Swim Myth #9....Busted!

Let me check to see how much unused sick time I have at work.

Here is a great leg workout. Be prepared. Bring a wheelchair to practice. 1) Warm up 200 drill, 200 swim, 200 kick 2) Kick 5 x 100 with Finis snorkel and Finis alignment kickboard, keeping head down, body in proper alignment. Medium rest....all out. 3) Kick 5 x 45 seconds on the wall with Finis snorkel....all out, followed by 15 seconds rest. Try to maintain 100% intensity for all 45 seconds. Repeat on 1 minute interval. 4) Easy 100 swim 5) Kick 5 x 100 with fins and alignment kick board and snorkel ...all out, medium rest. 6) Kick 5 x 45 seconds in vertical position with fins with arms in PERFECT streamline position above. Head always above the water. Fast tight kicks. No breaststroke kick allowed. Only flutter. 15 seconds rest between (start on 1 minute) 7) 100 easy swim 8) Medicine ball throw. Play catch using 10 lb med ball with someone on the deck kicking with fins with hands above head at all times. Try to reach 30 throws or more (record here is 55 throws). Repeat 3 times with 30 seconds rest. 9) Kick 5 x 100 with fins, alignment kick board, snorkel and drag parachute. All out with 30 seconds rest. 10) Easy 100 swim 11) Kicking tug of war. in the middle of the pool put hands on a pvc pipe about 18 inches long and face against your partner. On whistle, try to kick the other person to the wall. I recommend you do this short course! Keep arms stiff. PVC pipe on surface. each swimmer must use same stroke, flutter, frog, dolphin...otherwise it doesn't work. Frog kick trumps all. 12) Easy 100 Grab wheelchair. Exit stage left. Gary Awesome kick workout! I posted it on my blog so I'd remember to do it soon. I may have to substitute vertical kicking with a med ball for the partner throws though. And very toy intensive. :)

Here is a great leg workout. Be prepared. Bring a wheelchair to practice. 1) Warm up 200 drill, 200 swim, 200 kick 2) Kick 5 x 100 with Finis snorkel and Finis alignment kickboard, keeping head down, body in proper alignment. Medium rest....all out. 3) Kick 5 x 45 seconds on the wall with Finis snorkel....all out, followed by 15 seconds rest. Try to maintain 100% intensity for all 45 seconds. Repeat on 1 minute interval. 4) Easy 100 swim 5) Kick 5 x 100 with fins and alignment kick board and snorkel ...all out, medium rest. 6) Kick 5 x 45 seconds in vertical position with fins with arms in PERFECT streamline position above. Head always above the water. Fast tight kicks. No breaststroke kick allowed. Only flutter. 15 seconds rest between (start on 1 minute) 7) 100 easy swim 8) Medicine ball throw. Play catch using 10 lb med ball with someone on the deck kicking with fins with hands above head at all times. Try to reach 30 throws or more (record here is 55 throws). Repeat 3 times with 30 seconds rest. 9) Kick 5 x 100 with fins, alignment kick board, snorkel and drag parachute. All out with 30 seconds rest. 10) Easy 100 swim 11) Kicking tug of war. in the middle of the pool put hands on a pvc pipe about 18 inches long and face against your partner. On whistle, try to kick the other person to the wall. I recommend you do this short course! Keep arms stiff. PVC pipe on surface. each swimmer must use same stroke, flutter, frog, dolphin...otherwise it doesn't work. Frog kick trumps all. 12) Easy 100 Grab wheelchair. Exit stage left. Gary

Someone on the forums had mentioned the swimsmooth videos. They have a couple videos of some excellent triathletes who, despite having "frozen" ankles (not sure what else to call them, but they just don't flop around like elite swimmer feet), manage to swim VERY fast, and use six beat kicks. They aren't vigorous, driving kicks but they do seem to be offering something that is important enough that even in a long open water race, and despite having stiff ankles, they will keep up a steady kick.

I always found that in Ocean swims I had to almost eliminate my kick in order to keep my legs in the water. I imagine that I must have been too bouyant. Even in lake or pool water my legs were very high no matter how hard I kicked. I was a level floater, heels and hands both slightly out of the water. Measured lung capacity was 2nd largest capacity that had been measured in my time.

These Swim Myth discussions are awesome! This one is nearest and dearest to me! It is what I currently work the most on, and here is another way of saying essentially the same thing: First, I see nothing "wrong" with putting on those big 'ol paddles (and your pull buoy! and add fins, too!). Virtually everyone in our fast lanes 1 and 2 do this. Mostly for speed, only a few for health reasons. Who am I to judge why they do it? Most will say it is indeed a crutch, and for most they don't compete, don't intend to, and so their goal is to swim every set as fast as they can, with whatever equipment is socially acceptable (at DAMM, anything is allowed), and to hold their positions in lane 1 and lane 2. If you asked them what intervals they currently hold, held last year, 5 and 10 years ago, it would be the same answer. The only difference is they are now wearing equipment. Again, this is perfectly fine and they get a great workout in, see friends, and that's all they want. But if you want to get faster in a race...... Pay attention to Myth #9 in particular! Here are a couple of ways I think about how to allocate my workouts. They may help you, too: If the premise is you have about 1 hour per day, do you think you get faster by working on things you are already good at, or would you get more bang for the buck by working your weakest skills? If you are a good puller, or pull faster than you swim, then why keep working that instead of the other end???? Let's assume you already do some weight bearing/gym exercises, so it's not that your upper body muscles are too puny. And while you can always get stronger, always strive for a higher translation of dryland training to effective swimming, I now feel I am limited by my joints, but not by the muscles themselves. So the DIFFERENTIAL is much greater if I work on body alignment through the back half/legs, instead of spending precious time on (isolated) upper body work during my 1 hour. If you can get yourself more level in the water, that is, using a constant kick, a stronger kick, and also holding your body position "tight" but not rigid, then you won't be using your shoulders to bear the brunt of the pull. Think: the ideal is you don't pull - you are catching-anchoring-pushing-releasing (almost a slingshot sensation upon recovery, instead of lifting an anvil). You can only do that if you are high enough in the water having the proper balance to get up and over the proverbial barrel. The other benefit of getting up on the water with a steady kick is that you can't have proper arm stroke (and thus, low efficiency) if you aren't in alignment. You will fishtail, stall, etc and there is absolutely no way you can begin to think about whether your elbow is high, because you are compensating for your back half fishtail/swinging hips, x-ing around. And thus the vicous cycle of dropped elbow, underbody arm pull, too far out armpull, weak recovery, etc... If you want to work on your technique, always start with the legs. Everything else follows. The hard part is the application - how do you actually do it?!!! I fully agree to devote 1 day a week to kicking - and other things you would need in a race but don't get to practice in organized workouts - starts, turns, breakouts, etc. It's hard, really hard, and at first will feel uncomfortable, unnatural, and in general like you may be wasting your time. That is all natural. Just keep in mind that it's easy to grind those shoulders and do yet another pull set. It's in your comfort zone because you're good at it! It's really hard to make yourself do an extra kick set and/or working on your body alignment - it won't seem like you are going any faster, you might go slower, and it just takes your breath away! It also isn't done in isolation. If it were a gaurantee that if you did x amount of kicking or ankle stretches and you would get faster, then we'd all be doing it. It may also require you to adjust your timing, arms, breathing, head position - everything, and from slight to pronounced differences. But give it a try? What have you got to lose?!!! PS - to Fort, you can try variations of med ball - weight, speed, unstable surface, and find a load bearing wall to throw against if you don't have a partner.

These Swim Myth discussions are awesome! This one is nearest and dearest to me! It is what I currently work the most on, and here is another way of saying essentially the same thing: First, I see nothing "wrong" with putting on those big 'ol paddles (and your pull buoy! and add fins, too!). Virtually everyone in our fast lanes 1 and 2 do this. Mostly for speed, only a few for health reasons. Who am I to judge why they do it? Most will say it is indeed a crutch, and for most they don't compete, don't intend to, and so their goal is to swim every set as fast as they can, with whatever equipment is socially acceptable (at DAMM, anything is allowed), and to hold their positions in lane 1 and lane 2. If you asked them what intervals they currently hold, held last year, 5 and 10 years ago, it would be the same answer. The only difference is they are now wearing equipment. Again, this is perfectly fine and they get a great workout in, see friends, and that's all they want. But if you want to get faster in a race...... Pay attention to Myth #9 in particular! Here are a couple of ways I think about how to allocate my workouts. They may help you, too: If the premise is you have about 1 hour per day, do you think you get faster by working on things you are already good at, or would you get more bang for the buck by working your weakest skills? If you are a good puller, or pull faster than you swim, then why keep working that instead of the other end???? Let's assume you already do some weight bearing/gym exercises, so it's not that your upper body muscles are too puny. And while you can always get stronger, always strive for a higher translation of dryland training to effective swimming, I now feel I am limited by my joints, but not by the muscles themselves. So the DIFFERENTIAL is much greater if I work on body alignment through the back half/legs, instead of spending precious time on (isolated) upper body work during my 1 hour. If you can get yourself more level in the water, that is, using a constant kick, a stronger kick, and also holding your body position "tight" but not rigid, then you won't be using your shoulders to bear the brunt of the pull. Think: the ideal is you don't pull - you are catching-anchoring-pushing-releasing (almost a slingshot sensation upon recovery, instead of lifting an anvil). You can only do that if you are high enough in the water having the proper balance to get up and over the proverbial barrel. The other benefit of getting up on the water with a steady kick is that you can't have proper arm stroke (and thus, low efficiency) if you aren't in alignment. You will fishtail, stall, etc and there is absolutely no way you can begin to think about whether your elbow is high, because you are compensating for your back half fishtail/swinging hips, x-ing around. And thus the vicous cycle of dropped elbow, underbody arm pull, too far out armpull, weak recovery, etc... If you want to work on your technique, always start with the legs. Everything else follows. The hard part is the application - how do you actually do it?!!! I fully agree to devote 1 day a week to kicking - and other things you would need in a race but don't get to practice in organized workouts - starts, turns, breakouts, etc. It's hard, really hard, and at first will feel uncomfortable, unnatural, and in general like you may be wasting your time. That is all natural. Just keep in mind that it's easy to grind those shoulders and do yet another pull set. It's in your comfort zone because you're good at it! It's really hard to make yourself do an extra kick set and/or working on your body alignment - it won't seem like you are going any faster, you might go slower, and it just takes your breath away! It also isn't done in isolation. If it were a gaurantee that if you did x amount of kicking or ankle stretches and you would get faster, then we'd all be doing it. It may also require you to adjust your timing, arms, breathing, head position - everything, and from slight to pronounced differences. But give it a try? What have you got to lose?!!! PS - to Fort, you can try variations of med ball - weight, speed, unstable surface, and find a load bearing wall to throw against if you don't have a partner. Excellent advice! (And so very tolerant where others aren't. :applaud:) I just take my med ball to the racquetball court and slam away every which way. Love it.

But I get so tired when I kick! :)

This is the #1 reason why you should never use a pull buoy. Disengaging the legs is insanity. If you swim faster with a pull buoy, you need to fix that by kicking harder, not by using a pull buoy all the time. So then are kick sets "insanity" as well? After all, they disengage the arms... Personally, I get a LOT out of a pull buoy. It's the closest you can get to being tapered and high in the water. It allows you to work on strength per stroke while still focusing on raw technique. I've always been a believer in the benefits of working out immediately after a taper meet b/c you start out the season knowing what it feels like to swim tapered while incorporating that into your workout. A pull buoy allows for the high position in the water that you get when fully tapered, which is significantly higher than a standard 6 beat kick in the middle of the season.

These Swim Myth discussions are awesome! This one is nearest and dearest to me! It is what I currently work the most on, and here is another way of saying essentially the same thing: First, I see nothing "wrong" with putting on those big 'ol paddles (and your pull buoy! and add fins, too!). Virtually everyone in our fast lanes 1 and 2 do this. Mostly for speed, only a few for health reasons. Who am I to judge why they do it? Most will say it is indeed a crutch, and for most they don't compete, don't intend to, and so their goal is to swim every set as fast as they can, with whatever equipment is socially acceptable (at DAMM, anything is allowed), and to hold their positions in lane 1 and lane 2. If you asked them what intervals they currently hold, held last year, 5 and 10 years ago, it would be the same answer. The only difference is they are now wearing equipment. Again, this is perfectly fine and they get a great workout in, see friends, and that's all they want. But if you want to get faster in a race...... Pay attention to Myth #9 in particular! Here are a couple of ways I think about how to allocate my workouts. They may help you, too: If the premise is you have about 1 hour per day, do you think you get faster by working on things you are already good at, or would you get more bang for the buck by working your weakest skills? If you are a good puller, or pull faster than you swim, then why keep working that instead of the other end???? Let's assume you already do some weight bearing/gym exercises, so it's not that your upper body muscles are too puny. And while you can always get stronger, always strive for a higher translation of dryland training to effective swimming, I now feel I am limited by my joints, but not by the muscles themselves. So the DIFFERENTIAL is much greater if I work on body alignment through the back half/legs, instead of spending precious time on (isolated) upper body work during my 1 hour. If you can get yourself more level in the water, that is, using a constant kick, a stronger kick, and also holding your body position "tight" but not rigid, then you won't be using your shoulders to bear the brunt of the pull. Think: the ideal is you don't pull - you are catching-anchoring-pushing-releasing (almost a slingshot sensation upon recovery, instead of lifting an anvil). You can only do that if you are high enough in the water having the proper balance to get up and over the proverbial barrel. The other benefit of getting up on the water with a steady kick is that you can't have proper arm stroke (and thus, low efficiency) if you aren't in alignment. You will fishtail, stall, etc and there is absolutely no way you can begin to think about whether your elbow is high, because you are compensating for your back half fishtail/swinging hips, x-ing around. And thus the vicous cycle of dropped elbow, underbody arm pull, too far out armpull, weak recovery, etc... If you want to work on your technique, always start with the legs. Everything else follows. The hard part is the application - how do you actually do it?!!! I fully agree to devote 1 day a week to kicking - and other things you would need in a race but don't get to practice in organized workouts - starts, turns, breakouts, etc. It's hard, really hard, and at first will feel uncomfortable, unnatural, and in general like you may be wasting your time. That is all natural. Just keep in mind that it's easy to grind those shoulders and do yet another pull set. It's in your comfort zone because you're good at it! It's really hard to make yourself do an extra kick set and/or working on your body alignment - it won't seem like you are going any faster, you might go slower, and it just takes your breath away! It also isn't done in isolation. If it were a gaurantee that if you did x amount of kicking or ankle stretches and you would get faster, then we'd all be doing it. It may also require you to adjust your timing, arms, breathing, head position - everything, and from slight to pronounced differences. But give it a try? What have you got to lose?!!! PS - to Fort, you can try variations of med ball - weight, speed, unstable surface, and find a load bearing wall to throw against if you don't have a partner. Nice post, Michelle!! I still want you to be our Community Leader for World Fit in Dallas! We are shooting for 200 schools next year. Won't you reconsider.....please? Gary www.worldfit.org.