Help me to find mistakes in my freestyle technique (VIDEO)
Former Member
Please, help to find mistakes in my swimming technique. Would be very grateful for any advice how to improve my swimming (useful drills and etc.). I have been swimming for 6 months for myself without coach and this is my first video www.swimsmoothforum.com/.../icon_e_smile.gifThank you in advance.
Here is the video:
www.youtube.com/watch
Parents
Former Member
I noticed 3 things:
1. Your left hand crosses over the centre line of your body when it enters - be consciously aware of getting your hands to enter the water on about the same plane as your shoulder.
2. Your hand entry is a bit weird - it's almost like they float around at the front of the stroke before you catch the water. This could be because of the entry crossover. Focus on entering the water like you are putting your arm and hand through a sweater sleeve, then move your hand down to catch the water right away. You want to feel the water on the underside of the forearms as you start the pull. You could try the fist drill to get this feel - swim with your hands balled into fists, which will force you to use your forearms as a pulling force.
3. You are very flat in the water. Imagine your head and spine are a long axis and your body rotates on this axis. Start rotating with the hips...as your hand pushes through the bottom of the stroke, rotate that hip towards the ceiling. Your shoulder should then follow, rotating towards the ceiling as well. This will also allow you to stretch the opposite arm forward (as you push it through the sweater sleeve). A good drill would be to take three strokes, and on the 3rd stroke leave your hand and arm outstretched at the top of the stroke and kick for 6 beats. As you are kicking you should be lying almost on your side - focus on the hip/shoulder rotation as you end your stroke and stretching the opposite arm out.
Good luck! Keep swimming!
I noticed 3 things:
1. Your left hand crosses over the centre line of your body when it enters - be consciously aware of getting your hands to enter the water on about the same plane as your shoulder.
2. Your hand entry is a bit weird - it's almost like they float around at the front of the stroke before you catch the water. This could be because of the entry crossover. Focus on entering the water like you are putting your arm and hand through a sweater sleeve, then move your hand down to catch the water right away. You want to feel the water on the underside of the forearms as you start the pull. You could try the fist drill to get this feel - swim with your hands balled into fists, which will force you to use your forearms as a pulling force.
3. You are very flat in the water. Imagine your head and spine are a long axis and your body rotates on this axis. Start rotating with the hips...as your hand pushes through the bottom of the stroke, rotate that hip towards the ceiling. Your shoulder should then follow, rotating towards the ceiling as well. This will also allow you to stretch the opposite arm forward (as you push it through the sweater sleeve). A good drill would be to take three strokes, and on the 3rd stroke leave your hand and arm outstretched at the top of the stroke and kick for 6 beats. As you are kicking you should be lying almost on your side - focus on the hip/shoulder rotation as you end your stroke and stretching the opposite arm out.
Good luck! Keep swimming!