In my own experience, in both free and back (especially backstroke), if my initial 1-2 strokes went wrong (e.g. too slow, or paused, or lost rhythm), then it ruins the whole lap. It seems the inertia from the start determines if the rest of the lap will be successful or not. Can you fully recover from a start that went wrong and still finish a good lap?
Not only do I think you can recover but you can also take advantage of it. Face it...less than perfect starts/turns are VERY common, but how you react is the key. If you "panic" you'll waste the surge of adreniline that comes after the screw up and "over spin" and lose not only tempo but that energy boost. Stay calm/focused as best you can and rather than flail trying to recover take 1-3 strokes to build tempo back up.
Also, practice back start/trun recovery's in work-out....sound silly but it helps.
Not only do I think you can recover but you can also take advantage of it. Face it...less than perfect starts/turns are VERY common, but how you react is the key. If you "panic" you'll waste the surge of adreniline that comes after the screw up and "over spin" and lose not only tempo but that energy boost. Stay calm/focused as best you can and rather than flail trying to recover take 1-3 strokes to build tempo back up.
Also, practice back start/trun recovery's in work-out....sound silly but it helps.
