Swimming is more about technique than working hard; you must be smooth, save your energy and relax in the water. Practicing good technique makes swimming progressively easier. However it’s a skill that most people will lose quickly, so you need to be consistent and enjoy and make the most of your pool time.
Good technique
For every movement you make there’s an appropriate reaction elsewhere in your body. Lift your head out of the water to breathe and your legs drop. Swing your arms too wide and your legs move outwards in the opposite direction. Because water is so dense, if your action is to try to force your way through you will only expend a disproportionate amount of energy. Remember that it is good technique, not brute force that leads to effective swimming. As Taoists say: take the line of least resistance.
Your head
Where you look acutely affects the rest of your body. Look somewhere between straight down to the pool bottom and 45 degrees ahead. Your neck flexibility and torso position will affect what feels best. Do not bend your head too far under, a turning the head to breathe becomes very difficult. A good rule of thumb is that the water line should hit the forehead area of your swim hat. When breathing, your lowermost eye socket should always stay in the Water.
Your arms
The majority of triathlon swimming propulsion comes from your arms. However, you can greatly reduce drag and glide further each time you push off the wall by outstretching your arms, one hand on top of the other, with your head tucked in-between. It may not add propulsion but it makes you better at maximizing the fastest part of your swim – the push off from the wall.
Your body
You need to be flat in the water, not with your legs dragging or your head high out of the Water. The more Water you displace, the more energy you need to expend and the greater the drag on your body. Your body type and shape may affect how you lie in the Water. Body changes in terms of fat, muscle and overall weight can change body position. Using fins, a pull buoy, kick board or a wetsuit can teach correct body position
Breathing
You have to be able to breathe relaxed in order to stay aerobic, maintain the right body position and feel confident in the water. You must exhale under water in such a way that your head rotates sideways and your mouth lifts clear of the water to breathe in. By breathing out, you remove carbon dioxide build-up and this keeps your body relaxed. Holding your breath will only force carbon dioxide levels up, making you breathe in a stressful manner.
Your legs
Your legs act to balance the stroke, much like a rudder, and provide some propulsion forwards and upwards – they steer, propel and lift. The action should be initiated from the hips and include some knee bend as well. Feet need to be relaxed, not pointing towards the pool bottom. The action should be rhythmic with minimal spreading apart sideways of the feet.
Watch the video related to swimming techniques
Flutterkicking with your head underwater, holding your breath. Learn how to swim the freestyle stroke in this free swimming video. Expert: Peter Elizondo Bio: Peter Elizondo is a lifeguard of three years who swam for the junior varsity and varsity teams at Nikki Rowe High School. Filmmaker: Devin Boddie
Help answer the question about swimming techniques
Can you help me devise a swimming technique plan?I want to loose fat from my upper arms and back and tone up my thighs as they not so much wide but stick out at the front.
Can you give me any swimming techniques please? and tips on how to make them work better
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Paul Scott -
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Lol, only a week and passionate. Good! Well, since I like to pretend to be a know-it-all, much to the frustration of others here (hey guys!) ill give you other stroke stuff too.
DIVING::When you dive, look down, not out. Don't look down so far so you see between your legs, because it will throw you off balance. Hook your toes around the edge of the block for a better push off, and use your arms to throw you outward. Main thing? Don't do a belly flop.
TURNS:: When doing freestyle, don't breath within two strokes of going into the wall and coming out from it. This is difficult at first, but the more you do it, the better and easier it will come. Flip fast, kick hard, do butterfly kick off the wall and streamline. Streamline your arms should be right at or behind your ears. DON'T LOOK UP!
When doing breast stroke, imagine your arms shooting from a gun, and how fast it is. When you breath, and when you push your arms out, do it really fast. Don't pause in your stroke while breathing, and don't bob your head (Like, looking way up, then looking way down as you go in the water, repeating) that takes way too much energy.
Butterfly turns you almost take off on your back. Throw your arm up and over your head, push HARD. Two hands to the wall, like breast stroke.
Backstroke find your stroke count from the flags, or learn to estimate distance (my technique is estimation, not always accurate, but better for me). When you flip on to your stomach, never stop pulling water with your hands.
BREATHING: Anything in or out of the water will do. I use fins or such and swim wall to wall without breathing more then (1-2) times. Do this alot, or look up meditation breathing excersizes. These work as well. inhale 8, hold 10, exhale 8s
TECHNIQUE:: Some basic techniques are: butterfly arms/breast stroke or vice versa kick, Zipper (drag thumb from stomach to armpit), Tarzan (hehe, keep your head totally out of water while keeping it strait), catch-up (meet hands together while freestyling on strokes), 3-3-3 (butterfly, 3 one arm, 3 other arm, 3 full stroke), deep diving (dive as far as possible on butterfly stokes), deep reach (on backstroke, reach as far as you can to the bottom), etc. I'm sure you know a lot of these.
BUTTERFLY KICK:: Roll. Don't see-saw, which is like belly, chest, belly, chest. Think of a wave, as is the butterfly motion. Roll like a wave from your belly, ribs, chest, neck, head. that kind of thing. do the worm in the water, this will help you. Use your legs, but generate the motion of your legs from your stomach. its hard to explain without visual aid.
I don't watch swimming videos but for inspiration. You may do so, but don't rely on videos to teach you the correct thing. DOING will teach you the right, and videos run the risk of bad technique too (not that michael is bad…teehee) =D
GOOD LUCK!!!
@branodi haha that was funny