freestyle breathing help(long)!!

thanks for the response. i've never had any of my instructors complain about my body position and balance-water level touches my hairline, so i'm looking down at the bottom of the pool and not ahead, about 45 degrees rotation about my longitudinal axis, Actually, that does not sound like proper head position. It sounds like the head position that was taught about 30 years ago. Where you are looking forward and down. Instead keep your head in a neutral position with the water level bisecting your head at the crown. But as others have said, without actually seeing what is happening, the best we can do is offer advice. Paul

Well, practice is really the key, and feeling comfortable in the water. How often do you swim? thanks! i try to swim every day for all five weekdays, and about getting comfortable in the water, i think that needs to be worked on as well. i'm comfortable when i'm in the shallow pool, i'm not relatively that comfortable when i'm treading water in a deep pool!

In addition to how much do you swim and more generally how comfortable you are in water, the question in my mind is body position and body balance. Possibly the breathing problems don't originate in the breathing itself but in some other part of biomechanics. Regards, VB thanks for the response. i've never had any of my instructors complain about my body position and balance-water level touches my hairline, so i'm looking down at the bottom of the pool and not ahead, about 45 degrees rotation about my longitudinal axis, kicks originate from the hips and knees bend for a six-beat kick. one of them had mentioned about my reach for the extended arm ahead, and i've fixed that since then.

thanks for the response. i've never had any of my instructors complain about my body position and balance-water level touches my hairline, so i'm looking down at the bottom of the pool and not ahead, about 45 degrees rotation about my longitudinal axis, kicks originate from the hips and knees bend for a six-beat kick. one of them had mentioned about my reach for the extended arm ahead, and i've fixed that since then. Well, I think the most efficient way to get real help on this board is to post up a video of yourself on Youtube; somebody will likely be able to diagnose the real problem with your breathing in short order after seeing it. It certainly sounds like you are swimming often enough and know what you are supposed to be doing.

I agree with the other posters. It sounds like you perhaps didn't learn to swim until you were an adult? Often, when one takes lessons as a child, some of this comes naturally. I think the difference is that children don't think so much. This reminds me of when I got a new bike with lots of gears, and I became obsessed wtih how to shift and when to shift. Just lots of practice helped. What confuses me is you mentioning a six beat kick? What is that?

What confuses me is you mentioning a six beat kick? What is that? It's a fast flutter kick, quite common. Has different uses. If you just tell your legs to pick up the pace a bit, they will (most likely) fall into the six-beat kick right away. "debashis," one thing that has stood me in good stead was me mum instructing me, around age 2, to put my head under the bathwater and blow bubbles when I importuned her to teach me how to swim. So maybe just playing around with exhaling underwater would help. Did you bob for apples? I just got Lindsay Benko's DVD. I like it, but I must practice the stroke differently. She has a mastery, and a shoulder mobility, I will never have. Going for the form without the biomechanics to support it won't help me a whit. Regards, VB

I agree with the other posters. It sounds like you perhaps didn't learn to swim until you were an adult? Often, when one takes lessons as a child, some of this comes naturally. I think the difference is that children don't think so much. This reminds me of when I got a new bike with lots of gears, and I became obsessed wtih how to shift and when to shift. Just lots of practice helped. What confuses me is you mentioning a six beat kick? What is that? you are right! i learnt it when i was 24-25!...that's one thing that i've always regretted, not learning it as a kid! 6 beat kick is something that i learnt from lindsay benko's swimfast dvd...mostl of the time i'm kicking like that, but sometimes the count drops!

I'd like to revisit this thread if I may, because I am having a very similar problem to that of the original poster. I'm getting worn out very quickly. I definitely am exhaling underwater, through both my mouth and nose, and am doing nothing but taking a breath when my head exits the water. However, I find myself suddenly hungry for air if I do 3 or 4 strokes under water, and at the end of 50 m I am spent (even if I breathe every 2nd stroke). I also find myself wheezing. I don't believe it's asthma because I really don't have any associated cough (although I suppose a pulmonary function test might be a good idea). Of note, I am in good shape and don't have this problem running. Anyhow, I've been working with a swimmer's snorkel and still find myself exhausted, needing a rest every 50. My questions are as follows; 1. Has anyone else experienced that sense of wheezing and/or upper airway obstruction, especially people just starting to train seriously? Did it resolve with time? 2. Is this perhaps a CO2 tolerance issue that might be helped by using the snorkel regularly? 3. When my stroke mechanics stunk in the past I was much more comfortable and relaxed swimming. Now with the good extension and high elbow catch my endurance is much less although my stroke distance and speed are infinitely better. Has anyone else gone from a comfortable swimmer with bad mechanics to a better swimmer with less endurance like me? Is it just a matter of pushing myself harder and the rest will come?

I think you must be trying to swim over the top of the water. Let the water do its work it is very hard if you swim too high in the water. The water pushes you to the surface so let it help you. If you are using proper technique it should be easier. Slow down the whole thing will come together if you relax. You should exhale underwater, do not inhale underwater?

... Has anyone else experienced that sense of wheezing and/or upper airway obstruction.... Is it possible you are having an allergic reaction to chemicals in the water? Chlorine treatment can give off a significant amount of fumes, which can be quite noticeable in an indoor facility. If you are open water (OW) swimming then you may still have a reaction. I have a friend who has difficulty with reactions to the water with even spring fed pools. ...