center line mechanics in free

RE: center line mechanics in free

Former Member — Mon, 07 May 2007 15:07:34 GMT

I worked on this yesterday. I think there are two issues: one, the position of the hand/arm when it enters the water, and two, the pull under the surface (which relates to the s-curve thing.) I think what I have recognized is that my hands have tended to enter the water close to the center line, crossing over soon after entry below the surface. This produces something like the "fishtail" effect described above. So for me, the entry point has to move out away from the center line, making the 10 2 or the "train track" a good image to work with, at least for me. A piece of advice: Read forums.usms.org/showpost.php It's an article about EVF (Early Vertical Forearm). After reading it (and other articles by USMS user tomtopo and articles in general about EVF) you'll find a possible cure for "crossing the line". Mind you, it's one point of view. Different coaches have different points of view and/or methods. And you'll find that EVF is a bit of a grey area. After becoming more familiar with it, you'll also start noticing that some swimmers (Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett) who use this method or style, have a more pronounced EVF or more-pronounced-elbow-to-forearm angle in one arm than the other. Good luck

RE: center line mechanics in free

Former Member — Mon, 07 May 2007 13:59:50 GMT

RE: center line mechanics in free

Former Member — Mon, 07 May 2007 13:20:07 GMT

Is the "S" outsweep bad?

RE: center line mechanics in free

Former Member — Sun, 06 May 2007 15:01:33 GMT

Over the weekend, I watched Lindsay Benco's freestyle DVD. In her swimming, I couldn't help noticing that her hands do seem to cross the center line and come back to the shoulder line (through an "S"-shaped outsweep that Ahmed mentions above). Is my observation correct, or do the hands have to cross the centerline further than Lindsay to be called "crossing the center line"?

RE: center line mechanics in free

Former Member — Sun, 06 May 2007 14:51:50 GMT

I had a coach back in high school ask us to imagine a glass wall running down our center line. The arms could never move beyond the plane of the imaginary wall. Today I use the same method...and have corrected many of our age group swimmers who stroked down the pool with a bit of a wiggle (fish tail) due to their cross over. Once they envisioned the glass wall and kept their hands outside of the barrier...the problem disappeared.

RE: center line mechanics in free

Former Member — Sun, 06 May 2007 10:13:10 GMT

Crossing over the center is a flaw many people have and have to work on. It feels really odd when you first work on correcting it. I felt like a water bug when I first started working on the 10 and 2, but keep working on it, you will get it. Rather than a 10 & 2, I like to imagine that I'm on railway track where the rails are as far apart as my shoulders and my entry (in Free) is "on tracks". If the entry is closer to the centre line, then a little sweep (or "s") is inevitable to bring the arm and forearm back in-line with the shoulder. Moreover, to achieve EVF (not Extra-Vehicular-Freefloating, but Early Vertical Forearm or High Elbow and as near a 90 degree between forearm and upper arm as possible), the elbow is usually quite a bit "out". I noticed with Phelps, Hackett and to a lesser degree Thorpe, that even though they get that almost 90 degree angle, the Forearm is almost never truly vertical. (Hacket has one hand that pulls closer to his centreline -almost beneath his navel at a certain stage- than the other.

RE: center line mechanics in free

Former Member — Sat, 05 May 2007 15:05:53 GMT

I like the hand to almost be right on the center line, take you digital camera and have someone do a little movie of you swimming directly to the camera. See for yourself. I don't like the drill your coach is giving you.

RE: center line mechanics in free

dorothyrde — Sat, 05 May 2007 10:40:51 GMT