Swimming Log and Lap Tracker Spreadsheet

About this template

This swimming log is for pool swimmers who train a few times a week and want to know whether each stroke is getting faster. Type the pool length, the laps, the stroke and the time, and the workbook works out distance and pace per 100 m.

Pace by Stroke then compares the last four weeks with the four before for every stroke, so you can see what is improving and what has slipped.

Please read: This is a tracker tool only, not financial, tax, legal, medical or any other professional advice or advisory service. It records and calculates what you enter; you are solely responsible for checking all figures, rates, dates and results and for every decision you make. By purchasing, downloading or using it, you accept these terms (your statutory consumer rights are not affected).

The dashboard

Nothing on the dashboard is typed. Pick All strokes or one stroke and the whole page follows.

• Distance: kilometers swum, laps, and meters per swim
• The stroke board: pace now against before for every stroke, faster or slower
• The last 40 swims: meters per swim, with the stroke picked stacked on the rest
• The fastest sets: your five quickest sets of 100 m or more
• Time in the water: hours in the pool and time per swim
• Pace, week by week: pace per 100 m for every week, where lower is quicker
• Month by month, pools and swim days: meters each month, meters in 25 m and 50 m pools, and meters by day of the week

What sets it apart

• Pace by stroke: freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, IM and kick, each with its distance, average swim pace per 100 m and best set
• Getting faster, or not: the last four weeks against the four before, stroke by stroke, with the change in seconds and a verdict of faster, slower or about the same. You set the window
• One row per stroke per swim: a warm-up and a main set are two rows. Distance and pace are worked out, and each swim's total shows on its first row
• Weeks and months: every week from Monday against your distance goal, and one stroke's pace month by month, charted

Six connected tabs

Start Here, Setup, Swims, Pace by Stroke, Weekly and Dashboard. It handles 25 m and 50 m pools in one log and charts distance by month and by stroke, which makes it a straightforward lap tracker for swim training. The worked example follows one masters swimming regular from January to September: 102 swims, freestyle coming down from 2:06 to 1:54 per 100 m, backstroke faster too, and breaststroke and butterfly a second slower, which the file points out. It works just as well for triathlon swim sessions.

Light and dark editions

Every download includes a light edition and a dark edition. Every tab is restyled, not just the dashboard, and both use the same formulas. Each comes filled with a worked example and blank, in Excel and in Google Sheets.

Works with

• Microsoft Excel 2016, 2019, 2021 and Microsoft 365, on Windows and Mac, and LibreOffice
• Google Sheets with a free Google account. The Google Sheets version is a real workbook you make your own copy of, not a PDF with a link in it.
• No dynamic arrays, no macros, no add-ins and no subscription

What you download

• Light edition: the Excel workbook filled with a worked example, and a blank one
• Dark edition: the same two files in the dark design
• The instruction guide, which has one-click links to the Google Sheets versions (light and dark, filled and blank)
• The terms of use as a PDF

Your files are ready to download as soon as payment clears. The template is for personal and business use on your own devices, so please do not share or resell the files. Questions before or after you buy? Use our contact page and we will help.

Frequently asked questions

Does it work in Excel and Google Sheets?

Yes. You download Excel workbooks for Excel 2016 or later on Windows and Mac, and the instruction guide has one-click links to make your own copy in Google Sheets with a free Google account.

Can I log swims in different pool lengths?

Yes. It handles 25 m and 50 m pools in one log, and distance is worked out from laps and pool length.

Which strokes does it track?

Freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, IM and kick, each with its distance, average pace per 100 m and best set.

How do I log a session with several sets?

Use one row per stroke per swim, so a warm-up and a main set are two rows. Each swim's total shows on its first row.

What is the difference between the light and dark editions?

Only the look. Both have the same tabs and formulas, and both are included in every download.