You’ll here the shorthand “IM” used often during the Individual medley is the name of the swimming competition in which competitors use all four competitive strokes: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle, in that order.

What Does IM Stand For?

Individual Medley is referred to as IM. When you swim IM, you will swim all four competitive strokes:

• Butterfly
• Backstroke
• Breaststroke
• Freestyle

In competition, the IM is contested in three different distances:

• 100 yards or meters (short course only)
• 200 yards or meters
• 400 yards or meters

There are also two relays that incorporate all four strokes:

• 200 medley relay
• 400 medley relay

IM Order Vs Medley Relay Order

If you’re racing IM by yourself, you will swim the strokes in the following order:

• Butterfly
• Backstroke
• Breaststroke
• Freestyle

In relays, the order is different:

• Backstroke
• Breaststroke
• Butterfly
• Freestyle

Why Should You Train IM?

• Improve Your Feel of the Water: Your muscles and energy systems are used in different ways during each stroke. You will become a faster swimmer overall if you swim IM, even if you only compete in freestyle races.
• Burns More Calories: You’ll burn more calories during each workout if you use all of your energy systems and engage your muscles in new ways.
• Prevent Injury: By breaking up repetitive motions, IM lowers your risk of developing overuse injuries in your shoulders and other body parts.
• More Fun/Mix It Up: It can become monotonous to swim with the same stroke. IM adds variety to your workouts and keeps them interesting.

Different Types of “IM” Training

There are several ways you can integrate IM into your workouts. The most typical variations are these five. Visit our support site for additional terminology and FAQ.

“IM Order:” By doing one rep of each stroke, you can finish the set. For example, if your set is 4×50 IM order, you would swim:

• 50 Butterfly
• 50 Backstroke
• 50 Breaststroke
• 50 Freestyle

“FRIM:” This stands for “Freestyle IM,” meaning you will swim freestyle in place of butterfly. This variation makes your IM sets more aerobic and enables you to start the backstroke and breaststroke from scratch. A 100 FRIM would look like:

• 25 Freestyle
• 25 Backstroke
• 25 Breaststroke
• 25 Freestyle

“Transition IM:” By switching strokes, transition IM enables you to lower your training load while improving your turns. For example, a set of 3 x 50s Transition IM would look like:

• 1^st 50: 25 Butterfly, 25 Backstroke
• 2^nd 50: 25 Backstroke, 25 Breaststroke
• 3^rd 50: 25 Breaststroke, 25 Freestyle

“Twitch” or “IM/FREE” or “Major Stroke/Free:” IM order and Freestyle will be alternated here. If you’re doing a 200 Twitch, your swim would look like this:

• 25 Butterfly, 25 Freestyle
• 25 Backstroke, 25 Freestyle
• 25 Breaststroke, 25 Freestyle
• 25 Freestyle, 25 Freestyle

IM Order x2 or x3: You will perform each stroke in this setup numerous times in IM order. For every repetition, you can vary the speed or effort. If your set is 8x25s IM Order x2 (odds easy/evens fast), you would do the following:

• 2×25 Butterfly 1 easy/1 fast
• 2×25 Backstroke 1 easy/1 fast
• 2×25 Breaststroke 1 easy/1 fast
• 2×25 Freestyle 1 easy/1 fast

What is Im Workout in Swimming?

The “IM” workout is a great way to increase your conditioning and work on all four competitive swimming strokes at once. Any pool can be used for the IM swim, but because of its length and variety, long course pools are the most common.

Make sure you are including other cardiovascular exercises in your routine in addition to the IM swim to get the most benefits from it. Prepare yourself for a difficult workout because swimming an IM requires strength, endurance, and focus. If you want to try the IM yourself, be sure to consult with a coach or fitness expert beforehand for proper technique and safety considerations.

What is a 50 IM Swim?

A 50-meter individual medley (IM) swim is a combination of the butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle. Swim one reps of each of these strokes one after another to finish this kind of set.

Make sure to warm up properly before attempting the 50 IM swim because it can be difficult but rewarding if done correctly. When training for an IM, you shouldn’t focus solely on swimming this distance; instead, work on developing your other strokes so that you are ready for any race scenario.

Practice makes perfect, so order a set of 50 IMs from our website right away to start constructing your endurance muscles.

What is the IM Swim Order?

To ensure a fair race, swimmers should begin with the Individual Medley swim order. Since stroke speed determines where each swimmer finishes in the IM swim order, it’s critical for each swimmer to be aware of their own strengths and weaknesses.

Before beginning your race in the IM category, be sure to warm up properly. During your swimming competition, make a plan and follow it; this will help you succeed. Practice makes perfect when competing in the IM category, so keep practicing and you’ll improve quickly

What is IM Final in Swimming?

The individual medley is the last competition in swimming, and mastering all four strokes successfully is difficult. To achieve your best technique for this competitive swim event, you need to put in a lot of practice.

Make sure you warm up properly before competing in IM; you don’t want to get hurt while running. When preparing for this significant competition, pay close attention to what your coach or training partner has to say. They can provide you with useful advice along the way.

To succeed in an IM, keep in mind that effort, commitment, and focus are necessary; if you set your mind to it, you can achieve it.

What Makes a Good IM Swimmer?

To improve as an IM, one must become exceptionally adept at turns and transitions between strokes. Play around with the pace; you don’t want to expend all of your energy on one weak stroke, but you also don’t want to fall so far behind that your stronger strokes can’t catch you up.

Your swimming style will be matched with the conditions of the racecourse/pool by your coach to help you find equilibrium in the water./channel./open ocean etc.. Perfectionism is attained through practice. There’s no need for perfection; perseverance and consistent effort over time will do. What qualities distinguish a good swimmer? Consistency, practice, & determination

What is a 100 IM in Swimming?

It takes a lot of commitment to successfully complete a 100-meter individual medley. To get an idea of how challenging swimming a 100 IM is, visit USA Swimming’s website and look up the world record holder for each individual stroke.

Swimming a 100 IM might be the challenge you’re looking for. You can train for this event in a variety of ways, including by swimming shorter distances or times, engaging in interval training, or even performing modifications of exercises designed specifically for the IM distance (like kicking with one hand).

Before starting this amazing race, be sure to get plenty of sleep; your performance will suffer greatly if you don’t.

What Does 200 IM Mean in Swimming?

In a swimmer’s individual medley competition, the 200 IM is the fourth event. All four competitive strokes—the butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle—must be used by swimmers in this event, in that order.

The 200- and 400-meter IM competitions are held at the Rio Olympics for both men and women. Swimmers who make it to the final of this competition can anticipate a quick time—roughly two minutes and forty seconds per lap. If you want to see some incredible performances, make sure to watch the swimming competitions at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Frequently Asked Questions