I have used the "Kaizen's" head down, lengthening and rolling technique on working out my crawl and it's coming along. Breasstroke I am not too bad on...and I just want to finesse my technique and such.
What tips do you all have for breaststokers like me? I lengthen and glide smoothly and can move along quite fast while really swimming slowly. I am mostly curious about breathing as the undulations of breaststroke work the traps and neck a bit.
I am trying to get my head face down on my glide, for streamlining etc. Just trying to see what others have to say about their breaststroke breathing.
Rich
Former Member
don't put your head down, look almost straight down the pool and dont drop your head until your chin hits the water, look at the bottom when you are underwater. here is a video of breaststroke, notice how they look straight down the pool and never drop their head.
youtube.com/watch
Good video that looks just like me!!!
Hahahaha OK that's what I am doing...I'll just keep on practising and trying to improve the smoothness of it then.
Those swimmers,especially Phelps significantly arch their backs when breathing. This obscures the fact that they really don't move their heads much. Ideally you want to have your head in the neutral position all the time. You breathe by raising your torso not your head. The timing is raise at the point where your rapid insweep is lifting your body anyway. Then shoot your arms forward rapidly so you are completly streamlined from the knees up to maximize your kicks efficiency.
The neutral position is exactly that. The more streamlined and "neutral" you stay, the better off your stroke will be. A good drill to fix head position: put a tennis ball under your chin and swim *** holding that ball in place. You'll swear that you will drown and choke on water and will loose the ball a million times your first try, but eventually you get used to the feeling. It's a great drill to get the feel of keeping your head down in position. When you can do that and feel comfortable, try swimming without the ball and feel teh difference.
Remember you never want to thorw your head up and down when breathing. You go where your head goes in any stroke. Always be diving forward with your head in streamline. If you throw your head up and down, you'll waste energy moving yuor body up and down rather than FORWARD...with forward being the idea direction to go. :wiggle:
Interesting stuff... I have tried both lifiting my neck and using the sweep to get up to breathe...I'll pay a bit of attention next workout. I do notice fatigue in the neck and traps if I use lift...as you would expect. It is that which had me questioning to begin with.
When teaching Breaststroke (as well as Fly) to "average" or developing swimmers, the default style I teach (and practice myself) is to try to breathe with chin touching surface, mouth barely clearing it and looking at the water just slightly in front of you -- try to avoid seeing the far end.
The higher breathing position is difficult for anyone lacking a high level of skill and coordination to do efficiently, so I treat it as a departure from the default form, which I will help individuals refine if it's their preference and they can do it to advantage.
As Allen noted, timing the hands is also critical. I sometimes use a focal point of "try to see your hands extended before your face goes back in." A second focal point for hand timing iss "Kick your hands forward."
Thanks Terry. I am on the right track. My big effort thus far has been getting into that torpedo postion with my arms getting out straight just ahead of my kick (so I cut through the water a bit). I had been donig this and simultaneously fcing the bottom and slightly lifting my head as I came up for air.
I'll have a try of the various methods...I know if I am sprinting I find it much easier to rise up (bodily) to breathe...the slower pace (working on my stretch etc) i have to use a little chin lift...
Thanks again to all I'll let you alll know how I get on.
