Stroke Count Estimation

Try this formula: Start with your height. Subtract one foot. Convert that answer into feet. (In other words, four foot one would be 4.083333.) Divide that number into 60. The result is optimum strokes per pool length on a 25-yard pool. So, if you are six foot three: 60/5.25 = 11.4. Five foot one would be 60/4.25 = 14.7. I'm making some assumptions here: - You break out at the flags. (That's where 60 comes from. It's the distance in feet from the flags to the other end.) - Your hand is approximately six inches from tip to wrist. (That's why you subtract one foot from your height. It also means this formula won't work for youngsters.) - Your height is approximately equal to your wingspan. Of these assumptions, the one that changes the answer most is where you break out. If you break out well short of the flags, add one. If you break out well past the flags, subtract one. SCM pools are three feet longer, but I guess the flags are a little farther out, so you shouldn't need a whole extra stroke. So add a half. I don't know the swimming theory, but I'm a pretty good estimator, and this exercise sounds like one where a quick answer imparts as much useful information as a precise one. I say that because the thing that is difficult to measure - distance from wrist to wrist - can be estimated well enough from a person's height. The actual calculation might be a couple of inches different, but it won't significantly affect the answer. By significant, I mean three strokes or more. It sure sounds like the optimal will usually be 11 to 13 for people of average height, 14 or 15 for short people. If that's your actual SPL, you know that fact and you know you are close to optimum. At that point you should be trying to minimize SPL with no lower boundary. After all, is it physically impossible to travel more than the wrist-to-wrist distance in a single stroke? If you are considerably higher, say 18 SPL, it doesn't make much difference if your optimum is 11 or 12 or 13. You know you have some work to do. I'd be interested if anyone uses this method, compares it with the method at the usaswimming site and comes up with an answer that differs by more than one or two.

Try this formula: Start with your height. Subtract one foot. Convert that answer into feet. (In other words, four foot one would be 4.083333.) Divide that number into 60. The result is optimum strokes per pool length on a 25-yard pool. So, if you are six foot three: 60/5.25 = 11.4. Five foot one would be 60/4.25 = 14.7. I'm making some assumptions here: - You break out at the flags. (That's where 60 comes from. It's the distance in feet from the flags to the other end.) - Your hand is approximately six inches from tip to wrist. (That's why you subtract one foot from your height. It also means this formula won't work for youngsters.) - Your height is approximately equal to your wingspan. Of these assumptions, the one that changes the answer most is where you break out. If you break out well short of the flags, add one. If you break out well past the flags, subtract one. SCM pools are three feet longer, but I guess the flags are a little farther out, so you shouldn't need a whole extra stroke. So add a half. I don't know the swimming theory, but I'm a pretty good estimator, and this exercise sounds like one where a quick answer imparts as much useful information as a precise one. I say that because the thing that is difficult to measure - distance from wrist to wrist - can be estimated well enough from a person's height. The actual calculation might be a couple of inches different, but it won't significantly affect the answer. By significant, I mean three strokes or more. It sure sounds like the optimal will usually be 11 to 13 for people of average height, 14 or 15 for short people. If that's your actual SPL, you know that fact and you know you are close to optimum. At that point you should be trying to minimize SPL with no lower boundary. After all, is it physically impossible to travel more than the wrist-to-wrist distance in a single stroke? If you are considerably higher, say 18 SPL, it doesn't make much difference if your optimum is 11 or 12 or 13. You know you have some work to do. I'd be interested if anyone uses this method, compares it with the method at the usaswimming site and comes up with an answer that differs by more than one or two.