Video Analysis- Backstroke

A quick observation...which goes along with the previous comment from Paul. The angle of the hand wants to send every ounce of water towards your feet - and ultimately towards the black turn marker at the far end of the pool. Your hand appears to be finishing with a slight orientation towards the pool bottom - and it seems that the umph isn't quite there as your arm has fully extended at the completion of the pull. The finish of the stroke wants to be about six to eight inches away from your hip pocket. Kind of as if you are stuffing money into your jeans. As you rotate towards the entry phase of your stroke, the exit hand should be ready to slice right out of there. (You can see this in the attached screen capture where your hand is finishing slightly buried, and the angle may be possibly directing of water towards towards the bottom rather than your feet.) Aside from the finish, the catch phase is as equally important. Gather water as soon as the hand enters. Don't let your hands and arms just ease through the stroke. Imagine latching onto a rope, and pulling yourself down the lanes. Other than that, stroke mechanics look generally good with a nice level and horizontal body posture - which is great for minimal drag. Keep at it! I can see it in the screenshot... So the hand should generally follow the line of the body? Yes my arm is still down there when I start rotating to the other side. Isn’t a little tricky to avoid pushing yourself sideways with a more shallow pull? I was experiencing some zigzagging with shallow pulls. Or maybe my hand was too close to my body where it should be approximately 6-8 inches away from the body as it pulls down the side? Thanks!!

A quick observation...which goes along with the previous comment from Paul. The angle of the hand wants to send every ounce of water towards your feet - and ultimately towards the black turn marker at the far end of the pool. Your hand appears to be finishing with a slight orientation towards the pool bottom - and it seems that the umph isn't quite there as your arm has fully extended at the completion of the pull. The finish of the stroke wants to be about six to eight inches away from your hip pocket. Kind of as if you are stuffing money into your jeans. As you rotate towards the entry phase of your stroke, the exit hand should be ready to slice right out of there. (You can see this in the attached screen capture where your hand is finishing slightly buried, and the angle may be possibly directing of water towards towards the bottom rather than your feet.) Aside from the finish, the catch phase is as equally important. Gather water as soon as the hand enters. Don't let your hands and arms just ease through the stroke. Imagine latching onto a rope, and pulling yourself down the lanes. Other than that, stroke mechanics look generally good with a nice level and horizontal body posture - which is great for minimal drag. Keep at it! I can see it in the screenshot... So the hand should generally follow the line of the body? Yes my arm is still down there when I start rotating to the other side. Isn’t a little tricky to avoid pushing yourself sideways with a more shallow pull? I was experiencing some zigzagging with shallow pulls. Or maybe my hand was too close to my body where it should be approximately 6-8 inches away from the body as it pulls down the side? Thanks!!