For a 54-year old (that's me), which is more critical to limit the potential swim speed between flawed technique and unathletic strength?
Well, I'll actually try to improve both. However, many people around me mainly focus on swimming more laps and gym workout, while don't bother about improving their technique at all, despite their techniques being far from efficient.
Are you swimming with a team, or solo? ...
I find that the two will come together. A good efficient technique absolutely requires good strength. Maintaining it requires stamina. Be patient, it will come, but it will take a couple of years.
I swim solo, but mostly not alone in the pool. So I observe and chat with a few others. However, I rarely see them specifically work on technique. I personally feel that I shouldn't ingrain my flawed technique by repeating it over and over. But I also want to get fitter, so a little dilemma.
Your conclusion is interesting, and I agree.
When I was in my 40’s lifting weights helped me swim faster. Now that I’m in my 50’s I lift weights to rehabilitate injuries I had in my 40’s from all the trauma I caused neglecting technique.
Form is always first and foremost
An interesting insight from experience. Definitely something to be aware of.
I tend to agree with 67 above. Some people just don't care much about technique and just want to be moving in order to burn the calories and/or gain the health benefits of exercise. Or, in other words, they are swimming ("moving") for the health benefits and not necessarily to get faster, or more efficient.
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Dan
I perfectly understand your point, and those exercisers truly get abundance of health benefits.
However, most of the many that I mentioned were practicing for triathlon. They were "training", but with a mindset that all they need to do is to swim continuously without stoping for more and more miles. A few of them earn pretty good 1k PB training this way diligently, although I think that they can go faster if improve technique.
I'm 100% in the technique camp. OK, well, maybe 95%, but I have swum competitively for the last ~47 years and spent maybe a max of 5% of my training time focused on strength outside of the pool. If you're looking to swim more efficiently and effectively, focus on technique in the pool, training in the pool ... get that right as the #1 priority.
Now, there are other reasons to do "dryland" work for overall health and functional fitness, but don't sacrifice pool technique and swimming as your primary form of training if swimming fast is your primary goal.
Patrick Brundage
Admittedly, my inner desire is to go your route, as it's more fun :D
Agree, work on technique and conditioning will happen. Work on conditioning without working on technique and you just get bad habits. Good technique is just much faster than bad.
Make sense!
Technique first and always. You will be faster than those with poor technique who muscle their way through the water. Good technique will help you avoid injuries. By having good technique it will be easier to improve.
I really think technique. My strength is terrible, I'm fairly lazy at masters workouts (often get out at 2500 yds to get to work or because I'm beat) and yet I will always have a base speed that comes from technique. Not even great technique, just the basic muscle memory of decades of swimming. I'm sure strength would help me improve but it's easier to work on technique ;)
While an overwhelming number of coached workouts portray conditioning as the most important aspect of swimming, technique is by far the most important. In fact technique is number one, the mental aspect of swimming i.e., race strategy, race plan, visualization, etc is the second most important and conditioning is third in importance. This according to Dr. Brent Rushall, the guru of ULtra Short Race Pace Training.
