Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

Former Member — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:52:20 GMT

Hi All, I've been lurking for a while and decided to become a member to become more active, even though I'm not a US Masters Swimmer nor do I even live in North America. The primary reason I decided to join up is that I've not been able to find a European community with as much know-how as this one. More acutely, I've just come across a nice piece of research that I think will serve to act as a good topic for discussion. So, thanks for having me and without further ado: releases.jhu.edu/.../ Question: what does this mean for the vaunted high-elbow catch? Welcome to the forums. I read the article and watched the video. The sculling style of swimming with the deliberate S pull he talks about that was popular in the 60s and 70s has not been recommended for a while. It looks like he has verified it is not efficient with his computer model. Most high level swimmers who swim with the high elbow, early vertical forearm style try to pull as straight as possible.

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

That Guy — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 12:47:25 GMT

Do not think too much watch the best in the world & copy what they do Fixed. Now it's a haiku! :banana:

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

knelson — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 11:41:19 GMT

Question: what does this mean for the vaunted high-elbow catch? I think it verifies it. The idea of a high-elbow catch is to get your hand and forearm into a position that is perpendicular to you direction of motion as quickly as possible so that you can maximize the backward force (drag) of your pull.

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

ande — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 11:06:11 GMT

the high elbow is alive & well, even with a straight arm pull Don't think too much watch the best in the world & copy what they do Michael Phelps freestyle multi angle camera - YouTube Eamon Sullivan Underwater Slow Motion - YouTube ande

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

Former Member — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 07:15:08 GMT

Thanks guys. I'm new to swimming, but quite serious about getting better and it's sometimes hard to filter out the noise and make out what's really going on. I'm videotaping myself in the pool (not in dirty way, not yet) to see if how I'm feeling really is how I'm moving. Turns out it's not, so there is plenty of room for improvement. Lurking here has been a big help, and so have the Go Swim drills and other Youtube materials. The quoted research to me seemed to claim that a vertical straight arm was *better* than the high elbow, but apparently I misunderstood. Thanks for clearing that up!

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

knelson — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 05:02:18 GMT

The quoted research to me seemed to claim that a vertical straight arm was *better* than the high elbow, but apparently I misunderstood. Thanks for clearing that up! I think we'd need to see a more complete summary of the results to fully understand, but the take away for me was that exaggerated sculling motions do not increase propulsion.

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

__steve__ — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 04:22:01 GMT

That's not noise, it's feedback. rock and roll ..

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

That Guy — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 04:01:59 GMT

Despite what other people might suggest there is no noise here. Type louder!

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

smontanaro — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 03:19:04 GMT

... it's sometimes hard to filter out the noise ... Despite what other people might suggest there is no noise here. It's all signal. Sometimes you just have to apply the proper convolution filter to see that. :D Welcome...

RE: Paddle vs Propellor - Science of Swimming (+ New Swimmer)

__steve__ — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 03:07:58 GMT

my avitar describes an example