I have been working on developing a flip turn intermittently for the past 18 months. So far, I have strengthened my abdominal muscles to the point that I can flip without using my hands, just abds. Now, I am trying to figure out when to flip relative to the wall and how to get off the wall in streamline.
This video has 4 turns looking from the side, followed by 5 turns looking from the bottom of the wall aimed up toward the surface.
I am still using fins as it gives me more kick control as I approach the wall, and fins protect my feet if I overshoot.
Looks to me that I flip too far from the wall and then have to find the wall with my feet, so I end up pushing off too deep. The last 2 or 3 turns are a bit better.
Any expert advice would be greatly appreciated!
9/2/2009: For privacy, I have removed this video from public view on floswimming.org. PM me if you wish to view it.
Video with GoPro Hero Wide camera and edited with Microsoft Windows Movie Maker 2.
Thanks,
RadSwim
Steve,
How is your breathing? Are you exhaling while your head is underwater to clear the dead air prior to rotating to breathe? Do you find yourself gasping or gulping air when you do take a breath? At the end of practice do you find yourself belching a lot?
Steve,
How is your breathing? Are you exhaling while your head is underwater to clear the dead air prior to rotating to breathe? One thing I did try today was depleting lungs and inhaling more thuroghly prior to the turn. This helped allowing a full stroke prior to 1st breath.
Not to long ago I would take the 1st breath (left side always) upon 1st stroke (I rotate left for turn) and could not endure a full stroke prior. If I tried, my whole body would start tingling - close to light's going out:snore:. What helped today, as you mentioned, was a good breath before turn without anyn nasal bubbling (beginner habit). The full stroke after is easier, but a little sloppy.
At the end of practice do you find yourself belching a lot? Yes. Also, I once had pool water drain from my nose for about 1hr - about 40cc total lol
Thanks
I agree with a lot of the suggestions but you might want to reconsider the follwoing.
Tucking into a tighter ball is probably not a good thing to do because you won't be in a powerful position as you try to get off the wall. When you're in a squatting position, you lose the ability to push off quickly. The power position of a flip turn is in a sitting position. Watch video's of any world class freestyler and try to mimic that angle. You will indeed flip over more quickly when in a tight tuck but you'll sacrifice distance, power and speed off of the wall. Good luck!
I realized one of my problems has to do with the 25M pool I use. It is a fitness club so lanes are ~4' wide, but worst of all the lines go all the way to the wall, and then up the side! Then one side of the pool is only 3.5' deep .
Nevertheless, the next chance I have to get into the water (15 hours from now) I am going to try the weighted turn exercises suggested in the link George posted (thanks man!). I don't have the weights yet but without them by just turning off the wall, flip again, turn off wall, etc looks good enough.
3.5 feet is plenty deep to do a flip.
In the whole spectrum of things to learn about turns, I'd say breathing in and out of the wall is pretty low on the list. Get the turn mechanics down first before trying to hold your breath. It sounds like you are already struggling some with running out of air. Breathing in and out of the turn while using a flip turn is still going to be faster than an open turn, so if breathing more will let you try flipping more often then breath!
As to "Do not breathe on your last stroke", I saw in many competition videos pro swimmers often catch air during the last time an arm is above the water. Or I misunderstand what a "stoke" means? Does it mean a cycle of an arm moving from hip, through air and water and finally back to hip?
To me the stroke starts from the time it enters the water until it returns to enter again. Or off a dive or turn when it goes from the extension until it makes a complete stroke and enters out front, not from the thigh or hip to thigh or hip. When I raced I would not breathe the last 2 or 3 strokes.
