Pull buoys (training aid or swim crutch)

Val, Just as anything in life, moderation is the key. We use pull buoys with a variety of sets, with and without paddles. Very rarely will we use a pull buoy for more than 1/3 of the workout distance (injuries or pulling designed workouts would be the exception). For those people who always use pull buoys - they are just learning how to swim fast with a buoy (last time I checked pulling events are not recognized in swimming competitions, unless you count open water swims with a wet suit).

I see them overwhelmingly used as a crutch.

The question is answered more in conduct not actual use. If you find yourself or watch others reaching for the pull bouy when the intervals descend or as they say the going gets tough then you can rest assured that you or he is using them as a crutch. If this is true you really need to evaluate what exactly you should be getting from the pull bouy. The shoulder thing, I don't buy. If using them "overloads' your shoulders how come you reach for the pull bouy during hard sets or go faster while using it? (Not YOU specifically of course) Seems that if you want to make the shoulders work harder you'd use somethiign that makes your legs sink, not float. I can see some limited use for kinesthetic sense of what it feels like to be balanced. Unfortunately the bouy doesn't do anything to help you figure out how to swim that way. For real beginners, I use it as a signal of when they are using a big scissor kick during freestyle. I like to call it skeedaddle legs. Otherwise I don't use them with the swimmers I coach.

Hi Kevin, In my case I swim significantly faster (at all distances) without a pull bouy - that is, my legs dragging behind me, even if encouraged to float with a bouy, are more drag than they are when they can kick. So, when I use paddles, using a bouy does stress my shoulders more. And without kicking my 'cardiovascular' effort can concentrate on my shoulders/arms. Is there something wrong with that analysis?

Thanks guys for the feedback. And yes Kevin it definitely does make sense that if pulling were difficult, why on earth would anyone grasp for a bouy if the workout is starting to wear them down. Personally I can still swim a five hundred faster with a buoy than without. However in due time, with better conditioning this will change. Being a sprinter I can do hundred yard repeats all day long. Five hundreds...forget about it! But let me share the following about working on the pull buoy addiction: CONS.... 1. Pulling will reinforce a wimpy kick off the turns. Normally one doesn't kick when they're pulling.. (not supposed to anyway). 2. If the kick is restricted, then getting good leverage for body rotation by means of leg action is limited. Body roll and force generated from the hips and torso are supposed to be driving the swimmer, not the arms. 3. Pulling is easier, (my opinion) because the big muscles (legs) are given a break and not sucking up all the oxygen. PROS..... 1. By not using a buoy one is essentially forced to learn how to swim with proper body positioning. It's impossible to cheat the effects of gravity without the flotation devise. Kind of like taking the training wheels off. 2. Ultimately better conditioning will be the result of getting the pull buoy monkey off your back. Now the legs have to come into action. Still some coaches aren't inclined to hide them when they may actually hinder improvement in overall technique. As you've mentioned they definitely fit into a typical workout at some point, just not all the time. That is...unless pull buoy races become officially recognized by the USMS! Thanks. Val

Man, I sound like a broken record........but......"different strokes for different folks" works here too. First, what is the training for ? An Iron-man or triathlete does not need to work the legs - they will get plenty on the next two events. So why not use a buoy to help concentrate on the arms ? Second, what stroke are we talking about here ? Arms - only fly is not a lot of fun and tends to destroy the rhythm of the stroke. Third, adding the new dimension of paddles changes everything. In twelve years of age - group coaching and 30 = years of competing and training with others, I never saw injury produced that could be definitely traced back to fin or buoy use. Sure did see a lot of problems develop from the use of paddles..... These are opinions, of course (although some of our posters declare their opinions to be "facts")and your individual circumstance has to be factored in. A good coach would work with you to ascertain your needs, your strengths and weaknesses,plus other factors. Someone earlier said it best - MODERATION ! Bert

Bert, I am confining my discussion of the pull bouy to freestyle. I think the important question to ask is if using the pull bouy is in fact MORE demanding on your shoulders. So does Mr. Ironman actually work his shoulders harder by using the bouy. Phil has answered YES to the question and is using the pull bouy accordingly. However our lanemates who are reaching for the bouy during the hard sets are actually answering in the negative and should really question whether the pull bouy makes the shoulders work harder. It's an individual thing and is very likely depndent on where our head tends to ride when we swim. If we went to the local masters workout and watched, we could probably pick out who wants to use the bouy and who doesn't. (Never mind us, we're INTERNET corerespondents.) Now, to the root problem. Is working our shoulders even worth doing? That will be another thread I guess. Kevin "Mr. Ironman" Joubert

I go much slower with a buoy (and in my usual stroke I don't kick much), so even during pulling sets I usually forego the buoy. I've noticed others who seem to go much faster with a buoy and use it as a 'crutch'. My question is why worry about what others do? I'm just happy seeing all these people working out and getting the best exercise around.

My experience with pull buoys is similar to several of the posters, but not all. I don't swim faster with the buoys, but that is mostly because I don't kick when I pull--sounds silly, but many swimmers use pull buoys and keep kicking--which does mean that they are "swimming" faster and not really focussing on any single part of their stroke, as is the ostensible purpose of using the pull buoy. I also believe that the use of a pull buoy does simulate (for me) my body position in salt water swimming, so I tend to pull more in the summer when I am training for longer ocean swims. In the ocean, the greater buoyancy means that I don't use my kick for body position. I am also swimming distances from 1000 meters to 6 miles, which means that I want to save my legs if I can for a closing sprint or dolphining, or running. I haven't done any formal or video study of my body position, but it feels similar, and I find the pulling emphasis works for me. Based on the relative results of other swimmers in workout and the ocean with and without pull buoys, I think other swimmers find that their ocean swimming body position is similar to that found with the use of a buoy. I do think that many swimmers use pull buoys to try to swim faster, to make intervals that they cannot make(that day) without assistance, and to "cheat." On the other hand, who really cares.