Hi,
I was looking at the stroke clinics. Sadly, the closest one is a bit away.
What are we looking for in clinics. I did get the indication from the coach that it can be positive in terms of stroke technique. It is also doing some video watching. The question I have is how much of this do you do? I learned as a middle aged adult to really swim (not just turtling free) so I can see some video watching but I already do that. The comments say all 4 strokes. It doesn't say whether or not there is a limit on the # of people attending. If you have 3 hours, not sure how much time I would get.
Can someone give me what happens at the clinics, since they are not near us?
Thanks,
Vic
I attended several clinics over the past year and several weeks of a masters class. We did not view any videos, but spent almost all of our time in the water except when practicing stretches on the deck. It helped me a lot. This was primarily for triathletes, so we didn't spend time on anything but freestyle. What it was mostly about was analyzing our stroke mechanics and learning drills to reinforce the technique in practice. I still have no idea how to do the butterfly and my *** stroke may be a bit odd, but I think I do a fair back stroke. I just can't turn on it, so my back stroke is still limited to 25 yards. I tried flip turns a few times but really sucked at it, however my open turns are acceptable for now. I have seen another local masters class advertised which does work on all 4 strokes and I may do that next.
Clinics will have a real person telling & maybe record your swim style to show you what to improve. Big difference in what you "think" you are doings to what others see.
Hi Vic, great question. Be sure to look for clinics that are small enough in size to be highly individualized - usually limited from between 6-12 participants per coach/instructor so that you can ask as many questions as you like and receive personalized feedback and instruction.
You'll also want to look for clinic coaches that are interested in getting to know your swimming background and your current goals and needs, in order to provide the best feedback. These coaches will also be interested in allowing you to learn more about them and their approach to swimming.
You should look for a clinic that will not only inform you as to what areas of your stroke need improvement, but also let you know *how* you can improve - both to increase efficiency and speed and to avoid any potential injuries due to poor stroke technique. You want to leave the clinic better informed and armed with a few tools that you can use in your own workouts. Most of the clinic time should be sent in the pool, and you should look for clinics that provide individual video analysis, instruction on drills that are fundamental in building a proper technical base, and an effective combination of drills with full stroke sets to provide you with an opportunity to directly apply what you learned. Coaches should be on hand to provide immediate instruction and feedback after the completion of each new learning activity.
I would hesitate to sign up for a clinic that offers all 4 strokes in one session, as there will be limited time and you may receive more generalized feedback as opposed to detailed work on each stroke. You can sign up for separate stroke clinics that focus on 1-2 strokes at a time.
Finally, the clinic should not stop on the pool deck. You will want to find a clinic that offers detailed follow up after the session, recapping what you worked on during the session, advice on how to incorporate the new learned drills into your own workouts, and a full analysis of your stroke, highlighting the points you need to work on to improve your technique and what you can do to successfully make these changes.
Here's more information and why you should get your stroke technique analyzed: www.swimspire.com/get-stroke-technique-analyzed/
