I've been swimming all my life, but never proper strokes. Recently I've begun learning the correct strokes but I'm having trouble with my crawl stroke. I watch other swimmers go back and forth flip turning as they come to end. I can't do more than 50 yards before I'm completely out of breath. I know I'm in better shape than that because I can swim breaststroke back and forth just fine, so I assume I'm not breathing correctly. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can breathe better and how to have enough air after the flip turn to continue?
Also, I feel like I don't go anywhere when I kick unless I have fins (I have the blue zoomers). Any suggestions for improving the crawl kick? I kick across the pool, but I go v e r y slow.
Feeling a little discouraged... :(
Thanks for any advice you guys have got!
Lisa
Parents
Former Member
Lisa:
Cant really add any more suggestions to your breathing problems, but with regards to your kick. Well, if you are new to swimming you will need to increase your flexibilty and (like a logrithmic curve), once your flexibilty increases, swimming becomes easier to you can do more and more which makes you fitter and so and so on.
But more specifically, the chances are that at the moment you have stiff ankles which need loosening up. You say you have zoomers already but, like you I was in this position a few years back and couldn't kick at all. I just takes perceverance and lengths and lengths of just kick.
But hopefully you will see the benefits. Just try not to compare yourself to the guy next door too much - certainly set yourself targets but remember it takes a lot of quality training to be good at any sport (despite those of us at this site who think they can set world records when they start out from the age of 21 (ha ha))
Lisa:
Cant really add any more suggestions to your breathing problems, but with regards to your kick. Well, if you are new to swimming you will need to increase your flexibilty and (like a logrithmic curve), once your flexibilty increases, swimming becomes easier to you can do more and more which makes you fitter and so and so on.
But more specifically, the chances are that at the moment you have stiff ankles which need loosening up. You say you have zoomers already but, like you I was in this position a few years back and couldn't kick at all. I just takes perceverance and lengths and lengths of just kick.
But hopefully you will see the benefits. Just try not to compare yourself to the guy next door too much - certainly set yourself targets but remember it takes a lot of quality training to be good at any sport (despite those of us at this site who think they can set world records when they start out from the age of 21 (ha ha))
