This refers to the long axis strokes. I know many (including myself) have better strokes on one side than the other (the latter is often the breathing side), but I wonder how predominant this case is among master swimmers. Also interesting would be whether some have been able to correct this problem through either drills or sheer hard effort.
i am working on it daily! It is very hard to change bad habits!
My stroke is more powerful when bi-lateral. One sided breathing causes you to lose about half your power that originates in the hip roll.(I believe)
Used the OAD (one-arm drill) this morning - 25M left, 25M right, ... . However a bilateral breathing style was employed for each arm.
Felt very effective once good rhythm was obatained.
I'm really skeptical of the whole bilateral breathing thing. You don't see YouTube- Phelps Smashes 200-free World Record breathing to both sides. Now maybe he breathes bilaterally in practice, but I suspect he works on other things.
For me, it seems air simply doesn't enter my lungs when I breathe to the left (yes, I generally expel fully before taking a breath), so when forced to breathe to both sides it's really more like breathing every six strokes instead of every three. I'm sure there's some stroke flaw which keeps me from breathing to my left, but I've yet to figure it out, so I continue to breath just to my right.
S
The one arm drill sounds good! So let me make sure I've got this right, you breath on the side of the non-moving at your side arm and go a length this way. Switch stroking arm on the next length and breath to the other side.
i can see how that could help the bad side roll alot! :agree:
One major reason it is easier to breathe on one side of the body than the other is that the "dominant" arm tends to be stronger and the head rotation toward the non-dominant side easier. By breathing bilaterally in practice, this strength-flexibility imbalance can be somewhat remediated.
Former Member
When I swam in HS and College I was very much bilateral, but after 15 years off and coming back I like to breathe mostly to the right. I find when I swim FAST/HARD parts of sets I can bi-lateral breathe until I get into "air sucking mode" and then its one side. When I do distance too I breathe almost exclusively to my right.
That being said I still work on bilateral breathing when doing pulling and drills. One good drill is one arm freestyle with one arm at your side and breathe to the side with your arm down (opposite breathing one-arm free)
Used the OAD (one-arm drill) this morning - 25M left, 25M right, ... . However a bilateral breathing style was employed for each arm.
Felt very effective once good rhythm was obatained.
I'm back in the pool after a multiple decade absence and have always been a right-side breather. When I swam competitively in high school waaay back in the '70s, my swim coach said to breath on whichever side felt more natural. Now that I'm swimming again, it makes sense to me that breathing bi-laterally would cause me to swim more "balanced." This past week, my Masters coach had me swim the one-arm drill and I noticed how natural it felt to alternate my breathing sides. I felt like I could swim endlessly in this manner.
Raised a distance swimmer in the 60's , I learned later bilateral breathing. I still favor my right to breathe.
Former Member
The one arm drill sounds good! So let me make sure I've got this right, you breath on the side of the non-moving at your side arm and go a length this way. Switch stroking arm on the next length and breath to the other side.
i can see how that could help the bad side roll alot! :agree:
You got it....it feels really awkward, but forces you to really stretch you moving arm in front and roll. Just kind of concentrate on it. Its easy to be all over the place with it do and swim like a snake too.
I've notice too that just doing some 100's with a pull buoy only and breathing 25 yards to the right only, 25 yards to the left only helps me out when I go back into doing my main sets.
The thing is....you can breathe to one side all you want, but you must have an efficient stroke, otherwise you'll wear one shoulder and one hip out. I can feel it when my stroke/technique fall apart a bit. But if I get in a good rhythm, like I do in some of my OW swims, I can do it all day long
Former Member
OK two questions for those who breathe bilaterally:
1. Do you feel you are getting enough air, especially for long distance or open water? I've read in some places where it's suggested breathing every 3 strokes (bilateral) is not to be recommended for this reason. (Anyone breathes every stroke?:rolleyes:)
2. Are there any who breathe bilaterally but still swim better on one side? Reason?
