Hi guys, I switched to competitive swimming from normal casual swimming half a year ago and it has been fun but exhausting >"activate" and engage them, along with guides on feeling them and whether i am using them?
Also, is it true that you are supposed to hold and pull with your forearm instead of your wrists and hands?
Thanks alot everyone, really appreciate it if you can teach me ways to activate and feel the lats in freestyle, I am willing to train hard for it :)
Former Member
Pull ups or chin ups are a good excercise for the lats. I don´t think you actually feel them while swimming. The number of pull ups you can do however is a valid indicator on how well developed your lats are.
If you don't feel like you are engaging your lats much it probably means you aren't swimming with a "high elbow" stroke. You are likely dropping your elbow and this is an inefficient stroke. When your hand is extended out in front of you at the beginning of the stroke you want to get into a high elbow position right away. Look up other threads about early vertical forearm or EVF. I've heard it described as feeling like you are reaching over a barrel to start your pull. I think you will find if you swim like this you will engage the lats much more.
Former Member
I have found the more I try to focus on my stroke efficiency the more my last are engaged. Also, trying to swim with an "aggressive" stroke helped me as well.
A personal observation:
I do not usually 'feel' my lats unless I have just finished a long distance (5km or up) event, in which case I attribute it to overuse. Drylands can be used to target these muscles, and you might benefit from the upper body plan in The Jazz Hands Big Four Lifting Program. Other lifts will also help develop this.
Working the EVF technique like Kirk suggests is also a good idea: I like this drill to help foster this.
