I need to increase my strength to improve my success in fly. I have strong legs and a pretty strong core (though no six-pack), but my upper body is comparatively very weak. (I'm female and am not blessed with a "swimmer's physique".) Are there certain exercises that will help me with fly specifically, or should I just follow a general upper-body routine?
Parents
Former Member
SW
Do strength training if you like, but...
Technique rather than raw power makes fly much easier. The most useful skill for fly is the "short axis pulse." Basically, make your body undulate up and down like a roller coaster, so your shoulders are up when your hips are down, and vice versa. That way the undulation will get your shoulders out of the water on your recovery so you don't have to fight gravity, or at least that is the theory.
A much better description of this skill is an article by Emmett Hines--no one other than the previous poster. You can find it at his Club's web site, H2Ouston Swim, at www.h2oustonswims.org/.../home.html. It the Article "Slip Slidin' Away."
One tip: you want to use fins to learn how to do the SAP. Eventually, you can learn how to do it with just your bare feet, but initially you will feel like you are not moving at all. Fins help you learn the correct motion, then you can do it more naturally without them.
Matt
SW
Do strength training if you like, but...
Technique rather than raw power makes fly much easier. The most useful skill for fly is the "short axis pulse." Basically, make your body undulate up and down like a roller coaster, so your shoulders are up when your hips are down, and vice versa. That way the undulation will get your shoulders out of the water on your recovery so you don't have to fight gravity, or at least that is the theory.
A much better description of this skill is an article by Emmett Hines--no one other than the previous poster. You can find it at his Club's web site, H2Ouston Swim, at www.h2oustonswims.org/.../home.html. It the Article "Slip Slidin' Away."
One tip: you want to use fins to learn how to do the SAP. Eventually, you can learn how to do it with just your bare feet, but initially you will feel like you are not moving at all. Fins help you learn the correct motion, then you can do it more naturally without them.
Matt
