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.
Former Member
The story till now:
3/1: 30.2
3/8: 28.0
3/15: 27.12
This week: Some days you bite the bear . . .
3/22: 27.62
. . . some days the bear bites you.
not sure why
If you read my blog you'll see me doing the same sprint
for months and months, not making much improvement
then suddenly BOOM
a breakthrough
when you come up against a wall
keep pushing
sometimes it takes time to improve
also stretch your feet and ankles to improve your toe point
when you do a test kick
get out of the pool and do a belly flop dive with a board then kick fiercely
attempt to splash more when you kick
be determined to break through and you'll find a way
make video put it up on youtube
we might be able to see a way to help you to improve
ande
my time has not come down the past two weeks, but I am getting through the sets a bit easier.
George,
maybe you are reinforcing bad kicking advice
Bad advice would be better replaced with very little advice
if you don't kick
you won't improve your kick
Ande
May be you are reinforcing bad kicking technique. Bad kicking would be better replaced with very little kicking.
Ande there are better ways to improve your kicking then thrashing water.
He must be using what is commonly called a runners kick. Rather then tell me my advice is wrong tell him the proper way to kick.
My first suggestion would be to relax the muscles in the lower leg. Let the foot relax so the foot will point in on the down beat and flex in naturally rather than a forced point.
Wrong kicking tecnique is not good no matter how far or hard you kick.
George,
maybe you are reinforcing bad kicking advice
Bad advice would be better replaced with very little advice
if you don't kick
you won't improve your kick
Ande
Ande suggestions like this are what these guys need.
George, this is something I just discovered this past year. I've also found that a slight inward rotation of the toes during flutter kick adds more drive to the kick. If I had a prior swimming background or a coach, I might have stumbled on this sooner.
To say I don't think the kick is important is wrong. To do it wrong is wrong and to practice wrong technique is wrong.
When I was learning to swim fly my fifty yards using the dolphin kick only, was done in 24 seconds. I guess not great for todays swimmers but that is what I did.
When tested in 1958 at the Commonwealth games for leg strength, they found I had the second strongest legs tested amongst all athletes.
What I am saying is technique is more important then letting the legs thrash up and down in time trials when you do not kick properly.
Here is a link go to freestyle down to great kick. www.goswim.tv/.../videos.html
Here is a link go to freestyle down to great kick. www.goswim.tv/.../videos.html
Thanks for the link, George. I don't want to see another scallop or shrimp or "bloomin'" -outback- steak for a long time................ I did watch a lot of these videos.:wine:
