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 meet was a lot of fun. dropped time in all events. after a couple of years at this my aerobic base is finally getting pretty decent (at least for me). now i'm ready to work more on sprinting for a while.
i do stretch but not as intensly as what you described. have you been able to measure a change in your toe point angle since you started this?
glad the snorkle is working out for you. aside from goggles it's my favorite piece of equipment.
i assume you are kidding but regardless i think 102.10.10 would cover it:
"No swimmer is permitted to wear or use any device or substance to help his/her speed, pace
or buoyancy during a race. Goggles may be worn, and rubdown oil applied if not considered
excessive by the Referee."
for me though it would be slower anyway because i get less distance off the wall.
How was your race last week?
Another thing that I found helpful for kicking is stretching the tendons on top of the foot and shin. I take a 25lb plate that has two holes in it and velcro strap (with a velcro weight belt) my feet to it so the soles are on the face of the plate. Then I lay on a bench with the feet hanging off and point my toes down and up. You get better stretch when contracting muscles.
I've been using a snorkel without a board too, it's much easier on the neck and shoulders. My best thus far is 25M 21:13.
I think "toys" have a place in the pool. However, and I think we've had this discussion before, if toys become a crutch then that's not helping to improve your swimming.
I use a snorkel sometimes because of a messed up neck. And it's actually corrected my stroke a bit. I use large paddles for pull sets because I have puny hands and it's fun to swim fast with big hands, plus they make me stronger. And I only use fins when doing "garbage yards", which isn't too often and found to occur mostly in Feb and March!
Everybody has what works for them. I guess the question becomes are your toys supplements to your workout, or a crutch to cover up something you should work on?
I need to start timing 50's 75's, and 100's for kicking too.
Just wondered are snorkels allowed in competition??Is this a rhetorical question, or did you honestly wonder if you can use snorkels at meets?
All of my training is interval swimming all of my warm ups are over the distance I would swim in a race. Warmups are usually done as pyramids mixing strokes, never breaststroke with a kick, I do arms only breaststroke, sculling and kicking, flutter or dolphin kick. I do Lots of 25s, 50s, and 75s interval swimming varied rests from 5 seconds to 1 or 2 minutes dependent on how fast I do my swims. I do over distance non stop swims of 400s but do not consider this training I think of it as physical base conditioning. I also do my situps arching , leg lifts, hips on the floor push ups. I walk 5 miles a day and ride the bicycle about 5 miles a day. I do not do weights.
My race events would be 50 or 100 Fly, 50 or 100 Free if I were to compete.
I do not race I have too many friends who have passed on in the pool working too hard.
George,
do you believe in interval training?
All of my training is interval swimming
so you obviously agree that not all training must be done in race conditions at race distance and race speed. maybe there can be room for some small percentage of training to be done using equipment.
