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
Parents
Former Member
I emphasis "integrated" above because as many of you have seen/experienaced a lot of strong "kickers" can't coordiante that strength with their arm/core movements....Quicksilver....I will tell you that for me my turnover slows down slightly when I engage my kick (6-8 beat)
So how do you "integrate" I suggest applying the Fartlec concept to your kicking...no board...and varying distances....change it up between a 6 x 6 switch, 3 x 3 and straight swim, something like:
400 (freetstyle position) rotating 25-6 x 6, 25-3 x 3, 25-easy swim with 2 beat kick building to 6 beat kick, 25 going as far on the push off as you can with a constantly increasing kick speed.
.
Here is a novice swimmer's little experience on integrating kicks into the pulls, mainly for novice swimmers like me, not you experts. :wiggle:
When I started learning freestyle I cannot get my kicks and pull coordinated. It seemed that there was no whatsoever connection between my kick and arm pull. It felt like my upper body doing the pull independent of my kick. I asked and was told by Terry and George that it would eventually come naturally. And they also told me to focus on arm pull.
So what can I do except for waiting for it really coming in the end? Well, I could do nothing but reluctantly to follow their advice. However I paid attention to three things:
1, try to learn how to kick from thighs;
2, try to relax my ankles as much as possible;
3, occasionally I swam a two stroke six kick very slowly (at least I assumed it was a two stroke six kick since I could not see myself swimming) with a focus on the kick and rhythm.
Then one day all of a sudden it really came naturally. My kick and pull felt sort of connected. There was one primary sign I presumed indicating this: I sometimes felt that one beat of my left leg down kick can combine my left arm pull to produce a little bit more propulsion (just a feeling. no empirical evidence). But I cannot feel the same with my right leg kick and right arm pull. There are some other signs too, like, my thighs were sore after some intensified practise, my ankles were more relaxed, I can slow down the arm pull tempo but still feel fluidly going forward. Of course it is far from being a well integration of kick and pull. But I can sense that I am moving towards the right direction.
Hope this could help others.
I emphasis "integrated" above because as many of you have seen/experienaced a lot of strong "kickers" can't coordiante that strength with their arm/core movements....Quicksilver....I will tell you that for me my turnover slows down slightly when I engage my kick (6-8 beat)
So how do you "integrate" I suggest applying the Fartlec concept to your kicking...no board...and varying distances....change it up between a 6 x 6 switch, 3 x 3 and straight swim, something like:
400 (freetstyle position) rotating 25-6 x 6, 25-3 x 3, 25-easy swim with 2 beat kick building to 6 beat kick, 25 going as far on the push off as you can with a constantly increasing kick speed.
.
Here is a novice swimmer's little experience on integrating kicks into the pulls, mainly for novice swimmers like me, not you experts. :wiggle:
When I started learning freestyle I cannot get my kicks and pull coordinated. It seemed that there was no whatsoever connection between my kick and arm pull. It felt like my upper body doing the pull independent of my kick. I asked and was told by Terry and George that it would eventually come naturally. And they also told me to focus on arm pull.
So what can I do except for waiting for it really coming in the end? Well, I could do nothing but reluctantly to follow their advice. However I paid attention to three things:
1, try to learn how to kick from thighs;
2, try to relax my ankles as much as possible;
3, occasionally I swam a two stroke six kick very slowly (at least I assumed it was a two stroke six kick since I could not see myself swimming) with a focus on the kick and rhythm.
Then one day all of a sudden it really came naturally. My kick and pull felt sort of connected. There was one primary sign I presumed indicating this: I sometimes felt that one beat of my left leg down kick can combine my left arm pull to produce a little bit more propulsion (just a feeling. no empirical evidence). But I cannot feel the same with my right leg kick and right arm pull. There are some other signs too, like, my thighs were sore after some intensified practise, my ankles were more relaxed, I can slow down the arm pull tempo but still feel fluidly going forward. Of course it is far from being a well integration of kick and pull. But I can sense that I am moving towards the right direction.
Hope this could help others.
