Originally posted by Paul Smith
Here's the deal folks...forget about weights...if you REALLY want to make a significant break through in your swimming relative to competition stop swimming for 4-8 weeks and go to kick only workouts...as you ease back into swimming you will have the opportunity to "learn" how to integrate a new and powerful element to your stroke...something that 90% of the swimmers I see competing do not do well....
This really caught my attention. I seem to have been hearing this a lot lately: people coming back after a shoulder op, doing kick only workouts and then having their best seasons ever.
I don't doubt the authenticity of it either. I am just interested on what is actually going on. Why should this be the case?
Has anyone ever scientifically measured the amount the kick contributes to forward propulsion? I mean ratio wise, compared to the arms, what would it be? 80% arms : 20% legs?
What about the swimmers who are great kickers in workouts but can't translate it into faster swimming?
How do we actually integrate the kick into our swimming so that it becomes a new and powerful element to our stroke as Paul suggests?
Would it be fair to say that a big part of the improvement these (post op/ focus on kicking )swimmers achieve can be attributed to the strengthened core which is a result of the additional kicking. In other words more credit given to the strengthened core than increased forward propulsion.
I don't know. I just throw out these ideas for discussion.
Syd
First of all -- Doc never knew that 17 inch feet, that acted like fins, could produce that much propulsion.
But do we? I'm pretty confident no elite swimmer has feet anywhere near that long.
I read recently that the average height--so I'm guessing average foot size, too--has remained fairly constant in the U.S. since WWII. The U.S. used to be the tallest country in the world. We've been eclipsed by many European nations in the last decade or two. In fact the Dutch are now the tallest people in the world. This may have something to do with their success in swimming recently. And, of course, this is just the average height. It's possible the standard deviation has increased. Also, I'm guessing the influx of immigrants from south of the border and Asia has helped to keep the U.S. height pretty constant. It's entirely possible that Americans of European heritage have continued to get taller.
But, seriously, 17" would be an exceptionally long foot.
First of all -- Doc never knew that 17 inch feet, that acted like fins, could produce that much propulsion.
But do we? I'm pretty confident no elite swimmer has feet anywhere near that long.
I read recently that the average height--so I'm guessing average foot size, too--has remained fairly constant in the U.S. since WWII. The U.S. used to be the tallest country in the world. We've been eclipsed by many European nations in the last decade or two. In fact the Dutch are now the tallest people in the world. This may have something to do with their success in swimming recently. And, of course, this is just the average height. It's possible the standard deviation has increased. Also, I'm guessing the influx of immigrants from south of the border and Asia has helped to keep the U.S. height pretty constant. It's entirely possible that Americans of European heritage have continued to get taller.
But, seriously, 17" would be an exceptionally long foot.
