Did you know that Michael Phelps once said, “You can’t put a limit on anything, the more you dream the farther you get.” Michael Phelps was an astonishing swimmer. He won several Olympic medals, but sadly he has retired from the Olympic field.
I am here to tell you how to swim, but not like Michael Phelps.
I will be explaining the basics of swimming freestyle. Freestyle is one of the easiest strokes to learn. This stroke consists of 10 elements for a perfect freestyle stroke.
- Number 1, head position.
Body position in the water is the most important component
to swimming efficiently, and the position of your head dictates the position of
the rest of your body. Look forward, with your hairline cresting the surface of
the water in front of you.
- Number 2, reach forward.
With each stroke, make sure you are extending your arm to
its maximum length. Many swimmers place their hand in the water in front of
their head and begin their underwater pull. Instead, concentrate on placing
your hand in the water about 15 inches in front of you, and then reach forward
an additional 6 inches by extending your arm from your shoulder.
- Number 3, body rotation.
Body rotation is somewhat
related to reaching forward, in that by pivoting your body with each stroke,
you facilitate your shoulders extending forward at the end of each stroke. When
your right arm is fully extended in front of you, your body should be pivoted
right.
- Number 4,”hourglass” pull
When you are pulling your body
through the water with your arms, you want to maximize the amount of water
pulled. Since the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, the
last thing you want to do when swimming is pull your arm through the water in a
straight line. Instead, practice an S shape, so that if you were to pull both
arms together simultaneously, the resulting path would resemble an hourglass
silhouette.
- Number 5, finish the stroke
Even some of the world's best
swimmers end up shortening their strokes when they get tired, pulling their
hands out of the water prematurely at their waist area rather than by their
upper thigh. As your arms complete their underwater hourglass pull, they should
fully extend behind you, by your sides, so that your thumbs graze the side of
your thighs below your suit-line.
- Number 6, sprint flutter kick.
Kicking takes up a lot of
energy, which is why it's often relegated to the last lap of an event.
Sprinters rely more heavily on kicking, but regardless of your specialty, it is
important to master a kick that works for you. Too often, swimmers end up
creating added resistance with an incorrect kick that actually serves to slow
them down!
- Number 7, distance crossover kick.
Distance kicking differs from
sprint kicking in that it's not meant to propel you forward as much as it's
meant to keep your rhythm while helping you stay afloat. Indeed, in longer
races, attempting a sprint flutter kick will put you into oxygen depletion
within laps, and you will crash and burn.
- Number 8, breathing head position.
When turning your head to
breathe, make sure to turn it 90 degrees to the side. Many swimmers make the
mistake of turning their head about 100 degrees so that their entire face are
above the water's surface. You want to try to keep your head parallel to the surface
with one eye above and one eye submerged. Turning your head any more is
unnecessary; it requires more effort and can result in increased resistance as
your body corkscrews out of control.
- Number 9, breathing pattern.
It is
best to breathe on both the left and right sides. This serves to even out your
stroke and keep your body balanced in the water. Swimmers who only breathe on
one side tend to have an uneven stroke turnover, and they miss out on what
their competition is doing on their blind side. They can also end up swimming
in an arc rather than a straight line in open water.
- Number 10, starts and finishes.
When
pool swimming, most people disregard the importance of their takeoff and their
finish. Even when pushing off the wall for
a set of repeats, take the time to streamline with your arms clasped behind
your head in a v, with your hands together. Finish each repeat with a strong
stroke into the wall, rather than slowing down and coasting in with your head
raised.
If you would like to learn more about different strokes and their technique please come back next month for the new post.
N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Apr. 2013.
I asked a parent of one of my students "while
watching your son during the lessons did you as the parent learn anything?" She answered, "Yes, I learned basic swimming techniques that could be taught outside of the water. With these skills I was able to help my son practice swimming on dry land on days he did not have lessons. These drills helped him improve tremendously." I also asked my high school swim coach why he thought form was important. He answered, "Form is like a prerequisite to swimming. Without it a swimmer will never improve. They can try as hard as they'd like but if they aren't swimming in correct form it's almost as if they are swimming in place. Form is not only important for speed and improvement, but also for their swimmer's health. With improper for a swimmer can become deformed in that their muscles shape to the way they swim. For example if I swim and only breathe out one side, my muscles in my back and neck will grow so that I will only be able to turn my head a certain amount on the opposite side that I breathe."
Works Cited
Kostich, Alex. "10 Elements of a Perfect Freestyle Stroke - Part 2." Web log post.
Kristi Mcdougal. Parent of student swimmer.
Michael Allen. High School Swim Coach.
