Hello,
I recently took up swimming (October) @ age 43 and have never done much else than splash around in a pool.
I trained myself using Total Immersion (I have been looking at the forums here and I suspsect I just threw a hand grenade into this thread :) )
As with other skills I have learned, I feel one has to develop their own form and style - so I am not following TI by the book....
Anyway, this is the first time I have seen myself swimming and I see some errors:
a. rolling too far to breath or simply turning my head to breathe
b. head position
c. legs uselessly kicking around..
video of me swimming:
link.
any pointers on how to
a. work my kick into my stroke better.
b. work on body roll.
Anyway, I have to say I LOVE swimming. to me its like mediation, excercise, pilates, dance, and flying all in one.
I wish i had discovered it sooner, but better late then never.
Anyway, I welcome your feedback.
Hi, all the other swim books i have read - Janet Evans, for example, all recommend alternate breathing, or at the very least swim equal amounts on both sides. I know sprinters tend to breath on one side, but from what i understand they don't train that way. I read a biography of a couple of swimmers - Natalie Couglain had developed an out of alignment body from single side breathing and when she alternated she made a great improvments .
even if i do single side, I still have to breath every stroke when i start to run out of air, so i supsect its more of a body position thing, since it doesn't happen with a pull buoy
I'm a BIG fan of alternate side breathing. For me, it helps balance out my stroke. Most of the time, I alternate in a 2-2-3 pattern (e.g., breathe left, breathe left, 3 strokes, breathe right ... then repeat). Sometimes, I will alternate sides by lap.
I think it also depends on the distance you're swimming and if you're racing. I will admit that, when racing, I tend to breathe to one side when I'm sprinting (e.g., 50-100), but use the alternate breathing approach on the longer races.
I think you can find examples of elite swimmers that do both single side and bilateral breathing. In addition, you can find examples of sprinters who breathe very little and those who breathe nearly every stroke (e.g., Jason Lezak). I'm sure a lot of the ultimate decision is swimmer specific.
Hi, all the other swim books i have read - Janet Evans, for example, all recommend alternate breathing, or at the very least swim equal amounts on both sides. I know sprinters tend to breath on one side, but from what i understand they don't train that way. I read a biography of a couple of swimmers - Natalie Couglain had developed an out of alignment body from single side breathing and when she alternated she made a great improvments .
even if i do single side, I still have to breath every stroke when i start to run out of air, so i supsect its more of a body position thing, since it doesn't happen with a pull buoy
I'm a BIG fan of alternate side breathing. For me, it helps balance out my stroke. Most of the time, I alternate in a 2-2-3 pattern (e.g., breathe left, breathe left, 3 strokes, breathe right ... then repeat). Sometimes, I will alternate sides by lap.
I think it also depends on the distance you're swimming and if you're racing. I will admit that, when racing, I tend to breathe to one side when I'm sprinting (e.g., 50-100), but use the alternate breathing approach on the longer races.
I think you can find examples of elite swimmers that do both single side and bilateral breathing. In addition, you can find examples of sprinters who breathe very little and those who breathe nearly every stroke (e.g., Jason Lezak). I'm sure a lot of the ultimate decision is swimmer specific.
