Newbie Questions and Answers

Just wanted you all to know I love this post. I read it and learn and laugh Thanks Katie

Poolraat: Thank you for posting the official procedure. It didn't dawn on me until it was my turn to swim that I didn't really know what the procedure was. Thankfully, the others in my heat did! Ande: I had no idea you coined the acronym SDK. Thank you for posting an explanation on this thread. For newbies to the forum, Ande has started several threads which are a treasure-trove of info, esp his "Ask Ande" and " Swimming Faster Faster" threads. He's one of the resident swim gurus and generously helpful. F A F I thought it meant Fallen Arch Feet. For some of us, it does, George. Just wanted you all to know I love this post. I read it and learn and laugh Glad you are enjoying it and learning from it!

FAF sistas are very dangerous women.Consider signing a waiver before aspiring to become one.

The short fins are probably zoomers they come in blue and red. The blue ones are a bit more flexible than the red. They are supposed to help build muscles strength. They can also help people with wonky shoulders because they make your legs more effective and efficient and therefore take stress off of your shoulders. I use Zoomers on rare occassions but generally am anti-fin. In my opinion the longer the fin the less work you do and the faster you go. When you put long fins on you just zip what feels like effortlessly to the otherside of the pool. I see no purpose for them other than scuba diving. Monofins are all the rage on here too (or is that just because my beloved FAF sistah loves hers?). My beef with fins is that people that love them tend to overuse them and become dependent. I tend to think that you should do about 75% (or more) of your practices the way you'll swim at a meet or in a tri. In other words sans equipment.

Speaking of fins, I have another question (or two). What do the different types of fins do to/for you? I've seen long "practice" fins, long really flexible thin fins, long skinny fins, medium length fins, and fins that barely extend beyond the toes. What's the story?

The short fins are probably zoomers they come in blue and red. The blue ones are a bit more flexible than the red. They are supposed to help build muscles strength. They can also help people with wonky shoulders because they make your legs more effective and efficient and therefore take stress off of your shoulders. I use Zoomers on rare occassions but generally am anti-fin. In my opinion, the longer the fin the less work you do and the faster you go. When you put long fins on you just zip what feels like effortlessly to the otherside of the pool. I see no purpose for them other than scuba diving. Monofins are all the rage on here too (or is that just because my beloved FAF sistah loves hers?). My beef with fins is that people that love them tend to overuse them and become dependent. I tend to think that you should do about 75% (or more) of your practices the way you'll swim at a meet or in a tri. In other words sans equipment. #1 use for fins: shoulder savers (I have micro-tearing in my labrum aka tendonosis.) I'm not that fond of zoomers myself. I use the cheapo regular long practice fins. I had a nifty pair of finis Z2 I liked, but they disappeared. I wouldn't mind trying the zura fins, which I guess are supposed to promote a more natural kick and not be as crutch-like. IMHO: Longer fins: better for undulation, streamlining and SDKs Shorter fins: sustain form over longer distances, shorter/faster kick (especially with the finis Z2), makes you work harder than longer fins Wider blades: better for the short axis strokes Other uses for fins: ramp up cardio build leg strength muscle memory in the legs for efficient kicking and SDKs ankle flexibility enhance body rotation explosive speed work wicked underwater work good for some drills good for learning fly I think fin use really depends on individual needs and temperment. Many people on this forum have stated that fins have no place whatsoever in competitive swimming. This seems unduly narrow minded to me. Just because fins aren't used in an actual race doesn't mean, ipso facto, that they can't enhance race performance. Fins can, of course, be overused as a crutch, as FlyQueen notes. Chronic overuse can cause your kick not to be integrated well into your stroke, etc., especially over longer distances. But if you have cranky shoulders, like sprint work or need some variety/fun in your workout, go ahead. For me, with my fly/back sprint emphasis and cranky shoulders (and the fact that my times are improving), I can only conclude that fins are not only NOT harming me, but they are affirmatively improving my swimming. But to each his own. This theory would probably not work for a distance freestyler. It's really an individual thing. Some swimmers like toys, others don't. Use what works for you. It might be trial and error at first. I don't use kickboards, pull buoys or paddles at all. Oh, I rarely use fins for kick sets, except sometimes for underwater shooters or 25 sprints. But I do those without fins all the time too. My MF is definitely my very fav.

Fort-y - I agree with all you said. I like sprinting 25s & 50s with fins because I remember to kick all out the whole time then. MY ADHD gets the better of me from time to time with kicking. I don't like fly with fins mostly because it changes your timing and I think that it's such an important part of fly that it cancels out the benefit. I never learned fly with fins and think I am better off. The part about doing kick sets without fins is right on. I think it defeats the purpose. Fins for cranky shoulders are totally acceptable.

I don't like fly with fins mostly because it changes your timing and I think that it's such an important part of fly that it cancels out the benefit. I never learned fly with fins and think I am better off. The part about doing kick sets without fins is right on. I think it defeats the purpose. Fins for cranky shoulders are totally acceptable. I almost always do fly with fins, except for some 25s and occasional 50s. :thhbbb: But for me, it's just a shoulder issue. (The issue of whether fly is, by defintion, hard on the shoulders of masters swimmers has been debated in prior threads. For me, with an injury in the back of the shoulder socket/labrum and loosey goosey tendons, fly (and free) is hard on my shoulders.) But I compensate with so many SDKs, it doesn't seem to throw me off too much in races. But then I don't do 200 flys either where other factors are more important. I think fly drills with fins are great, where they just maintain body position. Although I'm not exactly a newbie flyer, I still do fly drills in almost every practice. I love the caterpillar drill, chest press fly and one arm fly. They are good drills to do with fins, as long as you're not kicking with the fins. You're just working on undulation, head position and body position. Fins use totally depends on the needs of the user and the purpose for which they're used. With tendonosis and a SLAP lesion (which I'm trying to fix), I wouldn't be swimming without them. I have no idea why fins seem to irritate people more than paddle and pull buoy use, but they do. Sigh. I guess it's the results that matter. To me, apart from the shoulder saving benefits, fins are an aid the same way drylands or weights are a means to go faster. I agree, generally no point in with kicking with fins unless you're working on SDKs. But fins may help people who are bending their knees too much while kicking, I guess. But I don't think it's advisable to use them to keep up in a kick set. Or to keep up in a swim set. Use them for a specific purpose or just for fun.

Thanks, FQ. Funny story: One of the DVDs I have recommends fins for some of the drills, so that you don't spend as much energy on just keeping afloat. With that in mind, I bought some regular practice fins. The drills usually go drill 25/ swim 25 - the first time I did that, I built up far more speed on the swim part than I'm used to, didn't expect the wall so soon, couldn't stop quick enough and went flying into the wall. I had bruises on the side of my rib cage. I couldn't stop laughing and cursing.

:thhbbb: If you swam it right you wouldn't have shoulder problems.:thhbbb: Did you change your name? :thhbbb: You, buster, have never even seen me do the king of strokes. I have witnesses.