Hey folk,
I've heard different viewpoints about my freestyle, and I wonder if I could hear from you on these various opinions:
1. Previous masters' coach: focus on high elbows, fingertips in first. (I hope I'm interpreting him right.)
2. Same coach: kick from hips, not knees (hard one... my kickboard sets are not pretty!)...
3. Swim instructor who happened to observe me one day: too much splash on kick (maybe related to #2)
4. Guy who swims pretty fast and efficiently in nearby lane: "You have a strong kick, but you don't reach far enough. Your hand goes into the water too soon." Tried more of a reach, and it did seem to help my time a little... read: VERY slow to merely "very slow" (sans caps). ;)
5. Current masters' coach: "If you've been swimming a certain way for a while, it actually could slow you down to mess with your stroke too much."
And... can a person who is still in pursuit of a sub two minute 100 have any hope of becoming not "very slow" but merely "slow" or even "halfway approaching fast"? I'm 55 and a regular runner as well as swimmer, so reasonably fit (resting heart rate of 31 measured a couple of days ago).
Thanks for your comments!
Parents
Former Member
Hi,
I belive there is some truth in most of the statement.
To keep the elbow high usually also makes it easier to rotate your body, which is good. But some manage to keep the elbow high, without rotating?!
If you focus on kicking, the kick should start from the hip. But for me I just try to keep a steady kick. The only time I really push it is in the 50 or 100free. In most other distances there are other things to focus on first. And using a hard kick consumes a lot of energy and gives only a little extra speed. One thing that I often see is that many swimmers do not manage to keep the ankle streched and relaxed. With your foot pointing almost 45 degrees, it is hard to get something from the kick.
If it splashes a lot that means that you kick "in the air" and should lower it a bit, probably you bend to much in the knees. I agree with most of the others - there is a difference between the kickbord kick and the kick while swimming. I had team mates in the 80's that could not kick at all (kick board), but during "regular" swimming it worked well.
To change things takes time. But if you do not change things, how will you become better? Thats what swimming is all about - trying to improve. And when you change things things might feel a bit strange in the beginning.
Good Luck!
Jan
Hi,
I belive there is some truth in most of the statement.
To keep the elbow high usually also makes it easier to rotate your body, which is good. But some manage to keep the elbow high, without rotating?!
If you focus on kicking, the kick should start from the hip. But for me I just try to keep a steady kick. The only time I really push it is in the 50 or 100free. In most other distances there are other things to focus on first. And using a hard kick consumes a lot of energy and gives only a little extra speed. One thing that I often see is that many swimmers do not manage to keep the ankle streched and relaxed. With your foot pointing almost 45 degrees, it is hard to get something from the kick.
If it splashes a lot that means that you kick "in the air" and should lower it a bit, probably you bend to much in the knees. I agree with most of the others - there is a difference between the kickbord kick and the kick while swimming. I had team mates in the 80's that could not kick at all (kick board), but during "regular" swimming it worked well.
To change things takes time. But if you do not change things, how will you become better? Thats what swimming is all about - trying to improve. And when you change things things might feel a bit strange in the beginning.
Good Luck!
Jan
