakes

  • Landing flat-footed and heavy: stay light and let your calves absorb each hop.

Swap for: Star Jump, High Knees, Jump Rope

Build a session with Jumping Jack

Shoulders, hips and ankles: 2 minutes

Every stroke takes the shoulder overhead thousands of times, the kick needs loose hips, and pointed toes come from mobile ankles. Keep these moving; hold longer stretches after the swim.

Shoulder mobility

Arm Circles

Shoulders

Swimming is overhead shoulder work. Circles in both directions loosen the shoulder before the first lap.

How to do it

  1. Stand with your arms straight out to your sides at shoulder height.
  2. Draw small forward circles, then let them grow larger over the set.
  3. Reverse the direction for the second half.

Cues

  • Small to big
  • Ribs stay down

Common mistakes

  • Shrugging up into your ears: keep the shoulders low while the arms circle.

Swap for: Band Pull-Apart, Plate Halo

Build a session with Arm Circles

Hip mobility

Leg Swings

Hamstrings, Glutes

A loose kick starts at the hip, and swings get the hip flexors and hamstrings moving.

How to do it

  1. Stand side-on to a wall or post and rest one hand on it.
  2. Swing your outside leg forward and back like a pendulum, letting the range grow each rep.
  3. Do all reps on one leg, then turn around and switch.

Cues

  • Loose leg, still torso
  • Let the range grow

Common mistakes

  • Rounding your back to kick higher: only go as high as your torso can stay upright.

Swap for: Walkout, Cossack Squat

Build a session with Leg Swings

Ankle mobility

Ankle Circles

Calves

A good flutter kick needs ankles that point well. Circles get them moving before you push off.

How to do it

  1. Stand on one leg with a hand on a wall, or sit, and lift the other foot.
  2. Trace slow, full circles with your toes in one direction.
  3. Reverse the direction, then switch feet.

Cues

  • Move only at the ankle
  • Full, slow circles

Common mistakes

  • Rushing small circles: make each one as wide as the ankle allows.

Swap for: Standing Calf Raise, Jump Rope

Build a session with Ankle Circles

Shoulders and back of the legs

Walkout

Abs, Shoulders, Chest

It moves the hamstrings and loads the shoulders gently in one drill.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall, hinge at your hips and put your palms on the floor, bending your knees as much as you need.
  2. Walk your hands forward until you reach a high plank.
  3. Walk your hands back toward your feet and roll up to standing.

Cues

  • Hands walk, feet stay
  • Hips level in the plank

Common mistakes

  • Letting the hips sag at the front: brace your belly before you walk back.

Swap for: Bear Crawl, Plank to Push-Up

Build a session with Walkout

Shoulder and trunk activation: 3 minutes

Light band work switches on the upper back and rotator cuff that keep the shoulder stable through the catch, and the trunk drills teach the body line you hold in the water.

Upper back

Band Pull-Apart

Shoulders, Upper Back

It switches on the muscles that pull your shoulder blades back, balancing the forward pull of the stroke.

How to do it

  1. Hold a light band in front of your chest with straight arms and hands shoulder width apart.
  2. Spread your hands outward until the band touches your chest, pinching your shoulder blades.
  3. Let the band pull your arms back in slowly.

Cues

  • Shoulder blades meet
  • Arms stay long

Common mistakes

  • Arching your lower back to finish the rep: use a lighter band and keep your ribs down.

Swap for: Band Face Pull, Band Rear Delt Fly, Band Scapular Retraction

Build a session with Band Pull-Apart

Rotator cuff

Band Face Pull

Shoulders, Upper Back

Ending in external rotation prepares the rotator cuff, which stabilizes the shoulder during the catch.

How to do it

  1. Anchor a band at about head height and hold one end in each hand, palms down.
  2. Pull the band toward your forehead, with your elbows high and your hands finishing beside your ears.
  3. Return slowly until your arms are straight.

Cues

  • Elbows high
  • Hands end by the ears

Common mistakes

  • Leaning back to move the band: step closer to the anchor and keep your torso still.

Swap for: Face Pull, Band Pull-Apart

Build a session with Band Face Pull

Shoulder blade control in a plank

Plank IYTW

Abs, Upper Back

Each shape moves one arm while the trunk holds still, like a long body line in the water.

How to do it

  1. Get into a high plank with your feet a little wider than usual.
  2. Lift one arm straight forward in line with your ear, then return it.
  3. Lift the same arm into a Y, then out to the side for a T, then a W with the elbow bent; switch arms.

Cues

  • Hips stay square
  • Slow, deliberate shapes

Common mistakes

  • Twisting the hips toward the lifted arm: widen your feet and slow down.

Swap for: Band Pull-Apart, Plank Shoulder Tap

Build a session with Plank IYTW

Trunk brace

Dead Bug

Abs

It teaches you to keep the lower back steady while arms and legs move, the basis of a straight body line.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up, arms pointing at the ceiling and your knees bent at 90 degrees over your hips.
  2. Press your lower back into the floor, then slowly reach one arm overhead and the opposite leg out long.
  3. Return and switch sides.

Cues

  • Lower back stays down
  • Exhale as you reach

Common mistakes

  • Arching away from the floor as the leg goes out: shorten the reach until your back stays flat.

Swap for: Plank, Plate Hollow Hold

Build a session with Dead Bug

Back of the body

Superman

Lower Back

It wakes up the back and glutes that keep your hips high in the water.

How to do it

  1. Lie face down with your arms stretched overhead.
  2. Raise your chest, both arms and both legs a few inches off the floor together.
  3. Pause briefly, then lower with control.

Cues

  • Long body, eyes down
  • Squeeze your glutes

Common mistakes

  • Cranking the neck back: keep your gaze on the floor.

Swap for: Plank IYTW, Band Reverse Hyperextension

Build a session with Superman

Start and turn primers, then into the pool

Before a race, a few jump squats prepare the legs for the start and the push off the wall. Then swim easy and build to race pace over short pieces.

Start primer

Jump Squat

Quads, Glutes

A few jumps get the legs ready for an explosive start and fast push-offs.

How to do it

  1. Stand with your feet about shoulder width and your arms ready.
  2. Dip into a quarter to half squat, then jump straight up, swinging your arms.
  3. Land softly with bent knees and reset before the next jump.

Cues

  • Soft, quiet landing
  • Reset between reps

Common mistakes

  • Landing stiff-legged: let the hips and knees bend to absorb the landing.

Swap for: Box Jump, Bodyweight Squat

Build a session with Jump Squat

Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in. Open one in the session builder to change a pick, price it from a recent set, and add it to RIRLift.

Session 1

On deck before practice

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts4× a week
  • Working sets32 a week
  • Per workout~10 min
  • EquipmentResistance Bands

You swim laps or train with a club and want your shoulders ready for the main set.

Mobility and shoulder activation in six minutes, so the in-water warm-up can start smooth.

Deck Warm-Up
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Jumping JackSeconds. 2 × 30 4 10 s
Arm CirclesEach direction. 1 × 12 4 0 s
Leg SwingsPer leg. 1 × 10 4 0 s
Ankle CirclesPer foot. 1 × 10 4 0 s
Band Pull-Apart 1 × 15 3 15 s
Band Face Pull 1 × 12 3 15 s
Dead BugPer side. 1 × 8–10 3 15 s
How to run it
Do it on the deck before every swim.
How to progress
Add a second round of IYTWs when the first feels easy.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Before a race or meet

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts1× a week
  • Working sets9 a week
  • Per workout~10 min
  • EquipmentResistance Bands

You compete and need to be warm on deck after the pool warm-up ends.

Adds start primers and a short repeat of the shoulder drills, because you may wait a while between the pool warm-up and your race.

Race Warm-Up
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Jumping JackSeconds. 2 × 30 4 10 s
Arm CirclesEach direction. 1 × 12 4 0 s
Walkout 1 × 4 4 15 s
Band Pull-Apart 2 × 15 3 15 s
Plank IYTWRounds per arm. 1 × 2–3 3 20 s
Jump SquatExplosive. 2 × 3 3 30 s
How to run it
Do the deck routine, swim your warm-up, then repeat the band work and jumps 10-15 minutes before your race.
How to progress
Keep the jumps at the same count; make them sharper, not more.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

Before dry-land training

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets18 a week
  • Per workout~10 min
  • EquipmentResistance Bands

You do strength work for swimming and want the shoulders and trunk switched on.

Adds the superman and walkouts for the back of the body, and keeps every set light, since the main work comes after.

Dry-Land Warm-Up
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Jumping JackSeconds. 2 × 45 4 10 s
Walkout 1 × 6 4 15 s
Band Face Pull 2 × 12–15 3 15 s
Plank IYTWRounds per arm. 1 × 2 3 20 s
Superman 2 × 8–10 3 15 s
Dead BugPer side. 1 × 8 3 15 s
How to run it
Use it at the start of your dry-land session.
How to progress
Use a slightly firmer band when the band work feels too easy.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

What is the best warm-up for swimming?

A few minutes of dry-land mobility and band work for the shoulders, then an easy swim that builds to race pace over short pieces.

What warm-up exercises should I do before swimming?

Jumping jacks, arm circles, leg swings, ankle circles, band pull-aparts, face pulls and dead bugs.

How long should a swimming warm-up be?

About six minutes on deck and ten in the water for training, longer before a race.

Should I stretch before swimming?

Move rather than hold before you swim. Longer held stretches suit the end of the session.

What is a warm-up pool?

At meets, a separate pool where swimmers can keep warm between races. If there isn't one, repeat your deck routine before your race.