OK this sounds like a stupid question but someone at the pool told me that my hand needs to be open with my fingers apart when I swim. i normally cup it which is what I thought was the best way. Today I tried my fingers together and my thumb out a little bit from the hand.
The cupped hand seemed best but what do the experts say?
Originally posted by ced357
Next time you are in a car, open your window (while driving, lol) stick you hand out with a cuped shape, as some would use during swimming. Then spread your fingers apart just a little, you will notice that you catch a great deal more air and your hand will be knocked back. This is a experiment I make my swimmers try. I feel the fingers open method works very well. Many big name swimmers use this method. Keep an eye out at the games.
I'm going to argue this might be exactly the behavior you DON'T want. Your hand is getting knocked back due to the increase in drag. It seems to me you want to minimize drag on the entry part of the stroke--you want your hand to slice through the water. Now, during the propulsive phase (the 'catch' I guess) maybe the technique you're suggesting is good because you want to maximize the surface area with which you're pushing against the water. I think it's a delicate balance, though. You are definitely increasing drag, but you really have to. The tricky thing is to produce as much force against the water as possible without increasing drag too much. It ain't easy!-
Originally posted by ced357
Next time you are in a car, open your window (while driving, lol) stick you hand out with a cuped shape, as some would use during swimming. Then spread your fingers apart just a little, you will notice that you catch a great deal more air and your hand will be knocked back. This is a experiment I make my swimmers try. I feel the fingers open method works very well. Many big name swimmers use this method. Keep an eye out at the games.
I'm going to argue this might be exactly the behavior you DON'T want. Your hand is getting knocked back due to the increase in drag. It seems to me you want to minimize drag on the entry part of the stroke--you want your hand to slice through the water. Now, during the propulsive phase (the 'catch' I guess) maybe the technique you're suggesting is good because you want to maximize the surface area with which you're pushing against the water. I think it's a delicate balance, though. You are definitely increasing drag, but you really have to. The tricky thing is to produce as much force against the water as possible without increasing drag too much. It ain't easy!-
