On my right side, which is how I learnt as a kid, I tend to find that I don't balance in the water as well as when I breathe on the left (the side I forced to learn bilaterally in recent months).
Feels like my lead arm (left) goes down (I think that's a reflex in trying to push my head up), and I've worked on holding the stretch.
That didn't fix it. Still feels like I begind to sag in the water.
I have now been tinkering with pulling back further on with the right arm (because I started to cross compare) to getting a better roll and glide; this seems to be working a bit.
Does that make sense? Is cutting the pull short (in slower paced swims) likely to cause a sagging feeling?
Undoubtedly I have a bad habit well ingrained...and without a coach to look at my stroke it's a bit of "cat and mouse" for me to analyse.
I have books with drills etc but I want to try and ID the issue if I can.
Sprints are not such an issue...but there are less breaths and faster turnovers.
Any thoughts?
Thanks
Rich
Parents
Former Member
I'm a tad baffled about the breathing thing--probably my misreading it. I normally finish the exhale before breaking the surface with my mouth. I try to keep it rhythmic. Breathe, exhale, 2, 3, Breathe exhale 2, 3. I think that part is working for me...although it could be wrong--I guess i'll self analyse a bit there too on my next swim!
My :2cents: worth from my own past.
45 years ago I couldn't swim more than a 50 (LCM) at one go. I thought I breathed OK but that I just did not have any stamina, until one day, the coach asked me to swim next to and with a certain guy (the absolutely slowest swimmer on the club team). As I tried to keep pace with him, I was almost bobbing up and down rather than moving forward. At that pace I found that I was forced to exhale with my face submerged. And I suddenly discovered two things:
a) I had NOT been exhaling underwater as I thought. I was exhaling then trying to gulp in as much as possible when my face turned into the air and,
b) by making myself exhale all the (bad) air (CO2) while my face was submerged, I didn't even have to INhale when I turned my face. By creating a quasi-vacuum (in my lungs), by just opening my mouth, the air rushed in. That day I swam, I think, some 4000 m non-stop, I was so elated. That season I started racing 100m, 200, 400m and 1500m (where before I used to die in a 100m). We didn't have 50m events back then in the very early 60's.
My lungs are not that flexible now. After 45+ years of smoking I still have to make a conscious effort to try to inhale fully. But a long and full exhalation underwater, helps the intake of air.
Good luck.
I'm a tad baffled about the breathing thing--probably my misreading it. I normally finish the exhale before breaking the surface with my mouth. I try to keep it rhythmic. Breathe, exhale, 2, 3, Breathe exhale 2, 3. I think that part is working for me...although it could be wrong--I guess i'll self analyse a bit there too on my next swim!
My :2cents: worth from my own past.
45 years ago I couldn't swim more than a 50 (LCM) at one go. I thought I breathed OK but that I just did not have any stamina, until one day, the coach asked me to swim next to and with a certain guy (the absolutely slowest swimmer on the club team). As I tried to keep pace with him, I was almost bobbing up and down rather than moving forward. At that pace I found that I was forced to exhale with my face submerged. And I suddenly discovered two things:
a) I had NOT been exhaling underwater as I thought. I was exhaling then trying to gulp in as much as possible when my face turned into the air and,
b) by making myself exhale all the (bad) air (CO2) while my face was submerged, I didn't even have to INhale when I turned my face. By creating a quasi-vacuum (in my lungs), by just opening my mouth, the air rushed in. That day I swam, I think, some 4000 m non-stop, I was so elated. That season I started racing 100m, 200, 400m and 1500m (where before I used to die in a 100m). We didn't have 50m events back then in the very early 60's.
My lungs are not that flexible now. After 45+ years of smoking I still have to make a conscious effort to try to inhale fully. But a long and full exhalation underwater, helps the intake of air.
Good luck.
