My other instructor has helped me figure out a bunch of things.
First, she solved my kicking problem for good: I was still kicking from the knees mostly, even though I can do a proper kick on dry land. All the advice I got here was great, but it turns out that no matter what I can reproduce on dry-land, I always go back to my old habits in the water.
I realized it when I put my legs in the water and WATCHED what I was doing: the water made me FEEL like I was moving my whole leg, but really just the lower half was doing anything. Once I started doing it RIGHT, I felt new muscles engaging everywhere.
The other major thing she's done for me is taught me the breaststroke (although I don't have the breathing down very well) and elementary backstroke.
Compared to my regular backstroke, I can just zip across the pool with the elementary backstroke. It's quite fun. I have no idea why this isn't the first thing everyone learns in the pool, as it took me just 15 minutes to get it right (more or less) and I was zipping around in no time.
She also fixed my push-offs and glides. I would push off the wall on my back and then glide, but my knees would be bent. I figured out that I was subconsciously trying to get my legs up to the surface, but the physical result was sinking legs and a knee bend. Once I just learned to straighten them out, they naturally started to come up to the top thanks to the velocity from the glide.
It IS a bit frustrating to see some folks in the group lessons (before my private) picking up freestyle in like an hour. I've struggled with breathing for freestyle under my old instructor for WEEKS. The new one hasn't tried to teach it to me yet, but I'm hoping when she does, it'll become crystal clear... that's the effect she's had elsewhere.
I'm getting really tired of drinking the pool.
I tried the very first TI float drill... it's really frustrating because my legs sink, so I have to start sculling, and then that distracts me, and so on. I've "pressed my buoy" with limited success.
Incidentally, my new instructor also taught me how to scull properly. My old one had me moving my hands in big, wide, slow circles. That did NOTHING for me in terms of lift.
Well, I watched my new instructor do it: small, fast, forceful, little circles. Bam. Lift. I think I could probably tread water now if I tried... I can certainly do it in the shallow end with just my hands, but I'm a little unbalanced.
Former Member
First, she solved my kicking problem for good: I was still kicking from the knees mostly, even though I can do a proper kick on dry land. All the advice I got here was great, but it turns out that no matter what I can reproduce on dry-land, I always go back to my old habits in the water. don't pay too much attention to what I'm about to say. my comment is far too atypical to even be considered by someone learning how to swim.
But I kick from the knee. My best over 50m is 36sec. No one on this forum will have me believe that I should waste energy kicking with the whole leg, when I can simply bend the knee and get the same angle of attack. But really, that's just me.
Now, you can start paying attention.
I have found over the years that ankle relaxation (ability to make them floppy) is one of the most important key to success in kicking for freestyle, backstroke and butterfly.
Use your feet as if they were fins, and everything should fall in place by itself. Given that you have decent ankle flexibility.
Are your legs sinking on the front float? If they are make sure your head is low the arms stretched forward shoulders touching your ears. Keeping your arms just under the surface thumbs touching tip your fingers out of the water and your heels should come up to the surface or close, unless you are an angle floater.
Are your legs sinking on the front float? If they are make sure your head is low the arms stretched forward shoulders touching your ears. Keeping your arms just under the surface thumbs touching tip your fingers out of the water and your heels should come up to the surface or close, unless you are an angle floater. That is very important too.
Make sure you pay attention to your head position while swimming. Your nose should point straight at the bottom of the pool. If you're still having a lot of trouble keeping your feet up, tuck your chin a little more than that. From my experience, most swimmers keep their heads too high, even when they think they're looking straight down.
I think that's a great point... my problem is a little bit more subtle than that.
Face-down, I have no problem getting my legs up -- probably because, as you say, I put my head right in the water. I have trouble breathing, but that's been getting a lot better lately.
Face-up (i.e. on my back), when I put my head too far back, I get water splashing over my eyes, in my mouth, and so on... and most 'good' swimmers I see swim backstroke with their head slightly tucked UP... this seems to make it easiest for me to breath and so on.
Adding in strokes, I can get enough velocity to get my legs up. But I want to be able to do it "just" kicking. And that's what I can't do very well right now.
This is part of my problem... my legs definitely sink on the front float.
The only way to get them up there is with some forward velocity.
But my kick is at its worse on my back and sides (sidestroke)... apparently it's okay on my front.
My sink on front float, back float, I just have heavy legs:D Really, some people's body distribution just makes it harder to float. The only way I stay afloat is a gentle kick when they start to sink. Since I never just float when swimming, I really don't worry about it.
Are your legs sinking on the front float? If they are make sure your head is low the arms stretched forward shoulders touching your ears. Keeping your arms just under the surface thumbs touching tip your fingers out of the water and your heels should come up to the surface or close, unless you are an angle floater.
This is part of my problem... my legs definitely sink on the front float.
The only way to get them up there is with some forward velocity.
But my kick is at its worse on my back and sides (sidestroke)... apparently it's okay on my front.
My sink on front float, back float, I just have heavy legs:D Really, some people's body distribution just makes it harder to float. The only way I stay afloat is a gentle kick when they start to sink. Since I never just float when swimming, I really don't worry about it.
Fair enough. I'm not too worried about "just floating" either.
I _AM_ worried about my kicking in general.
-- My legs don't always come up to the surface and make "little splashes", presumably because I'm not going fast enough with kicks alone. And it's a catch-22: if my legs dont come up, I don't go fast... and if I don't go fast, they don't come up. The solution is a big stroke to get me started, but then sometimes I slow down and my legs sink again.
-- My technique is, I think, still horrible, despite all the pointers I've received from here. Maybe I'm just thinking about it too hard, but I don't feel like I'm getting propulsion from my legs much. Probably still kicking from my knees too much. Trying to correct it.
(Either that or I'll do a whip kick where everyone else would do a flutter kick for the rest of my life =)
Sounds like you have an earlier version of the TI book if that's where you're taking this from. We haven't taught front balance or "buoy pressing" for freestyle in 10 years or since I finally realized it was a skill that bore no relation to the desired whole stroke skill.
Fish and Skating - both semi-rotated positions - are our starting point for freestyle balance now since they relate to the degree of body rotation one wishes to achieve in whole stroke.
We still use the front position for teaching Short Axis skills, but in those the legs are supposed to sink...and rise... rhythmically, as you practice Body Dolphins.
Total Immersion "Revised & Updated" Copyright 2004
Pages 33-35, 40, 80, 83, 90, 91, 112-13, 183
=)
Make sure you pay attention to your head position while swimming. Your nose should point straight at the bottom of the pool. If you're still having a lot of trouble keeping your feet up, tuck your chin a little more than that. From my experience, most swimmers keep their heads too high, even when they think they're looking straight down.
Big improvements yesterday and today in the pool for me.
Backstroke: I feel like I've really nailed this one. I'm not very fast, but I am relaxed. I think I kick too hard without much benefit.
Elementary backstroke: Doing well with this one. Having trouble getting a nice wide whip kick, but apparently my form is quite good other than that. Must remember to point toes to glide!
Front crawl: Practiced this with fins, pausing between strokes with my face on its side. Breathing is getting easier. Basically, I swim on my side with one arm out, then take a stroke and switch sides... swim on that side for a bit, then take a stroke back to the other side. (I suppose this is very similar to a TI drill, except that I look at the pool wall rather than the ceiling.) Once I get this nailed, I'll try doing a 'continuous' freestyle.
Breaststroke: Still working on this... need to get the rhythm down so I don't inhale the pool.
Butterfly: Hah, yeah right.
Treading water: I MANAGED TO DO THIS TODAY WITHOUT ANY AIDS! It was the coolest thing in the world. I still don't know what the hell to do with my legs as scissor/flutter/eggbeater kicks don't seem to support me, but I can tread just by sculling vigorously.
(Although at one point I started struggling and my instructor/lifeguard had to 'save' me by dragging me to the side of the pool... it was kinda fun. I told her I'd always wanted to be saved. It was good lifeguarding practice for her. =) I was in no real danger... I could've just floated on my back, but I kept struggling trying to tread properly. I had done it without problems for a good minute and I was determined to continue.)
