The Butterfly Lane

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! Agree with Kirk about the timing of the kick! I also think that, if you could improve your kick, that would help your lower body ride higher in the water and help propel your arms forward. That takes some hip and leg strength though. Are you lifting? All your strokes could use some more power. GoSwim on "soft hands" butterfly: Butterfly - Soft Hands - YouTube Very smart to post all the vids to get input!

flyers...one thing that I notice in Elaine's fly - that I struggle a HUGE amount with myself - is a pause in the front of the stroke. It's like the hands hit (mine crash in too by the way) and then there is a pause before the catch and pull. I have tried for a long time to eliminate this pause because it puts a hitch in my stroke and ruins my timing. It makes the second kick (kick hands out) out of time with my kick and I get no power. Any suggestions for eliminating this pause of the hands in the front of my fly??? Thanks for any comments... my fly looks a lot like Eliane's but with maybe a bit more pause at the front making it look like a two stage event! Thanks, JB :)

GoSwim on "soft hands" butterfly: Butterfly - Soft Hands - YouTube That video explains it greatly.

Elaine, I am not new to usms but have never posted before so I have no clue about what I'm doing (I'm trying to figure out how to get my signature looking right, without showing my e mail address etc. - I'm a mess)...when I replied to your posy it automatically copied your font. But, hey, I think it looks good no matter how much grief you got for it!:applaud: JB

Agree with Kirk about the timing of the kick! I also think that, if you could improve your kick, that would help your lower body ride higher in the water and help propel your arms forward. That takes some hip and leg strength though. Are you lifting? All your strokes could use some more power. GoSwim on "soft hands" butterfly: Butterfly - Soft Hands - YouTube Very smart to post all the vids to get input! Excellent video, Fort; especially the underwater footage! Thank you for posting it! I've been in the gym 2x week using the Nautilus machines for my legs, however, the three weeks I took off in August/September didn't help much. And, after my meet on Sunday, I think I will increase it to three... I also do vertical jumps off the bottom of the pool (in 5 feet of water) and have increased my yardage of SDK's with fins (Tyr Burners; my Speedo Optima fins tore at the toe openings :bitching: ). You are right about my leg strength, though. Even though it has improved, it still has a loooong way to go. I really appreciate the feedback I have received from you and the others on my videos. THANKS! :agree:

I wonder if it's caused by a timing issue with the kick? Watching Elaine's video it seems like she's waiting for her kick to finish before starting the pull. Maybe the problem is the timing of the kick is a little too late. Thanks Knelson! I will check out my kick timing...maybe the pause is caused by waiting for the back-end? So I guess trying to keep a steady kick and fit the arms into that? JB

Before, when I would swim fly, it was always my shoulders that grew tired and really nothing else. Now, My abs are totally getting a work out and screaming quit before I finish practice but my shoulders dont really feel that tired until my core gives. My shoulders only get tired when my abs are in pain and refuse to work. I'm finding that too. As a kid my arms would give out first, now my arms seem to keep going forever! As far as whether it is correct or not, I have no idea. With this new "core domination" effect I can swim fly much further than ever before, but not very fast. I can also sprint a 50 close to my all time best (just don't ask me to attampt a 100!) So I'd be interested to hear if we're doing it right :)

Any thoughts or 2 cents? :2cents: Sorry, had to do it.

Is this normal or a sign that I am doing fly correctly? I'm not certain, but it sounds like a good sign to me. I have an arm dominated fly and I never feel it in my core during full stroke fly. When I do dolphin kick on my back, though, I feel it in my abs. So, too me this suggests you are engaging your core for the kick which is a good sign.

Hey, I have a question that is off topic to the above conversation. I have been increasingly doing more fly at each practice. 1/4th of my practice is fly, and on the last 25 of any set, I always switch to fly to try to mimick the last lap like I read someone write somewhere in this forum. Before, when I would swim fly, it was always my shoulders that grew tired and really nothing else. Now, My abs are totally getting a work out and screaming quit before I finish practice but my shoulders dont really feel that tired until my core gives. My shoulders only get tired when my abs are in pain and refuse to work. Is this normal or a sign that I am doing fly correctly? Or maybe is it because it is just my fourth week back since 2005 and never swam fly before until now due to a coach pushing me and making me realise it isnt so bad. Any thoughts or 2 cents?