I've noticed at lot of dicsussion in recent threads about TI principles,
As you can see from my location, I'm on the other side of the atlantic and TI has started to make an impact over here.
I've come across a lot of people in my local University pool who seem to have been mesmerised by the TI message and it is now common for me to see people swimming on their sides with one outstreached arm and a submerged head.
When the time comes to breath these guys have their heads so deep from pressing their bouy that they end up lifting it so high that they loose whatever alignment they had in the first place.
From talking to them, none of them seem to want to develop a proper kick and build up endurance so they can develop
good form.
I have decided to post a list of TI priciples and my own critism of these, feel free to add to the list or post a TI defence!
TI PRINCIPLE 1
Side to Side Rotation
to get into Low Drag Fish-like Position
Criticism
Rotation is good to get extentsion and
a good catch + power into the stroke,
Excessive rotation slows down the stroke.
TI PRINCIPLE 2
Swim DownHill
Press your Bouy
Criticism:
Holding head too deep creates drag
Makes breathing Difficult
TI PRINCIPLE 3
No Kicking
Criticism
Kicking essential to fast swimming
+ to maintain good form particularly
for male swimmers.
TI PRINCIPLE 4
Front Quadrant Swimming/
Distance per stroke,
Criticism
A reasonably high Stroke rate is necessay for
fast swimming,
Unless you have a very strong kick a glide
phase in your stroke will cause decelleration
TI PRINCIPLE 5
Drills will make you a better swimmer
Criticism
Drills are important, but there is no
substitute for good quality fast training.
Parents
Former Member
Originally posted by gull80
...I think many interpret TI's message (correctly?) as a focus on distance per stroke to the exclusion of all else, including fitness, which as Ion points out can only be achieved through hard work.
This is what I say, indeed.
Speed in the water =
= Distace/Time =
(Distance/Number of Strokes) x (Number of Strokes/Time) =
= (Stroke Length) x (Stroke Rate)
TI advises to focus on Stroke Length, and neglect Stroke Rate.
But Stroke Rate doesn't develop and atrophies without training.
In the excerpt I wrote above, Kizierowski is trained by Bottom to reach 210 beats per minute of heart rate, and hold 210 for close to a minute.
Kizierowski is trained to have his heart pump maximum oxygen into his swimming muscles, for one minute.
Kizierowski is also trained to drop from 210 beats per minute to 90 beats per minute, within one minute of rest.
Otherwise known as fast recovery.
If he was following TI's emphasis on Stroke Length and neglect of Stroke Rate, come competition time Kizierowski would show up with a heart rate ability atrophied, and with two minutes of rest necessary to descend from his maximum heart rate to 90 beats per minute.
Otherwise known as being in bad shape.
The US Swimming web site has a feature called 'The Perfect Race'.
Statistics are given in Stroke Length and Stroke Rate.
The idea is that everyone has a personal combo (Stroke Rate x Stroke Length), depending on their own physiology, and this combo is best suited for each individual in an event.
The combo would change for the same individual in a different event.
So, TI tells everybody to work mainly on Stroke Length.
In contrast, Maglischo's 'Swimming Fastest' emphasises working on Stroke Rate at 60% of training.
Olympians van den Hoogenband, Lezak, Karyzelburg and many more, they do that.
The better than TI approach is to work on the combo, Stroke Rate -with its physical conditioning- and Stroke Length -with its technical conditioning-, looking for the perfect combo in an event, looking for:
one's own Perfect Race
Originally posted by gull80
...I think many interpret TI's message (correctly?) as a focus on distance per stroke to the exclusion of all else, including fitness, which as Ion points out can only be achieved through hard work.
This is what I say, indeed.
Speed in the water =
= Distace/Time =
(Distance/Number of Strokes) x (Number of Strokes/Time) =
= (Stroke Length) x (Stroke Rate)
TI advises to focus on Stroke Length, and neglect Stroke Rate.
But Stroke Rate doesn't develop and atrophies without training.
In the excerpt I wrote above, Kizierowski is trained by Bottom to reach 210 beats per minute of heart rate, and hold 210 for close to a minute.
Kizierowski is trained to have his heart pump maximum oxygen into his swimming muscles, for one minute.
Kizierowski is also trained to drop from 210 beats per minute to 90 beats per minute, within one minute of rest.
Otherwise known as fast recovery.
If he was following TI's emphasis on Stroke Length and neglect of Stroke Rate, come competition time Kizierowski would show up with a heart rate ability atrophied, and with two minutes of rest necessary to descend from his maximum heart rate to 90 beats per minute.
Otherwise known as being in bad shape.
The US Swimming web site has a feature called 'The Perfect Race'.
Statistics are given in Stroke Length and Stroke Rate.
The idea is that everyone has a personal combo (Stroke Rate x Stroke Length), depending on their own physiology, and this combo is best suited for each individual in an event.
The combo would change for the same individual in a different event.
So, TI tells everybody to work mainly on Stroke Length.
In contrast, Maglischo's 'Swimming Fastest' emphasises working on Stroke Rate at 60% of training.
Olympians van den Hoogenband, Lezak, Karyzelburg and many more, they do that.
The better than TI approach is to work on the combo, Stroke Rate -with its physical conditioning- and Stroke Length -with its technical conditioning-, looking for the perfect combo in an event, looking for:
one's own Perfect Race
