freestyle timing

I like Speedo's suggestions, but since you said you've done most of that, and still were a little confused, here's some specific answers with my experience. (x-collegiate, and getting back into competitive). But remember to get advise from many different sources. Someone will have ideas that will work better for you than others. What is the proper timing for the freestyle stroke? It's not a windmill motion. I always thought of it as one arm, then the other. But I honestly wouldn't even worry about a timing of the arms. Just the technique. I think the freestyle is a more natural feeling rather than a specific timing. Should one pause briefly before trying to pull? I say no, but when you watch most swimmers, there seems to be one. This is because many are still streatching further and starting the skull. So there's always something going on, not just a pause or glide. Can kicking too much mess up the timing of the stroke? No, It can't mess up the timing. You'll notice that different swimmers (usually depending on the distance they swim) have a huge variety of kicks. I'm a two beat kicker. My legs pretty much drag behind me. I have most of my power in my pull. So this is definitely something I need to work on. But if you are focusing on your kick hard, you will forget things in your stroke and it might feel like you are messing up the timing. When you swim with a freestyle snorkel, how much does that slow you down? Probably depends on the swimmer. I tried the snorkel and just couldn't handle it. But maybe if I kept it up, I would get better at swimming with a snorkel. I wonder if it hinders the body rotation? I'm sure someone more experienced here can let you know. Should it be thumb first entry, pinky first or finger tip first? I've always focused more of a thumb entry. You don't want to slap the water, and a pinky entry is just a bit uncomfortable. But Having a completely sideways hand might be trying too hard. You don't want to slip water because you entered your hand it too sideways. A good clean cut into the water is the goal. At a camp, I'll never forget Jeff Rouse commenting, "Like a knife through butter." So, a slight angle toward thumb entry is how I do it. But, this is another item where I beleive that you can find what's most comfortable and easiest for you, then perfect it. Good luck.

I like Speedo's suggestions, but since you said you've done most of that, and still were a little confused, here's some specific answers with my experience. (x-collegiate, and getting back into competitive). But remember to get advise from many different sources. Someone will have ideas that will work better for you than others. What is the proper timing for the freestyle stroke? It's not a windmill motion. I always thought of it as one arm, then the other. But I honestly wouldn't even worry about a timing of the arms. Just the technique. I think the freestyle is a more natural feeling rather than a specific timing. Should one pause briefly before trying to pull? I say no, but when you watch most swimmers, there seems to be one. This is because many are still streatching further and starting the skull. So there's always something going on, not just a pause or glide. Can kicking too much mess up the timing of the stroke? No, It can't mess up the timing. You'll notice that different swimmers (usually depending on the distance they swim) have a huge variety of kicks. I'm a two beat kicker. My legs pretty much drag behind me. I have most of my power in my pull. So this is definitely something I need to work on. But if you are focusing on your kick hard, you will forget things in your stroke and it might feel like you are messing up the timing. When you swim with a freestyle snorkel, how much does that slow you down? Probably depends on the swimmer. I tried the snorkel and just couldn't handle it. But maybe if I kept it up, I would get better at swimming with a snorkel. I wonder if it hinders the body rotation? I'm sure someone more experienced here can let you know. Should it be thumb first entry, pinky first or finger tip first? I've always focused more of a thumb entry. You don't want to slap the water, and a pinky entry is just a bit uncomfortable. But Having a completely sideways hand might be trying too hard. You don't want to slip water because you entered your hand it too sideways. A good clean cut into the water is the goal. At a camp, I'll never forget Jeff Rouse commenting, "Like a knife through butter." So, a slight angle toward thumb entry is how I do it. But, this is another item where I beleive that you can find what's most comfortable and easiest for you, then perfect it. Good luck.