I'm a 65 year old male just getting in Masters Swimming. My freestyle kick is probably the worst in the world and my 50 yd time 59 sec proves it.
When I kick with a board I don't move at hardly at all and by 10 yds I'm beat.
BTW I have used the Total Immersion Drill where you kick on your side with one hand extended and that way I can kick several laps, slow but at least I can move.
If you can point me to a web site or book or give me some hints to improve my kick.
Thanks,
Bob
Hi Robert,
this issue comes up often in threads here
I provided a solution in the
"Help My Kick is Horrible" thread
it's gotten results for swimmers who've applied it.
Try my recommendation for a month and see how much you improve
forums.usms.org/showthread.php
I also address how to improve kicking speed in
swim faster faster
forums.usms.org/showthread.php
I know that if you work on it
you can kick way faster than you ever have before in recent years.
the formula is simple:
1) Measure your kicking ability now
for all out kicks with plenty of rest
have someone time you with a stop watch
start the watch when your feet leave the wall
stop the watch when your hand touches the final wall
get your times in the folling kicks:
with a board from a push 25, 50, & 100
get your splits on the 50 & 100
write them down
2) consistently train to improve your kicking speed
3) repeat step 1 on the same day each week or every other week
follow your progress
Here's the key kicking speed issues:
1) Technique:
leg motion, body position, & head position
there's a term called "feel for the water"
people usually associate this with hands and arms
the same concept applies for legs and feet
2) Body:
shape, size, weight, flexibility, conditioning, and strength
foot and ankle flexibility are a big issue for kicking speed
when you point your toes as far as you can
"how good is your toe point on each foot"
fast kickers tend to have big floppy feet
ideally when you point your toes you want the top of your foot to move 180 degees from top of your shin
Point Those Toes
www.twirlmania.com/.../toepoint.gif
but you want your foot to be relaxed and not straining to get there
you can strain when you're stretchin to improve your toe point
3) Mental:
belief, Ideal performance state, pain tolerance, goal setting, action taking, and fierce determination
4) Equipment:
swim suit, fastskin type body suits are faster than baggy training suits because fastskins hide hair, hold very little water, and create a better surface for the body to the water
kick board,
5) Pool
some pools are faster than others
6) Other points that will affect your time are
how you start
how hard you push off the wall
when you begin your kick
I'm a 65 year old male just getting in Masters Swimming. My freestyle kick is probably the worst in the world and my 50 yd time 59 sec proves it.
When I kick with a board I don't move at hardly at all and by 10 yds I'm beat.
BTW I have used the Total Immersion Drill where you kick on your side with one hand extended and that way I can kick several laps, slow but at least I can move.
If you can point me to a web site or book or give me some hints to improve my kick.
Thanks,
Bob
Hi Robert,
this issue comes up often in threads here
I provided a solution in the
"Help My Kick is Horrible" thread
it's gotten results for swimmers who've applied it.
Try my recommendation for a month and see how much you improve
forums.usms.org/showthread.php
I also address how to improve kicking speed in
swim faster faster
forums.usms.org/showthread.php
I know that if you work on it
you can kick way faster than you ever have before in recent years.
the formula is simple:
1) Measure your kicking ability now
for all out kicks with plenty of rest
have someone time you with a stop watch
start the watch when your feet leave the wall
stop the watch when your hand touches the final wall
get your times in the folling kicks:
with a board from a push 25, 50, & 100
get your splits on the 50 & 100
write them down
2) consistently train to improve your kicking speed
3) repeat step 1 on the same day each week or every other week
follow your progress
Here's the key kicking speed issues:
1) Technique:
leg motion, body position, & head position
there's a term called "feel for the water"
people usually associate this with hands and arms
the same concept applies for legs and feet
2) Body:
shape, size, weight, flexibility, conditioning, and strength
foot and ankle flexibility are a big issue for kicking speed
when you point your toes as far as you can
"how good is your toe point on each foot"
fast kickers tend to have big floppy feet
ideally when you point your toes you want the top of your foot to move 180 degees from top of your shin
Point Those Toes
www.twirlmania.com/.../toepoint.gif
but you want your foot to be relaxed and not straining to get there
you can strain when you're stretchin to improve your toe point
3) Mental:
belief, Ideal performance state, pain tolerance, goal setting, action taking, and fierce determination
4) Equipment:
swim suit, fastskin type body suits are faster than baggy training suits because fastskins hide hair, hold very little water, and create a better surface for the body to the water
kick board,
5) Pool
some pools are faster than others
6) Other points that will affect your time are
how you start
how hard you push off the wall
when you begin your kick
I'm a 65 year old male just getting in Masters Swimming. My freestyle kick is probably the worst in the world and my 50 yd time 59 sec proves it.
When I kick with a board I don't move at hardly at all and by 10 yds I'm beat.
BTW I have used the Total Immersion Drill where you kick on your side with one hand extended and that way I can kick several laps, slow but at least I can move.
If you can point me to a web site or book or give me some hints to improve my kick.
Thanks,
Bob
