Help with sprinting strategy

Just two tips. I agree with the "my best 50s have come after a nice cup of espresso" Any coffee works for me, helps my asthma and gets my heart pumping. Be real warmed up, you need controled explosions from your muscles, think Mike Tison dripping sweat before the first round. I think of Steve Lundquist and Gary Hall Jr. And last, start with your eyes closed and ears tuned in to the starter. OK that's three. But Armin Harry won the 100 meter sprint and Steve Lundquist had the best start in history, both with their eyes closed.

I was practicing starts at the end of work-out and was informed by a coach that he thought they were getting worse. I changed to practicing them after warm-up and they started getting better.

This week was the second week that myself and two of my team mates, both sprinters, held a dedicated sprint workout. We grabbed one lane and started with some good warm up then a continuous relay till each of us had gone 4x50 to get the heart pumping and practice our starts. Then alittle recovery swim. We finished up with 3 from the block swims of our choice, for time. Each week we are getting progressively faster (beating best times we had just set the previous week) and feel this is really helping us to know how to sprint. Practice makes perfect! When you take 2.5 seconds off a 100 swim that has been around the same time for the last 3 years I would say that was a successful effort. Can't wait to see what we can do next week. :joker:

One thing that has not been mentioned is start reaction time. You don’t want to be thinking about race strategy at the start – you can go to sleep on the starting block if there is too much thinking going on. The difference in reaction times (whatever that is what they measure and report), even at the international levels, varies quite a lot – 0.20 lost here to the rest of the field can be race over. You should only be listening for the gun/horn on the blocks, that’s all. When it goes, you gotta go - immediately. Everything else in a 50 should be hardwired after that. John is right, your best times will be when you make no mistakes (and don’t get the gutter lane) The 100 is a whole other game and requires a strategy no matter how good you are. Ian.

The most important propulsive component of sprinting is the ability to acquire an effective Early Vertical Forearm position. It differentiates every level of swimmer from beginner to Olympian. It's not easy but try holding your arm over your head in a "soft -C" position. To acquire this position you should hold your arms over your head then lower the hand and forearm until it is parallel to the ground. the elbow will be even with the hand. If you don't know what I'm talking about, go to a couple websites that show Ian Thorpe and other great swimmer's super EVF position. I'm not saying that streamlining and kick isn't important, but without a great EVF, you're not going to get really fast. Good luck! Tom at tomtopo@netzero.com if you have more questions.

Don't give your swimmers a long list of crap to think about when they race Pal of mine training with my boss was racing pretty much like that. A 100m specialist. 51.6 (sc) age 15. He used to race the 100 with no goggles.. short course.

But Armin Harry won the 100 meter sprint and Steve Lundquist had the best start in history, both with their eyes closed. Funny because I've been teaching the opposite for years. Start at the flash not at the sound. Cause you may see the flash before you can ear the sound. But franckly Breastroker, I wouldn't be comfortable defending this position nowdays. So let me just read and learn.

;) Sprinting is one of my favorite topics. Most coaches believe that without an accomplished Early Vertical Forearm position, all the kicking, streamlining, and other technical nuances (important as they maybe) are window dressings compared to this vital skill. The analogy of a surfer on a board, who paddles out to a wave, is forces to use a vertical forearm position as their forearms hang over the edge of their surfboard. This is not a simplification but a very good description of the forearm position swimmer's need to effectively propel themselves through the water. A great article called "The Common Threads of Successful Swimming Techniques", by Marshall Adams, talks about the "sweet spot" created by core shoulder adductors. This sweet spot is the optimum leveraging of water caused when the forearm is put in an effective EVF position. It's never too early or too late, and there isn't a person too elite or too novice, that can't improve speed when they improve this front-quadrant swimming skill. As each month progresses, more and more information will be shed on how to improve your speed by improving your EVF. Good luck

Solar, Tell me how you can see the flash outdoors, you would have to have your head turned in a very uncomfortable position. Some have said they have seen the flash off the water indoors, but again most cannot see it. The flash is for the timers, not for the swimmers. With the eyes closed the ears become more sensitive. And by listening to the starter carefully you can get his rythm and be intune with the starting gun or beep. When running two pools at the same time, the starter beep becomes critical.

Breaststroker I told everyone in Ft Lauderdale, "I watch the starter he turns and looks at the gun just before he pulls the trigger, when the starter turns his head I go".