We love to SDK. It's the 5th stroke. It takes skill, strength, flexibility, conditioning & mental toughness.
For many it's the 2nd fastest stroke, but it's not a legal stroke.
We wish it was legal. We wish there weren't 15 m restrictions in races.
We count our kicks because kicks count.
We train to SDK faster. Some call SDKs underwaters or dolphins.
What are you doing to improve your SDK?
How many do you take in each race?
Help! My SDK is Horrible! has many tips & a program to get faster.
Here's a helpful post in it.
What are your SDK times?
15, 25, 50, 75, 100, 150 & 200?
Spend some time in the SDK lane & you'll be kicking faster before you know it.
the breastroke lane
The Middle Distance Lane
The Backstroke Lane
The Butterfly Lane
The SDK Lane
The Taper Lane
The Distance Lane
The IM Lane
The Sprint Free Lane
The Pool Deck
Great discussion.
Just curious...
how do you determine how many kicks from the wall the mean velocity of the SDK and your mean regular swimming velocity intersect?
Or do you believe that your mean SDK velocity is always higher than your mean regular swimming velocity?
I call that your sweet spot or idea kick count.
SDK velocity vs Swimming velocity is different for
every swimmer and every event.
My suggestions are:
+ Train to improve your SDK speed,
strengthen legs for better dives & push offs
improve streamline
improve SDK technique & timing
improve foot flexibility
+ Train to improve your SDK speed endurance & breath control
+ Identify your SDK strengths & weaknesses
like I'm faster on my back than I am on my belly,
I'm not so great with breath control and drop my SDK kick count in 200's
+ Train for many months to improve your SDK ability
+ Experiment to determine your SDK kick counts for each race
If your SDK is terrible & slow, your SDK kick should probably should be 0
mine are
50 fr 5 or 6
100 fr 3 or 4
200 fr 2 or 3
50 fl 8 to 10
100 fl 6 to 8
50 bk 12
100 bk 10
100 IM fl 8 bk 8 to 10 fr 4 or 5
200 IM fl 6 bk 5 fr 3
Great discussion.
Just curious...
how do you determine how many kicks from the wall the mean velocity of the SDK and your mean regular swimming velocity intersect?
Or do you believe that your mean SDK velocity is always higher than your mean regular swimming velocity?
I call that your sweet spot or idea kick count.
SDK velocity vs Swimming velocity is different for
every swimmer and every event.
My suggestions are:
+ Train to improve your SDK speed,
strengthen legs for better dives & push offs
improve streamline
improve SDK technique & timing
improve foot flexibility
+ Train to improve your SDK speed endurance & breath control
+ Identify your SDK strengths & weaknesses
like I'm faster on my back than I am on my belly,
I'm not so great with breath control and drop my SDK kick count in 200's
+ Train for many months to improve your SDK ability
+ Experiment to determine your SDK kick counts for each race
If your SDK is terrible & slow, your SDK kick should probably should be 0
mine are
50 fr 5 or 6
100 fr 3 or 4
200 fr 2 or 3
50 fl 8 to 10
100 fl 6 to 8
50 bk 12
100 bk 10
100 IM fl 8 bk 8 to 10 fr 4 or 5
200 IM fl 6 bk 5 fr 3
