Here is one of the most inefficient things taught or not focused on when learning to swim. When coaching I usually watch some of the swim lessons going on. Here is what I hear and see…”Kick, kick, kick, kick”. That’s all is said. In reality you don’t want to just kick like kicking a soccer ball (without any other kicking reference what do we know otherwise?). When you kick, your legs should be straight, feet pointed, and toes relaxed. Your legs should be springy and visualize them being connected into the body not just at the hips. Also, when you kick it shouldn’t just be with one side of your leg. You are missing a huge piece of propulsion and not using the strongest muscles in the body. Kick with both sides of your legs, up and down. Also, feel the water all around you legs and try to make it thicker feeling. When kicking the rhythm should always be even. Don’t let a larger kick slip into the rhythm. Keep the kick small and fast.
Give it a try and let me know what you think!
-Coach Ty http://swimworkoutsonline.com
Parents
Former Member
Okay here's another question.
I like the description of thick water. It makes a lot of sense to me. But my kicking is still my weak link. I just know if I could incorporate my legs effectively into my stroke, I could see significant time drops.
Here's the problem. It is okay as long as I am going slow or medium pace, but as soon as I start to sprint, my legs pop out of the water and that feeling of 'thick water' disappears entirely. It is fine as long as I stay swimming at a rate of 29 seconds (plus) per 50m. The minute I try to go below 29 for a sprint, the legs pop out and all connection is lost. And I mean all. There seems to be no power coming from my legs in a sprint. I feel no connection there at all. They feel like they are just thrashing about and kicking up white water.
I'm not sure if it is because my head is too low. When I sprint, it is with my head looking directly down, shoulders quite square and not much rotation of either the hips or the shoulders.
I have always been a weak kicker. I struggle to kick a 50 with a board in under 55 seconds. But I have been working on it (admittedly on and off) for the past year and it has improved. I feel like I am getting there but still have a way to go. It is not fully integrated into my stroke yet. It is only there in flashes. When I am tired, or not concentrating, I lose it. I think this is where swimming a lot of yardage might help. It might not necessarily make you a faster swimmer because of the fitness derived from the yardage. It might be that through spending a lot of time in the water you have learned how to integrate that kick and swim efficiently. I never really swam a lot as a kid, was only an average swimmer and stopped swimming at the age of sixteen. I would say I have learned more in the past year and a half than I did swimming as a kid.
My belated question then (if you have read this far): how do I keep those legs from popping up. What should my area of focus be?
Syd
Okay here's another question.
I like the description of thick water. It makes a lot of sense to me. But my kicking is still my weak link. I just know if I could incorporate my legs effectively into my stroke, I could see significant time drops.
Here's the problem. It is okay as long as I am going slow or medium pace, but as soon as I start to sprint, my legs pop out of the water and that feeling of 'thick water' disappears entirely. It is fine as long as I stay swimming at a rate of 29 seconds (plus) per 50m. The minute I try to go below 29 for a sprint, the legs pop out and all connection is lost. And I mean all. There seems to be no power coming from my legs in a sprint. I feel no connection there at all. They feel like they are just thrashing about and kicking up white water.
I'm not sure if it is because my head is too low. When I sprint, it is with my head looking directly down, shoulders quite square and not much rotation of either the hips or the shoulders.
I have always been a weak kicker. I struggle to kick a 50 with a board in under 55 seconds. But I have been working on it (admittedly on and off) for the past year and it has improved. I feel like I am getting there but still have a way to go. It is not fully integrated into my stroke yet. It is only there in flashes. When I am tired, or not concentrating, I lose it. I think this is where swimming a lot of yardage might help. It might not necessarily make you a faster swimmer because of the fitness derived from the yardage. It might be that through spending a lot of time in the water you have learned how to integrate that kick and swim efficiently. I never really swam a lot as a kid, was only an average swimmer and stopped swimming at the age of sixteen. I would say I have learned more in the past year and a half than I did swimming as a kid.
My belated question then (if you have read this far): how do I keep those legs from popping up. What should my area of focus be?
Syd
