So, I did a 100 IM for time today and had one of the other guys video it.
www.instagram.com/.../
Big thing I noticed is that my stroke rate is... glacial. Most likely this is due to having 20 more pounds of bodyweight than when I was swimming in college. Has anybody noticed something similar, and have any advice on how to rev it up a bit that might be more insightful than the obvious "just move your arms faster?" :banana:
What horrific hour of the morning was this? Sometimes when I get swimmers for time at an early AM practice the stroke rate just looks awful (worse than your video). This can vary from day to day depending on how well they slept, what they've been doing the last couple days, or just how many nachos they ate the night before. As their coach, I don't fret about these anomalies and know that's not how they normally look and they are just not awake enough on that particular day.
I would suggest paying attention to your stroke rate in practice and when you try to sprint so you have something to benchmark yourself against.
However, I have some, non "just move faster" tips that may smooth out some stroke delays.
I would pay closer attention to the front end of your stroke in both the fly and the ***.
In Fly, your hands are entering the water at an angle that they face the sides of the pool. You risk pinching your shoulders this way and you lose water at the front of the stroke. If you enter with your palm facing down, not out, you will be able to grab more water, quicker, and it should pick up the stroke rate.
In breaststroke, you are gliding in a superman position rather than a streamline or near streamline position. This is putting the brakes on one of the fastest parts of the stroke. It looks like you do one or two strokes well, but every stroke closer to the wall it gets worse. This makes it harder to speed back up and slows down the whole stroke rate.
In backstroke, it's really hard to see the hand entry but it looks like you might be smacking the water with the back of your hand rather than set up to sweep entering pinkie first. You might be doing this right because I can't really see your hand, so I'm basing this off the angle of your armpit facing straight up.
So, yes, I think it may be possible to clean up your strokes a bit to improve your turnover without losing 20 pounds or just trying to spin your arms faster.
Hope this helps!
What horrific hour of the morning was this? Sometimes when I get swimmers for time at an early AM practice the stroke rate just looks awful (worse than your video). This can vary from day to day depending on how well they slept, what they've been doing the last couple days, or just how many nachos they ate the night before. As their coach, I don't fret about these anomalies and know that's not how they normally look and they are just not awake enough on that particular day.
I would suggest paying attention to your stroke rate in practice and when you try to sprint so you have something to benchmark yourself against.
However, I have some, non "just move faster" tips that may smooth out some stroke delays.
I would pay closer attention to the front end of your stroke in both the fly and the ***.
In Fly, your hands are entering the water at an angle that they face the sides of the pool. You risk pinching your shoulders this way and you lose water at the front of the stroke. If you enter with your palm facing down, not out, you will be able to grab more water, quicker, and it should pick up the stroke rate.
In breaststroke, you are gliding in a superman position rather than a streamline or near streamline position. This is putting the brakes on one of the fastest parts of the stroke. It looks like you do one or two strokes well, but every stroke closer to the wall it gets worse. This makes it harder to speed back up and slows down the whole stroke rate.
In backstroke, it's really hard to see the hand entry but it looks like you might be smacking the water with the back of your hand rather than set up to sweep entering pinkie first. You might be doing this right because I can't really see your hand, so I'm basing this off the angle of your armpit facing straight up.
So, yes, I think it may be possible to clean up your strokes a bit to improve your turnover without losing 20 pounds or just trying to spin your arms faster.
Hope this helps!
