Wanderley Santos on Triathlon Swimming Challenges

Wanderley Santos' Journey and the Challenges of Self-Coaching

Wanderley reflects on starting swimming as a child to manage bronchitis, advancing through the master ranks, and spending decades writing his own training plans. He analyzes the psychological traps of self-sabotage when athletes coach themselves and shares his recent experience being coached by Samir Barel for a 10 km open water marathon.

Balancing Training Loads Across Swim, Bike, and Run

The coach outlines the essential communication required with head triathlon coaches for both amateur and elite athletes. Using triathlete Gi Opipari as a case study, he explains how he scales back aquatic intensity following demanding track sessions or long cycling rides to avoid conflicting physiological fatigue.

The Overlooked Swim Leg and the Pitfalls of Chasing Volume

The discussion challenges the assumption that swimming faster simply requires piling up pool mileage. Wanderley critiques the oversimplified belief that mindless arm turnover and high volume build speed, arguing that neglecting technical refinement, pacing discipline, and controlled intensity stifles actual race performance.

Purposeful Use of Training Gear and Accessories

Paddles, fins, pull buoys, and drag parachutes are evaluated through a physiological lens. Wanderley stresses that gear should never serve as a crutch to mask fatigue during main sets, highlighting paddles as the premier tool for building stroke-specific strength when used intentionally.

Periodization and Individualizing Swim Plans

The specialist highlights the shortcomings of generic gym and master swim plans, which rely on group averages to accommodate diverse lanes. He explains the value of personalized training blocks and how to taper effectively during the final three to four weeks before a goal event by aligning intensity with race specificity.

Technique and Energy Economy for Triathlon

The primary objective of triathlon swimming biomechanics is metabolic conservation. Wagner Spadotto and Wanderley point out that swimming with efficient technique spares muscle glycogen and lowers energy expenditure, enabling athletes to start the bike and run fresh, even if the raw time saved in the water is only a couple of minutes.

Swimming from Childhood vs. Adult-Onset Swimmers

Wanderley assesses motor pattern acquisition in athletes who swam from childhood compared to adult beginners. He cautions against introducing major technical overhauls right before goal races, emphasizing that neuromuscular adaptation takes time and requires patience throughout the mechanical adjustment process.

Biomechanical Assessments and Common Stroke Flaws

Drawing from data across nearly 200 assessments at Care Club split into propulsive and resistive phases, the coach details the three most common errors: dropping the elbow during the catch phase, dropping the lead arm early while breathing, and lacking core stability, which leads to excessive hip rotation.

Stroke Extension vs. Cadence in the Final Stages

The panel examines the conventional advice to 'lengthen the stroke' under extreme fatigue in Ironman races. Wanderley and Wagner explain that overgliding without adequate core engagement increases drag and causes deceleration, arguing that maintaining or slightly increasing stroke rate is often more effective when hydrodynamics degrade.

Transitioning from Pool to Open Water and Stroke Counting

Losing wall push-offs completely alters swimming biomechanics in the open ocean. Wanderley recommends performing 50-meter test sets with stroke counting (such as comparing 18 vs. 22 strokes for the same split) to help swimmers identify their most metabolically efficient stroke rate.

Pacing Strategy and Durability in Long-Distance Races

The coach demonstrates how to divide race courses into structured intensity blocks and why age-group athletes should favor a progressive start. This pacing strategy mitigates spikes in heart rate caused by starting-line anxiety and ensures steady output all the way through the swim exit.

Pacing Tests, Training Zones, and Lactate Profiling

Wanderley shares practical applications of the T400 test to establish aquatic training velocity zones (from A0 to AN3). The segment also covers in-water blood lactate testing methodologies and the necessity of standardized training terminology between multi-sport coaching staffs.

Roda Presa Segment: Nausea and Vomiting During Races

In the lighthearted closing segment, Wanderley recounts his personal struggles with motion sickness and vomiting during open water competitions, triggered by a combination of adrenaline, hard race starts, pre-race anxiety, chop at the first turn buoy, and sand runs through transitions.