I am tapering for my big meet 4/10-11 and I'm thinking about my next training cycle. Since my free and fly are already my stronger strokes, and I had a good time drop in breaststroke which I attribute largely to weight training concentrating on shoulders and chest, I'm wondering if there are specific lifts that would benefit backstroke, which is my weakest stroke by far, in fact my 50 *** was nearly as fast as my 50 back at my most recent meet. If I could improve my backstroke I might actually get a decent time in an IM event.
What I remember from swimming backstroke as a high schooler was the incredible, searing/burning pain in my thighs by the end of the race. That, and the schnozz full of water.
So…given my previous experience, I'd probably suggest building the legs, at least in terms of lots of reps and endurance. But…I wasn't a very fast backstroker so maybe I was using my legs too much?
I am an OK backstroker (not as speedy as The Fortress, though), and I say that if you felt an awful burning in your legs and you couldn't feel your feet at all, and your race was 100y or longer, you probably were doing it right.
The water up the nose is optional. Some people wear a nose clip although I don't like it for anything longer than 50M because it impairs inhaling too much. The water-exclusion strategy that I do not recommend is tilting your chin down toward your chest.
What I remember from swimming backstroke as a high schooler was the incredible, searing/burning pain in my thighs by the end of the race. That, and the schnozz full of water.
So…given my previous experience, I'd probably suggest building the legs, at least in terms of lots of reps and endurance. But…I wasn't a very fast backstroker so maybe I was using my legs too much?
I am an OK backstroker (not as speedy as The Fortress, though), and I say that if you felt an awful burning in your legs and you couldn't feel your feet at all, and your race was 100y or longer, you probably were doing it right.
The water up the nose is optional. Some people wear a nose clip although I don't like it for anything longer than 50M because it impairs inhaling too much. The water-exclusion strategy that I do not recommend is tilting your chin down toward your chest.
