Why are some people so much faster?

Thanks for the advice! To answer a couple of your questions: Yes I am swimming with a team that is really good. Over half the people on my team go to state every year, and my coach qualified for the 1980 Olympic trials. I don't believe the problem is my coach. I have a really good coach. It's encouraging to know that I might be improving with my team, instead of just staying the same. I have been working out 5 days a week, 1.5 to 2 hours at a time. I'm currently in high school. Do you think I should be working out more? I'm not quite sure what reaching and pulling myself through the water means. I do flip turns but I can probably improve on them. I breathe every 4 strokes. I do have a best stroke: freestyle. My coach also has sets that are next to impossible to make (and I never make them!). The rest of the people in my lane can make the sets, but I am SO much slower than them! I guess I should try harder to keep up though. Thanks for the help! I hope this post answers your questions. If anybody has any advice/tips for me, feel free to share. You all seem like really good swimmers and it is really great to be learning from you!Try different strokes. In my experience, backstroke is a good way to teach people to kick down. Butter fly is a good way to teach people overall water agility. You might not be good at them, but you need to develop overall water agility, too. It sounds to me like you're not putting a lot of emphasis on your times. That's generally how you can tell if you are or aren't improving. Do you swim a lot of swim meets? Do you also set goals as far as breaking your personal bests? Do you count the distance you go during practice? All of those are great ways to tell if you're improving. As a coach, I know swimming has a lot of psychology in it. I am constantly giving them their times, and rewarding them if they do well. I give them complements and keep them happy. I keep track of how far they go, and I do things like push ups and sit up sets that increase each week. My entire emphasis is on improvement. Reach and pulling yourself through the water means exactly what it sounds like. Each stroke is a stream line. You should be reaching above your head, as it enters the water, as far as you can, even turning your shoulders each stroke. You should then put a fair amount of force into pulling all the way down, not hitting your body at any point, and flinging water at the end of your stroke, each and every stroke. And of course, when your arm is out of the water, elbow up, hand less than an inch away from the surface. Your shoulders should be rotating up, with your elbow. Another place where the best swimmers make up most of their time is their turns and STREAMLINE. For my next meet I'm thinking of bringing a volley ball to hit my girls with if they don't keep their hands together. It's killing me. You should be able to easily streamline past the flags each turn. In fact, I make sure my best swimmers don't breath between the flags and the wall. You ought to be doing that, too, since you're in high school. Your work out periods are fine. You'll find that the longer you work out, the less the quality of work is anyways. In a 2 hour work out period, you ought to be able to get in 3,500 to 4,500yrds depending on your style and age. 5,000 if you're really good. Also, the best athletes are not always the best coaches. Some times they are so far above you that they can't help you. I wouldn't be surprised if you make a good coach simply because you're taking the time to learn about this stuff. I taught swimming for three years to little kids before I started coaching, and I'm getting great results. However, I obviously think I can do better, which is why I'm here. Diligent people struggle through adversity, and that breeds excellence.

Thanks for the advice! To answer a couple of your questions: Yes I am swimming with a team that is really good. Over half the people on my team go to state every year, and my coach qualified for the 1980 Olympic trials. I don't believe the problem is my coach. I have a really good coach. It's encouraging to know that I might be improving with my team, instead of just staying the same. I have been working out 5 days a week, 1.5 to 2 hours at a time. I'm currently in high school. Do you think I should be working out more? I'm not quite sure what reaching and pulling myself through the water means. I do flip turns but I can probably improve on them. I breathe every 4 strokes. I do have a best stroke: freestyle. My coach also has sets that are next to impossible to make (and I never make them!). The rest of the people in my lane can make the sets, but I am SO much slower than them! I guess I should try harder to keep up though. Thanks for the help! I hope this post answers your questions. If anybody has any advice/tips for me, feel free to share. You all seem like really good swimmers and it is really great to be learning from you!Try different strokes. In my experience, backstroke is a good way to teach people to kick down. Butter fly is a good way to teach people overall water agility. You might not be good at them, but you need to develop overall water agility, too. It sounds to me like you're not putting a lot of emphasis on your times. That's generally how you can tell if you are or aren't improving. Do you swim a lot of swim meets? Do you also set goals as far as breaking your personal bests? Do you count the distance you go during practice? All of those are great ways to tell if you're improving. As a coach, I know swimming has a lot of psychology in it. I am constantly giving them their times, and rewarding them if they do well. I give them complements and keep them happy. I keep track of how far they go, and I do things like push ups and sit up sets that increase each week. My entire emphasis is on improvement. Reach and pulling yourself through the water means exactly what it sounds like. Each stroke is a stream line. You should be reaching above your head, as it enters the water, as far as you can, even turning your shoulders each stroke. You should then put a fair amount of force into pulling all the way down, not hitting your body at any point, and flinging water at the end of your stroke, each and every stroke. And of course, when your arm is out of the water, elbow up, hand less than an inch away from the surface. Your shoulders should be rotating up, with your elbow. Another place where the best swimmers make up most of their time is their turns and STREAMLINE. For my next meet I'm thinking of bringing a volley ball to hit my girls with if they don't keep their hands together. It's killing me. You should be able to easily streamline past the flags each turn. In fact, I make sure my best swimmers don't breath between the flags and the wall. You ought to be doing that, too, since you're in high school. Your work out periods are fine. You'll find that the longer you work out, the less the quality of work is anyways. In a 2 hour work out period, you ought to be able to get in 3,500 to 4,500yrds depending on your style and age. 5,000 if you're really good. Also, the best athletes are not always the best coaches. Some times they are so far above you that they can't help you. I wouldn't be surprised if you make a good coach simply because you're taking the time to learn about this stuff. I taught swimming for three years to little kids before I started coaching, and I'm getting great results. However, I obviously think I can do better, which is why I'm here. Diligent people struggle through adversity, and that breeds excellence.