Hi all,
I've been following the USMS forums for a while now and just registered. I swam USMS in grad school as a 24 year old and now swim masters (age group B!) in South America. I love swimming down here but most coaches are about 10 years behind in technique/innovation, so I basically rely on friends who are coaches in the US and swim sites to stay up to date.
It's pretty obvious that elite mid and long-distance swimmers breathe every cycle now, but have any of you forced yourselves to break a 3-5 habit and start to breathe every 2? I was taught to ALWAYS breathe every 3-5 and after 20-some years of that, I'm wondering if it's worth it in a race (specifically 200, 400/500). FWIW, I have major rotator cuff problems (who doesn't?!) with my right shoulder and seem to extend less with my right side than my left and am concerned breathing every cycle in practice would make that worse.
There was a common drill 20 yr ago that still pops up with some coaches of doing sets with some variation of 3/5/7 breathing.I think under some(rare) circumstances it may be useful for some swimmers.Unfortunately some coaches used it more for a test of toughness.Some swimmers then began to think that this was a good way to swim distance.I think experience in this mode of training leads to some of the vitriol against any technique that artificially restricts breathing in a race(over 50.)
There was a common drill 20 yr ago that still pops up with some coaches of doing sets with some variation of 3/5/7 breathing.I think under some(rare) circumstances it may be useful for some swimmers.Unfortunately some coaches used it more for a test of toughness.Some swimmers then began to think that this was a good way to swim distance.I think experience in this mode of training leads to some of the vitriol against any technique that artificially restricts breathing in a race(over 50.)
