I am very much not a swimmer, but I am starting to love it. My goal is to compete in triathlons and being a runner this swimming thing is a lot harder to pick up than I thought it would be. After I do a 100 I'm so out of breath and exhausted that I think I must have some serious form issues. I'm working with a coach but only have 5 lessons and I've done 3 so far just to get me to this point (believe it or not this is actually much better than I started). I'm hoping to spread out my last two so that I can make some more progress and he can just refine my stroke. I'm definitely not very strong in my upper body so I'm sure there's a fitness aspect to it but for as tired as I am there has to be more to it than just that. Thanks in advance!
www.youtube.com/watch
That's not bad for being a relative beginner. I agree with the two comments above, however, that your hips are too low. Your center of balance is at your shoulders; you want it farther down so you don't have to expend so much energy just trying not to sink feet-first.
i.imgur.com/reHp6brl.jpg
See how your head is aligned and where you hips are relative to your shoulders? Ideally, you want your head, shoulders, and hips all on the same axis, parallel with the water (green line). Getting your head down more will raise your hips. You almost have to press your chin to your chest at first to get in the habit of keeping your head down. Once mastered, you no longer have to kick so hard just to stay afloat.
It also looks like you're dropping your elbows too early on the recovery.
I like where your elbow is here, early in the recovery:
i.imgur.com/81qzf5el.jpg
But a fraction of a second later, in the same stroke, you've dropped your elbow almost all the way to the water surface, even before you've brought it even with your shoulders. Your forearm is already parallel to the water.
i.imgur.com/5Fan3gll.jpg
This point in the rotation should be the apogee of your elbow on recovery.
Once you improve the body alignment, recovery mechanics is the next thing I'd suggest you work on. Here's a video that can help:
www.youtube.com/watch
That's not bad for being a relative beginner. I agree with the two comments above, however, that your hips are too low. Your center of balance is at your shoulders; you want it farther down so you don't have to expend so much energy just trying not to sink feet-first.
i.imgur.com/reHp6brl.jpg
See how your head is aligned and where you hips are relative to your shoulders? Ideally, you want your head, shoulders, and hips all on the same axis, parallel with the water (green line). Getting your head down more will raise your hips. You almost have to press your chin to your chest at first to get in the habit of keeping your head down. Once mastered, you no longer have to kick so hard just to stay afloat.
It also looks like you're dropping your elbows too early on the recovery.
I like where your elbow is here, early in the recovery:
i.imgur.com/81qzf5el.jpg
But a fraction of a second later, in the same stroke, you've dropped your elbow almost all the way to the water surface, even before you've brought it even with your shoulders. Your forearm is already parallel to the water.
i.imgur.com/5Fan3gll.jpg
This point in the rotation should be the apogee of your elbow on recovery.
Once you improve the body alignment, recovery mechanics is the next thing I'd suggest you work on. Here's a video that can help:
www.youtube.com/watch
