Fqs

Here are the basics: When pulling, your muscles, in an indirect way, but through major muscle groups, are pulling on the hips, causing a rotation of the hips. That is, if pulling with the right arm, the hips will rotate counterclockwise, when looking at a swimmer from the rear, and opposite when pulling with the left arm. A good pull will cause more force on the hips, and more rotation. This rotation caused by the strong pull is necessary - the muscles need something to pull against to operate (there are always two ends to a muscle, one end pulls toward the center, the other end pulls in the opposite direction toward the center.) It is possible to swim without rotation, but then you would not be using significant muscle groups that cross from one side of the body to the other (or rather, far from the spine to the spine,) or using muscles to prevent rotation, rather than pulling. The more the hips are pre-rotated the more resistance they will provide to a pull, and the stronger and longer-in-time the pull can occur (before the hips are rotated as far as they can go). So if a pull will naturally cause a counter clockwise rotation, the body should be oriented clockwise. Thus the back and forth rotation while swimming a good stroke. It is a matter of perception, I guess, but I like to think of it as setting up for a strong pull, rather than starting a rotation from the hips, when the pull will cause the rotation anyway. It is impossible to rotate the hips without pulling or pushing on something off of the body's axis, so the idea of starting a rotation from the hips or core is not plausible. Another way to get a strong pull is to have the hips *fixed* in a horizontal plane (or some other plane) by some outside force. Then the pull of the arms would pull against this force, rather than the free to rotate hips, and the net effect is more force. Another way to partially fix the hips is to use the kick as a stabilizer of the hips. When sprinting the hips rotate less than when not sprinting because a rapid six beat kick reduces rotation. A two beat kick serves a somewhat different purpose, aiding rotation to the opposite side before the pull on the other side starts. I do not like the loose terminology used in describing strokes, which emphasis the 'feel' more than what is really being done. A sound basis in Newton's laws is better than the verbal mush provided by much of the swimming community.

Here are the basics: When pulling, your muscles, in an indirect way, but through major muscle groups, are pulling on the hips, causing a rotation of the hips. That is, if pulling with the right arm, the hips will rotate counterclockwise, when looking at a swimmer from the rear, and opposite when pulling with the left arm. A good pull will cause more force on the hips, and more rotation. This rotation caused by the strong pull is necessary - the muscles need something to pull against to operate (there are always two ends to a muscle, one end pulls toward the center, the other end pulls in the opposite direction toward the center.) It is possible to swim without rotation, but then you would not be using significant muscle groups that cross from one side of the body to the other (or rather, far from the spine to the spine,) or using muscles to prevent rotation, rather than pulling. The more the hips are pre-rotated the more resistance they will provide to a pull, and the stronger and longer-in-time the pull can occur (before the hips are rotated as far as they can go). So if a pull will naturally cause a counter clockwise rotation, the body should be oriented clockwise. Thus the back and forth rotation while swimming a good stroke. It is a matter of perception, I guess, but I like to think of it as setting up for a strong pull, rather than starting a rotation from the hips, when the pull will cause the rotation anyway. It is impossible to rotate the hips without pulling or pushing on something off of the body's axis, so the idea of starting a rotation from the hips or core is not plausible. Another way to get a strong pull is to have the hips *fixed* in a horizontal plane (or some other plane) by some outside force. Then the pull of the arms would pull against this force, rather than the free to rotate hips, and the net effect is more force. Another way to partially fix the hips is to use the kick as a stabilizer of the hips. When sprinting the hips rotate less than when not sprinting because a rapid six beat kick reduces rotation. A two beat kick serves a somewhat different purpose, aiding rotation to the opposite side before the pull on the other side starts. I do not like the loose terminology used in describing strokes, which emphasis the 'feel' more than what is really being done. A sound basis in Newton's laws is better than the verbal mush provided by much of the swimming community.