Pull Times

Reading all of your responses just confirms that I am the worst kicker in the world and that my kick seriously slows me down. I am 10 seconds FASTER, per hundred, with a pull buoy (no paddles). I don't think that means your kicking sucks, it means you have a lot of potential improvement in your normal swimming technique. I am the world's worst kicker. My ankles simply do not bend and I get no propulsion from my feet. However, the occasional flapping of my legs when I swim does keep my body balanced so my arms can do their job. Using a pull buoy mean additional drag and some buoyancy. If that makes you faster, your body position when swimming may need to be examined.

I was able to predict meet times from pull set repeat times using large paddles (freestyle), not so much on the other strokes.

http://www.svl.ch/PullBuoy/ I swim faster with a pull buoy and with a visibly more relaxed stroke ... been pondering why since the thread started This article suggests it could be because I raise my head too much to breathe when not using a pull buoy - gonna give it a try :dunno:

Usually 1 to 2 strokes faster per 25 meters. Most of my workouts are pulls with paddles and without and kick laps.