The Butterfly Lane

Flyers: Suppose that I come into the wall a little long. Is it legal if I just hold my arms out front and take one extra fly kick into the wall? Is it legal if I go fully submerged during this final kick? Not taking the final arm stroke can save a lot of energy, but if I am rather long, it could waste a lot of time gliding into the wall. I've played with it in practice and the extra kick seems like a good strategy, if it is legal. Take the extra kick (always the better choice vs. taking the extra WAY TOO SHORT stroke and breaking your nose or teeth). You can take as many dolphin kicks as you like per stroke and stay legal, just once you start a stroke it has to complete its cycle up and over the water recovery.

Flyers: Suppose that I come into the wall a little long. Is it legal if I just hold my arms out front and take one extra fly kick into the wall? Is it legal if I go fully submerged during this final kick? Not taking the final arm stroke can save a lot of energy, but if I am rather long, it could waste a lot of time gliding into the wall. I've played with it in practice and the extra kick seems like a good strategy, if it is legal.If you go fully submerged before you touch the wall you could get disqualified.

Hey flyers, for the Forumites who don't know me, I'm a breaststroker who would like to improve my fly for IM. I have some new videos and would appreciate any constructive criticism you can provide. Thanks! http://youtu.be/t-Whp4XSVb0 - This is a clip of 25 yards EZ fly; :21 second and 10 strokes, followed by a turn.

Just competed in fly for the first time EVER today - tried a 50yd. This was my second ever swim meet and I just started lap swimming in January. The GOOD (or OKAY) - I finished. I didn't DQ. People have told me they don't even try fly because it is common to DQ. The BAD - The race was HORRIBLE. And my time was 1:35. I wish I was kidding. I had planned on finishing at least 30 secs faster. That time is way slower than I when I do a 50 SCM. When I went off the diving blocks, my goggle slipped upward and I had to push them down. I was then legally blind for the entire race. I kept thinking I was close to the wall but I was actually 3-5 strokes away. Plus, I felt like there were times that I wasn't even moving after a stroke. At least my PBs in my backstroke improved (6 secs in the 50 and 7 secs in the 100). I still feel awful. I actually was excited about trying fly in swim meets. Sigh. There is no reason to feel bad, losing your goggles in a race can be very disconcerting. Especially when you're trying something new. You say you've been faster in SCM, so I wouldn't worry about this one race. Nowhere to go but up, right? Your resolution to do fly in a race is admirable. The thing about masters swimming is that no one is going to make fun of our swimming or anything, everyone realizes what a struggle it can be to train and compete in this sport with a "real life." You're only competing against a clock. Just get back on the horse and ride. No one will be anything but supportive. Post back here when you've done your next fly race!

Just competed in fly for the first time EVER today - tried a 50yd. This was my second ever swim meet and I just started lap swimming in January. The GOOD (or OKAY) - I finished. I didn't DQ. People have told me they don't even try fly because it is common to DQ. The BAD - The race was HORRIBLE. And my time was 1:35. I wish I was kidding. I had planned on finishing at least 30 secs faster. That time is way slower than I when I do a 50 SCM. When I went off the diving blocks, my goggle slipped upward and I had to push them down. I was then legally blind for the entire race. I kept thinking I was close to the wall but I was actually 3-5 strokes away. Plus, I felt like there were times that I wasn't even moving after a stroke. At least my PBs in my backstroke improved (6 secs in the 50 and 7 secs in the 100). I still feel awful. I actually was excited about trying fly in swim meets. Sigh.

Two things that I see from your video have to do with the recovery. 1) Your arms are crashing down into the water. This is pulling your body at a downward angle. You want to try to land them softly on top of the water. Instead of forcing them into the water, try stretching them toward the wall, like you are reaching to touch it. 2) Allow your arms to land slightly wider than shoudler width. This will allow the upper body to sink into a position where the arms can anchor high on the water. As you try this, it will feel weird but weird is good. I like to imagine that my arms are pointed to where the lane lines and wall meet each other. Thanks for your advice, Wookiee! This has been biggest problem with fly to try and overcome; my arms crashing down. Even when it feels like I am bringing them around for a soft landing, I watch the video and still see them crashing. I will work on your suggestions- thanks!

Thanks for your advice, Wookiee! This has been biggest problem with fly to try and overcome; my arms crashing down. Even when it feels like I am bringing them around for a soft landing, I watch the video and still see them crashing. I will work on your suggestions- thanks! I watched both the 25 video, and your 50 Fly from the meet in September, and noticed almost the same thing as Wookiee. It seems as you are reaching forward, your chest, shoulders, upper body are not pressing forward and down, which keeps you flatter on the water. Try getting more of a dolphining motion to your stroke. Try kicking on your stomach, head down, arms at your sides, and with minimal breathing go through the dolphining motion starting with pressing your chest down and continuing the kick through your hips and legs. Get a good feel for this and then start adding the arms, but stretch out in a more relaxed motion out front. Another thing I just noticed on your 50 video, is that your pull is very wide outside your body, rather than bringing your pull more beneath your body to use the more powerful arm/chest muscles. This will create a stronger stroke, and allow you to go for furthur distances without getting wiped out. :)

Thanks, James! More great feedback and a good drill to work on- starting tomorrow morning. This is great stuff coming from a terrific flyer! :agree:

Thanks, James! More great feedback and a good drill to work on- starting tomorrow morning. This is great stuff coming from a terrific flyer! :agree: I've been helping a 78 year old guy on my team for the past few years with his fly, and this one seemed to help quite a bit with getting his rythem of the stroke. You just need to practice it.

Hey flyers, for the Forumites who don't know me, I'm a breaststroker who would like to improve my fly for IM. I have some new videos and would appreciate any constructive criticism you can provide. Thanks! http://youtu.be/t-Whp4XSVb0 - This is a clip of 25 yards EZ fly; :21 second and 10 strokes, followed by a turn. Two things that I see from your video have to do with the recovery. 1) Your arms are crashing down into the water. This is pulling your body at a downward angle. You want to try to land them softly on top of the water. Instead of forcing them into the water, try stretching them toward the wall, like you are reaching to touch it. 2) Allow your arms to land slightly wider than shoudler width. This will allow the upper body to sink into a position where the arms can anchor high on the water. As you try this, it will feel weird but weird is good. I like to imagine that my arms are pointed to where the lane lines and wall meet each other.