The Backstroke Lane

What is a good stroke rate/stroke count for a 50y back? Ryan Lochte or Chris Stevenson may not be right reference points; these guys are swimming on a different astral plane ... so ... One way to get a handle on this question is to go to this link at Floswimming, and search for "Masters", "Men", "Backstroke", and "50 yards". It will show you all heats from the USMS 2009 SCY Championships at Clovis. Pick a few heats featuring swimmers who are a little faster than you, count their strokes, measure their turnover rates, and that will give you an idea of the appropriate ranges. Let us know what you find out. I've been working on my 50 back on and off for the last 8 months or so, with some success. What worked for me was to follow Ande's kicking program to improve my SDK, and then to find the right balance (currently: off the start, 12 kicks & off the turn, get up and swim asap!) I dropped almost a second, and am now looking for new ways forward.

Ryan Lochte or Chris Stevenson may not be right reference points; these guys are swimming on a different astral plane ... so ... One way to get a handle on this question is to go to this link at Floswimming, and search for "Masters", "Men", "Backstroke", and "50 yards". It will show you all heats from the USMS 2009 SCY Championships at Clovis. Pick a few heats featuring swimmers who are a little faster than you, count their strokes, measure their turnover rates, and that will give you an idea of the appropriate ranges. Let us know what you find out. I've been working on my 50 back on and off for the last 8 months or so, with some success. What worked for me was to follow Ande's kicking program to improve my SDK, and then to find the right balance (currently: off the start, 12 kicks & off the turn, get up and swim asap!) I dropped almost a second, and am now looking for new ways forward. Thanks a lot for that link. It looks like those around :30 are going out in anywhere from 10-15 (excluding those mostly underwater who are taking as few as 4-6) and coming back in 16-20. Also true for one heat where everyone was under :27. This tells me that my rate is good and I need to work on turning it over faster (I think). At minimum, I should experiment using the clock and figure out what's faster. As far as SDK, I go 6 off the wall -- I am still too uncomfortable on my back to go more -- I end up too deep and struggle on breakout if I try to stay down more than 6. (I'm working on SDK a lot too.)

... This tells me that my rate is good and I need to work on turning it over faster (I think). At minimum, I should experiment using the clock and figure out what's faster. ... Be careful not to think stroke turnover without efficiency. If your pull is already efficient, spend more time on your kick. Have a coach watch you from above and below the water line to check your stroke efficiency.

What is a good stroke rate/stroke count for a 50y back? Today, I swam some 50s pretty hard, and I was going 13 strokes/flip/15 strokes. This is the fewest I've ever done and close to my freestyle, and it felt pretty good. The pace clock was off today, so I don't know how fast they were. I am working a lot on back, because it is the weak point of my 100 IM. Thanks for any advice. It really depends on how far you streamline off each wall and a bit on your height. I just watched a 100 scy back race of Ryan Lochte and I counted 8 strokes per lap. I don't swim scy so I can't tell you how many strokes I take, but my stroke count in backstroke is 1-2 less than my freestyle which is why I belong in the backstroke lane ;p

At minimum, I should experiment using the clock and figure out what's faster. In my experience -- admittedly limited to the last eight months -- my SportCount Chrono 100 has been invaluable for this purpose. The Chrono 100 is a little watch you wear on your index finger. It times intervals to 1/100th of a second, and remembers up to 100 intervals at a time. I posted two pictures of it here. For 25 yard underwater SDK shooters, it's the best. Without a deck coach, how else can you tell the difference between 15.4 seconds and 14.8? For backstroke intervals I've found it most practical to finish all intervals with a turn, and record times to the feet. That way you don't have to worry which hand you're using to finish -- the watch-bearing hand is always free to stop the clock. I train on my own a lot, and in addition to timing sprints, I also use the watch for timing interval sets. It's very handy when swimming in pools that don't have a pace clock. I use it for something almost every day. For me it was $40 well spent.

Anyone have a good tip for learning how to drive the hands into the catch? It was pointed out that I not driving it into the water but more like setting it on top of the water.

Anyone have a good tip for learning how to drive the hands into the catch? It was pointed out that I not driving it into the water but more like setting it on top of the water.GoSwim covered this a couple weeks ago: www.goswim.tv/.../backstroke---not-too-soft-hand-entry.html

GoSwim covered this a couple weeks ago: www.goswim.tv/.../backstroke---not-too-soft-hand-entry.html Thanks Arthur!

GoSwim covered this a couple weeks ago: www.goswim.tv/.../backstroke---not-too-soft-hand-entry.html I like the quote... "people should hear you swimming the backstroke..." We used a drill to teach kids to hit the water, basically a backstroke windmill as fast as they could. Adding the pinkie first to this thought process really seems to work pretty well. Thanks, Arthur!

Anyone have any good advice on breathing patterns for backstroke? Is it best to try for breathe in on one armstroke (left arm), and out on the next armstroke (right arm) ??? (Hey That Guy - even sarcastic advice could be good advice) :afraid: