Freestyle Stroke Technique

Hi, I am a new swimmer, just making sure that I get my technique right in the freestyle stroke. I have been watching videos of elites, and it looks like at the point of entry of the arm extended, the hand stays in that position (barely underwater) for several moments before it moves quickly back to the thigh and out of the water. Is there supposed to be that sort of "pause" before the ballistic motion of swinging the arm back (in the windmill fashion)? ... Does that look like the right technique overall for the freestyle stroke? It seems kind of off to me. What seems off about it? They are trying to maintain a streamlined position for as long as possible between strokes. Water is nearly 900 times denser than air, you get more forward momentum by streamlining as much as you can and slipping through it than by trying to muscle through it. Also, I guess I don't really understand how to breathe properly. When I turn my head to the side I often suck in water. In the videos of the elite races I can't even see their face come out of the water! How do you get the breath? Thanks for your help. If you are swimming flat on your stomach and trying to turn your face out of the water, it's a sure recipe for a sore neck and/or inhaling water. Your whole body rotates (roughly 30 to 45 degrees) and your head follows your shoulder around. The stroke is sort of like "skating" from side to side, with your body sides as the skate blade.

The theory behind that style of stroke is that the longer the "vessel", i.e. boat or body, the faster it goes. So the aim is to have one arm always in the water in front of the swimmer's shoulders at any given time.

What a great video. I don't think that you will find that is a full out sprint. His technique is outstanding.

That kind of late pull seems to prevail in races > 100m... I haven't seen that many 50M and 100M freestylers using it. Their pulls begin almost immediately when their hands enter the water it seems? e.g. www.youtube.com/watch although I seem to recall Thorpe managing to swim some really fast 100's with more of a catch-up style stroke.

That kind of late pull seems to prevail in races > 100m... I haven't seen that many 50M and 100M freestylers using it. Their pulls begin almost immediately when their hands enter the water it seems? e.g. You're correct. Most sprinters swim with a rotary stroke. One arm is always opposite the other. (Not what was seen in the first post.) Phelps was swimming with a text book front quadrant stroke. The underwater hand doesn't pull back until the recovery arm is in the zone of the shoulder region. Like a catch up stroke but not quite as pronounced. Thorpe swam that way too. Nice Phelps video.

wow, thats a strong cat!

wow, thats a strong cat! He's in training for sprint races. ;)

what exactly is the "recovery" phase? what part of the stroke? Also, another question. 99% of the time when I turn to take a breath I seem to be breathing in water. I can't figure out how to make this stop. I feel like I am rotating my head (and body) to the side, but I am still sucking in water. I don't think I am making a "bow wave," so that may be the problem, but I don't know how to do that.... I know I am asking a lot of questions, I'm just trying to get this right...:)

Recovery stage is after the one arm is extracted from the water til it is ready to enter the water again. You may have some water in the mouth you get rid of it before you breathe in. Or just don't let it go in to your lungs. Even if you have water in your mouth you do not have to breathe the water in.

Also, another question. 99% of the time when I turn to take a breath I seem to be breathing in water. I can't figure out how to make this stop. I feel like I am rotating my head (and body) to the side, but I am still sucking in water. I don't think I am making a "bow wave," so that may be the problem, but I don't know how to do that.... I know I am asking a lot of questions, I'm just trying to get this right...:) Get a friend with a digital camera with video capture mode to video your stroke and post it on youtube. Then we can tell you what you are doing wrong. Alternately, try pushing off on your side with one arm extended in front, the other at your side. You should be able to turn your head minimally and breath easily. Then recover the arm at your side and pull with the extend arm to switch to gliding/kicking on the other side. This gliding/kicking/stroking should allow you to play with your balance in the water and learn to breath in a relaxed way. Check out the Total Immersion web site for more details.