Can anyone suggest drills to help me swim as fast without a pull buoy as I do with one?
I work hard at practice 5 days a week and make incremental gains every so often. But my improvement over the past year can't compare to the amount I improve when I grab a pull buoy.
So - I need to be working on my body alignment? Keeping my legs high in the water? Strengthening my abs? I try to work on all of those things but I would really appreciate any drill or workout ideas.
Thanks!
I'm in agreement with what has been said so far i.e. if the kick isn't within the streamline created by the upper body it can be an issue. In addition to this, a pull buoy acts like a wetsuit and or tech-suit etc. It creates an improved body position floating the legs towards the surface allowing the swimmer to feel like there going downhill so to speak (more horizontal to the surface) A drill to try to compensate for lack of a pull buoy is to do kicks and swims trying to engage your core muscles so that it gives you the feeling of trying to pull your belly button up through the small of your back. This help raise your hips which in turn helps the legs follow along closer to the water surface.
I'm in agreement with what has been said so far i.e. if the kick isn't within the streamline created by the upper body it can be an issue. In addition to this, a pull buoy acts like a wetsuit and or tech-suit etc. It creates an improved body position floating the legs towards the surface allowing the swimmer to feel like there going downhill so to speak (more horizontal to the surface) A drill to try to compensate for lack of a pull buoy is to do kicks and swims trying to engage your core muscles so that it gives you the feeling of trying to pull your belly button up through the small of your back. This help raise your hips which in turn helps the legs follow along closer to the water surface.
