Does anyone else here NOT kick when they swim freestyle?
When I was 19, a coach told me that a lot of "real" freestylers don't kick, which was a surprise to me because every other coach I'd had would yell at me to kick during my events. I grew up thinking I was the odd one out, but maybe someone on here knows what I'm talking about...
Parents
Former Member
I go just about as slow when I kick as when I don't (freestyle). My legs are very buoyant and my kick is nonpropulsive. With a 6-beat kick my stroke turnover rate is way too slow. A kind of 4-beat with sometimes a little crossover works well. I feel like I get a little bit of body dolphining even if I am not kicking. Maybe it's just wiggling or fishtailing.
Used to be that I could predict my race times by what I would do on a pull set with a pull buoy and paddles.
I think there is a lot more emphasis on kicking now than when I was a kid in the 1970s. The really good swimmers now are probably going to be good kickers too unless they are distance freestyle specialists and even then I bet most of them are competent. The times are just too fast otherwise.
I go just about as slow when I kick as when I don't (freestyle). My legs are very buoyant and my kick is nonpropulsive. With a 6-beat kick my stroke turnover rate is way too slow. A kind of 4-beat with sometimes a little crossover works well. I feel like I get a little bit of body dolphining even if I am not kicking. Maybe it's just wiggling or fishtailing.
Used to be that I could predict my race times by what I would do on a pull set with a pull buoy and paddles.
I think there is a lot more emphasis on kicking now than when I was a kid in the 1970s. The really good swimmers now are probably going to be good kickers too unless they are distance freestyle specialists and even then I bet most of them are competent. The times are just too fast otherwise.
