Sinking hips during recovery in fly

Very nice blog site by the way. I think the key is timing - more than a lack of core strength. When I watch your video from the side it is very clear you have delay in your stroke just after your hands enter the water. It is almost as if you do a small scull before your hands truly begin their pull. That delay causes a loss of momentum, which is deadly in fly. Butterfly, like breaststroke, has a significant fast/slow characteristic compared to free/back where a natural glide is easier. That delay causes your entire body, including your hips, to sink. Watch Phelps and you will see his hands enter the water and immediately begin their pull. YouTube- MICHAEL PHELPS

Wow, alot of real bad advise here on the basics.

Thanks a lot Jennifer, I'll try to work on my abs/core muscles. I didn't think myself that muscles were the problem because I didn't feel any muscle weakness/tiredness in that specific moment. Another reason was that they would always sink, even if I do only one stroke. But you might be right, so I'll give it a try. Thanks again. - Predrag.

Your timing is off. YOur head shouldn't be coming out of the water to breathe at the same time that your feet are breaking the surface. It's like you're swimming uphill and your hips have nowhere to go but down at that moment. Thanks for your comment Heidi. I had a look again at my video and pro swimmers. It looks like feet should break the surface slightly before head and legs are already bent in knees when feet break the surface. In my case, I break the surface with straight legs and since the head breaks the surface approximately at the same time, my whole body is bent downwards. Does my conclusion sound ok? Thanks again.

Lisa, thanks for your comment and lots of details. You are kicking from your knees, and your fly kick should come from your hips. The Dolphin kick is full body movement, and when you bend your knees as much as you are, then you aren't using the full body. I totally agree with you on this. I'll have to work on it. So, when you breath, you HAVE to get your head back down BEFORE your arms exit the water. You'll notice many fly'ers breath to the side; this helps. But if you can start not breathing, you'll never have this problem ;-) I didn't quite understand you. What do you mean by getting my head back down. I think you don't mean to put the face back in the water before arms exit the water. Thanks again for your time. - Predrag.

Thanks a lot for your comments Dan. When I watch your video from the side it is very clear you have delay in your stroke just after your hands enter the water. It is almost as if you do a small scull before your hands truly begin their pull. You're probably right about it. It was even worse couple of months ago and that was my first mistake to correct. I thought I did it, but obviously I still do it. This is me 4 months ago: www.motionbox.com/.../type%3Dhd%2Caffiliate_name%3Dmotionbox%2Cvideo_uid%3D7a99ddb6181ae7c1f5 I'll pay more attention to it from now. Thanks again. - Predrag.

Your timing is off. YOur head shouldn't be coming out of the water to breathe at the same time that your feet are breaking the surface. It's like you're swimming uphill and your hips have nowhere to go but down at that moment.

Wow, alot of real bad advise here on the basics. I'm sure you mean well, but I think it would help more if you could explain which advice is bad, or even better, describe how to solve the swimmer's problem, as that is the goal of the thread.

I didn't quite understand you. What do you mean by getting my head back down. I think you don't mean to put the face back in the water before arms exit the water. Thanks again for your time. - Predrag. Basically, you can't swim with your head, arms, and legs above out of the water. Someone stated something I read earlier today that was exactly what I was trying to say, and I can't find it. I'll post a link to it when I do. Wow, alot of real bad advise here on the basics. Yes, please explain!! We are all trying to help eachother, and if you disagree or know something that will work better, please share. It can only help someone. I also assume you are talking about my post, and please remember that what I talked about were just drills (as I stated) that helped me, and many who I taught with timing and body movement.

Man, that hurts to watch. It hurts because I am a flier, a hasbeen flier trying to recapture something. But I have no endurance for it now and my kick is weak. I can feel myself down to my last three strokes watching that. But you have some serious power in the upper body and I would think decent endurance for it. I think you could become a good butterflier with some technique improvements to get the lower body straightened out and in sync. I know the big knee bend is a problem but I am not qualified to offer advice around here. I have plenty of questions of my own.