I have 2 questions for the group. 1) has anyone ever experienced fatigue/tightness of one stroking arm, while the other side seems to be relaxed/loose? My left arm seems to get tight and my upper back muscles seem to tighten from time to time when I swim freestyle...not all the time but enough to make me wonder why.
Any thoughts/suggestions?
2) This has been a topic of debate with a friend of mine and myself. He believes that a person should slip their hand back into the water fairly soon as the recovering hand passes the head and drive it to the catch position through the water.
I use to be a believer in this until the last year or so, when I finally realized that it is more difficult to stay relaxed. I am starting to think the recovering arm should enter farther down the pool.
What do you all think? Soon as it passes the head or farther out over the water?
Thanks,
John
Parents
Former Member
i agree with geochuck that the I-Pull is where you want to be, generally.
i also agree with geochuck that you should definitely make some effort at bilateral breathing. in fact, i think that you should try permanently altering your breathing pattern to breathe every third arm stroke, at least until you get comfortable with bilateral breathing. if you breathe on the open side (not the armpit side) every third arm stroke, then you will have the ability to introduce more balance, as geochuck said, to your stroke. when you force yourself to become a bilateral breather, you force yourself to re-evaluate parts of your stroke that had theretofore become intuitive.
--Sean
i agree with geochuck that the I-Pull is where you want to be, generally.
i also agree with geochuck that you should definitely make some effort at bilateral breathing. in fact, i think that you should try permanently altering your breathing pattern to breathe every third arm stroke, at least until you get comfortable with bilateral breathing. if you breathe on the open side (not the armpit side) every third arm stroke, then you will have the ability to introduce more balance, as geochuck said, to your stroke. when you force yourself to become a bilateral breather, you force yourself to re-evaluate parts of your stroke that had theretofore become intuitive.
--Sean
