I am slow, and when I mean slow, I mean slow. I can do a 26 sec 50 with fins, but without I come in just under 1:20! I think a big part of it is just taking the fins off and doing a lot of kick sets to learn to feel the water better with my feet. I have a good breaststroke kick so I don't think my problem is an overly weak pair of legs, although they could be in better shape. Also, myankles are fairly flexible as I can point my toes and make my feet bend backwards past an even position with my shins. However, I do think that I need to loosen up my ankles when I kick. I feel like I get more out of my kick for those brief moments when I allow my ankles to snap back and forth with my kick. I think I actually need to relax more to kick faster as weird as that sounds.
I suppose the answer to my question is that I simply need to take of the fins and do kick set after kick set until I learn to feel the water better with my feet and become more efficient.
Blue Horn - tell us about your progress !
Right now my barefoot flutter kick for a 25y full blast on a board is about a minute and I'm wrecked at the end. That includes a long streamlined glide off the wall pushoff until I slow to "kicking speed". Without the board, its worse as breathing stops all forward progress. My ankle flexibility is good and I can hyperextend my knees 10 degrees. I have relatively big feet, women's size 11W, and relatively long legs for my height.
I have been trying to figure out the kick for 15 years. That includes some years when I was in good condition as well as now. I am guessing that part of "good kicking" is just the geometry of the feet and legs. I have big lower legs and ankles and a high arched foot, which I theorize is not as good as thin lowerlegs and ankles with a flatter foot top. Even though my feet are large, when I point my toes it doesn't really extend the leg that much. Any merit to the theory ?
Blue Horn - tell us about your progress !
Right now my barefoot flutter kick for a 25y full blast on a board is about a minute and I'm wrecked at the end. That includes a long streamlined glide off the wall pushoff until I slow to "kicking speed". Without the board, its worse as breathing stops all forward progress. My ankle flexibility is good and I can hyperextend my knees 10 degrees. I have relatively big feet, women's size 11W, and relatively long legs for my height.
I have been trying to figure out the kick for 15 years. That includes some years when I was in good condition as well as now. I am guessing that part of "good kicking" is just the geometry of the feet and legs. I have big lower legs and ankles and a high arched foot, which I theorize is not as good as thin lowerlegs and ankles with a flatter foot top. Even though my feet are large, when I point my toes it doesn't really extend the leg that much. Any merit to the theory ?
