All Swimming, All the Time

Video help with straight arm freestyle

2009-07-07T07:09:00.000-07:00

Check out this video for help with swimming the straight arm freestyle:

Go Swim Straight-Arm Freestyle with Scott Tucker from Glenn Mills on Vimeo.

Glenn Mills:

In terms of explosive speed, the straight-arm technique has a couple of advantages. Traditionally, freestylers bend their recovery arm—the one that's not in the water—keeping the elbows above the hands. The newer technique, which Phelps used only intermittently in this past weekend's UltraSwim meet, gives the impression of a semi-submerged windmill. A traditional recovery arm is still moving forward when it touches the water. The water slows the hand down and prolongs recovery time, resulting in fewer strokes per minute. A straight recovery arm transitions more quickly to a propulsive stroke because the hand is moving down and back toward the feet almost as soon as it touches the water.

The straight arm also offers rotational advantages. Freestylers don't swim on their stomachs; they knife through the water on one side, then the other. The more quickly they rotate their shoulders, the faster they move forward. The straight recovery arm creates torque on their torsos, turning the swimmer into a flywheel. "Think of a baseball pitcher," says Glenn Mills, a former Olympic swimmer and founder of a popular swim technique Web site. "The windup and kick create a rotation that whips the throwing arm forward." In swimming, "when you throw the extended recovery arm over, it helps turn the torso and pulls the other arm back out of the water." - source

More links:

http://www.theraceclub.net/columns/2008/01/straight-arm-freestyle-recovery.html

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3871/is_200407/ai_n9418290/

Busy week for the Dolphins

2009-06-28T15:58:00.000-07:00

Well it has certainly been a busy week for the team! We had Swim meets bookending the week and our swimmers did very well indeed. Even cooler, I found out at least one other person actually reads this blog! Who knew ;)

Austin and Morgan took 4th place in events at the State Games and all of our swimmers posted personal best times in all of their events over two meets! This is shaping up to an exciting first year anniversary for our team.

Who would have thought a team could accomplish so much in just one year of existence! We have gone to the State Age Group Championships (AKA the Junior Olympics) and grown to over 45 team members! We have also instituted a swim camp program to spread swimming far and wide in the Sanford Community. The first camp was a Major success and we are going to hold more to continue our attempts to make Sanford into Swimtown USA!

Open Water

2009-06-15T05:43:00.000-07:00

The Dolphins got their first taste of open water swimming and did really well. Out of the entire state of NC the team placed 17th, ahead of other local teams despite the fact that we only swam one day of the meet! Well done Dolphins.

Summer swimming is kicking into high gear. We are starting practice at the LC outdoor pool which is always a lot of fun.

Coaching tip:

To keep swimmers year round you have to keep them in the summer. There is a lot of competition from vacations and laziness that can pull a kid away from the team. Try to shake it up a bit and add a new twist that is fun to keep interest up. In our case, we are practicing at a different location and incorporate diving breaks into the practice, it works for us!

Swimming for the fun of it...

2009-04-11T12:11:00.000-07:00

One of the lessons I learned this year was that it is possible to become too competitive at the team level. We had a banner first year as a team. Our swimmers achieved best times at almost every meet, we had one swimmer qualify for and compete at the state championships and our team grew from 6 swimmers to nearly 40. As we got better we became aware of the competition taking notice of us. Other coaches were asking about our training, other swimmers were getting to know our swimmers, rivalries were forming. It became a pretty intense environment. As this peaked in February I began to notice swimmers missing practice, becoming ill, and a serious lack of smiles around the pool. As a coach, I realized that I set the tone for the team so we took action. We introduced water polo games into practice. We invented water baseball and water dodgeball. I began asking swimmers to give me their goals and to work collaboratively on meeting them. I noticed an immediate change in the team. Smiling was at an all time high, attendance skyrockted and friends of our swimmers were showing up to see what all the excitement was about.

The lesson we learned was that achievement is wonderful and exciting, but if it occurs in young swimmers at the expense of fun, the team will suffer.

ECSL Meet

2009-04-02T12:58:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to all of our swimmers. We did incredibly well at the ECSL championship meet. Not only did we get several top 10 finishes, we also had all of our swimmers get best times by large margins. Well done Dolphins! See you in the pool.

Summer Swimming

2009-03-15T06:50:00.000-07:00

Summer is my favorite time to swim. There are outdoor pools to swim in, kids are out of school and it is generally a fun time. This is also a great time to build our year round teams. Lots of kids will catch the bug at their local pools, it is up to us, the year round swimmers and parents, to spread the word about our team. A large, strong team is something that will help to ensure that swimming will continue in Sanford for a long time and it is our responsibility to make that happen. So here is a proposal:

It is time to start preparing for the summer. We have our last winter meet on the 28th. I am excited for this one! Several people have asked me about swimming but are afraid they aren't good enough, Kim Petrarca suggested we have an invite a friend to swim day. We can learn a stroke, play some games and have a fun practice. What do you all think about this idea? Send me an email (mark.kline@yahoo.com) and let me know what you think.

The Joy of Swimming

2009-02-05T04:31:00.000-08:00

I have had the interesting experience of seeing my team hit a slump over the past couple of weeks. We are into the championship meets of the short course season and looking forward to the long course. Our team has experienced a great deal of success this season and it was disconcerting to see the sudden downturn in attendance and in interest for meets.

In thinking about this I realized that the entire team had gotten locked into the competitive aspect of the sport and we have not been making time for the sheer joy and pleasure of swimming. Over the past week I have been planning some fun and social time into the practice schedule and have noticed a sudden and profound increase in both attendence and positive attitude toward practice.

As coaches and parents, I am learning that it is vital to keep our sport fun! It is why we get into swimming in the first place and, I am convinced, it is why we continue with it throughout our lives.

The goal now, at least for our team, is to keep a good balance between the competitive improvement and the fun of being in the pool. I will keep you posted.

Lemonade is goooodddd.........

2009-01-11T14:16:00.000-08:00

This has been an interesting time. Our pool's heater has gone on the fritz and we have been forced into a dryland only program for the past 3-5 weeks. We had our first big meet this weekend and did incredibly well. In fact, this was our best team performance ever. It has led me to understand how important dryland training is in addition to water training. We definitely noticed that the disqualification rate had gone up and all DQ's were due to technical errors that arise from not being in the pool and practicing those skills. The endurance and strength of our swimmers remained the same or increased for all swimmers as a result of our dryland work. What this tells me is that a balance between the two is necessary for optimum swimming.

In the upcoming weeks I am going to conduct research on dryland training for swimmers and post what I find here. Please email me with suggestions if you can help me with this or if you would like me to look for specific topics of interest to you.

When life gives you lemons

2008-12-30T18:11:00.000-08:00

So our pool's heater broke. This was no big deal for the first 4 days but has quickly become a major issue. The temperature has dropped to about 72degrees. That had turned my younger swimmers lips blue. Literally!

So what do you do when this happens? Come up with a plan thats what. So I have been developing a dryland training program to last until the heater is repaired and still keep my swimmers in shape. We have also added a meet at another facility to keep them in the water during the interim.

Happy Holidays

2008-12-17T19:30:00.000-08:00

This is traditionally a down time in the swimming world so let me just wish everyone out there a happy holiday season full of love and good cheer!
Coach Kline

Swimming as TEAM sport

2008-12-04T08:13:00.000-08:00

Swimming is usually seen as an individual endeavor. The reality is that most of us swim to gain individual mastery of the sport but also because we enjoy the friends we have on the team and also the team atmospere!

If we don't develop a team identity and build a cohesive team environment, our efforts to improve each swimmer individually will be diminshed. We tend to work harder when we are working as a team than as an individual. Want more proof, look at ANY swimmers individual 50 meter free time and then look at their split when they are in a relay. Why is the relay split always so much faster? Because they don't want to let their teammates down!

Some things I do to foster a team spirit in practice.

I celebrate each and every birthday on the team. This has led to memorable stretches where we had 6 parties in a row but it also brought attention and more swimmers to the team!
We do team related activities (i.e. relays, group effort exercises) EVERY practice.
I require the adoption of team items (swim caps and t shirts) at every meet as well as require every swimmer to cheer for whomever is swimming at any given time.
I invite family members to participate in regular team parties and in practices and meets to involve the family in the "swim family".
I have a "peer instruction" day once each week at practice. This is a time when swimmers coach each other to improve storke methodology and get to know each other.

These actions have worked to create a tremendous team spirit and team involvment by swimmers and their families. I beleive it works to improve swimmers individually as well as the team as whole.

Swim to YOUR Strengths

2008-11-30T06:55:00.000-08:00

Swim training is a collaborative process between a swimmer and his/her coach. The coach has certain training, experience and knowledge that can be used to maximize training programs for each swimmer. The coach, however, can not swim for the swimmer. A generalized approach to technique instruction is necessary for younger swimmers up to a point. Once this point is reached, however, it is up to the swimmer and coach to work together to identify which aspects of the individual swimmers technique is their strength and to build the stroke around that while correcting weaknesses in training.

There are some general ideas to keep in mind when analyzing strokes as a swimmer:

Streamlining is key (you want to create as little resistance as possible as you move through the water by staying as horizontal as possible; keeping your head, neck and spine in a straight line; and keeping a low profile while breathing so you don't interrupt the stroke)
Keep a firm anchor on the water with your hands/arms in order to maximize how far you move with each stroke (you want to constantly keep your hands and arms in a position that moves the body forward, not up or down or side to side. Swimmers use lots of different stroke variations but all good swimmers are effecient at maximizing the amount of distance they move through the water with each stroke)
Keep a steady, fast kick (a steady fast kick keeps the body horizontal and thus more streamlined and provides a steady base of propulsion to help get more distance with each stroke)

Outside of these general principles, make sure your basics are sound (starts and turns) and build your stroke around your strongest aspects.

As an example, if you are a muscular teen you may work on a deep pull with little s shaped movement to maximize your upper body musculature. If you are a petite female, you may want to really focus on a streamlined position using lots of sculling (the s shaped hand/arm movements to maximize the amount of water you move through with each stroke in a more efficient manner).

Freestyle

2008-11-23T10:53:00.000-08:00

It is always possible to improve our freestyle technique. I believe this is important because the more comfortable we are with freestyle, the more comfortable we become with our other strokes as well. Today's tip for freestyle swimming:

Important key to freestyle: you spend most of your time on your edge or side, not on your belly! Imitate a sharp knife, on the edge of the blade, not a big soup spoon. Good freestyle, both swimming and drilling, requires you to rotate or roll your body along your "long-axis" or spine. You should also try to take breaths on alternate sides to help promote this good body roll. In these descriptions, if an arm is called the "front arm" it refers to the arm pointing to where you are headed. That side or edge of your body (shoulder to hip) is generally oriented towards the bottom of the pool, like the keel of a boat. The opposite edge (shoulder to hip) is aimed more "up" towards the ceiling (or the sky if you are lucky enough to swim outdoors) like a shark fin.

The open turn (breaststroke and fly)

2008-10-08T08:34:00.001-07:00

The details for an open turn for a belly down to a belly down stroke (like breaststroke) are:

Approach the wall.
Touch the wall with your hands.
Begin to pull yourself into a tuck, knees moving up towards your chest.
Look at your hands on the wall (you can begin to take a breath here).
Pull one hand underwater and away from the wall.
Move that elbow underwater towards the hip on the same side while still looking at the other hand left on the wall (helps prevent over twisting).
Twist onto your side as that underwater hand swings out (still keep your eyes on your hand on the wall to prevent over twisting) - this requires you to rotate along your spine and tip your hips towards the wall.
Continue to pull your knees towards your chest, aim them toward the shoulder attached to the hand moving underwater (this helps you rotate onto your side later).
Swing and extend the hand going underwater out and around, still underwater, to point the direction you want to go now (where you just came from).
As your feet approach the wall (when you pull your knees up, your feet better follow!), move the second hand off of the wall and towards your eyes, above water.
Plant your feet on the wall side by side, toes pointing sideways or upwards (at about 45 degrees).
You should be on your side and tipping away from the wall with your upper body.
Keeping your head turned (chin on your shoulder) and looking towards the wall (or up towards the ceiling as you follow your hand) as long as possible to help prevent over twisting, move the above water hand into the water just above your head and extend it to meet the underwater hand.
Lock the hands together, one on top of the other.
Your tipping should have brought you underwater, laying on your side, feet on the wall, hands and arms extended in a streamlined position.
Extend your legs and push off the wall on your side.
As your feet leave the wall, make sure you are rotated so your belly is more towards the bottom of the pool than the surface (this keeps you legal).
You've done it!

A common part of all turns is the streamline

To maximize your push off of the wall, remember to streamline.

Extend your hands over your head, pointing the direction you want to go, placing one hand on top of the other and wrapping your upper hand's pinky and thumb around your lower hand.
Stretch from your fingertips, through your body, down to your toes.
Make your body a long and as skinny as possible.
Your arms should be snug against the back of your head, biceps behind your ears, with a smooth (well, relatively smooth) surface from the back of your hands to the tips of your toes.

Maintain a streamline as long as you are moving faster than you can swim - just before you slow down, you will begin the "breakout" or transition from the streamline to swimming. Details later; for backstroke, butterfly, and freestyle, you begin to kick first, then add arms as you surface, then take a breath after completing a few strokes. Breaststroke is a pull first (full pull, with the hands finishing by your hips), then the hands recover back to a streamline, followed by a kick, then into your normal stroke as you surface.

An approach to practice...

2008-07-30T05:14:00.000-07:00

“In order to be a fast swimmer, you have to practice swimming fast.”

Indeed, many swimmers and triathletes enjoy training endurance because it feels like a real workout (the "no pain, no gain" approach). However with consistent endurance training, it is easy to fall into a pattern of swimming longer distances at slower paces.

Engaging the Core in Freestyle

2008-07-27T12:07:00.000-07:00

1) Have an intention to use your hands to "hold your place" in the water, rather than to push it back. Your hand will still move back; indeed to an extent it will still push water back. But that intention will cause you to engage core muscle more and arm muscle less.

2) Using the slight leverage offered by that gripping hand/arm, drive the "high side" of your body down. This taps the free energy available from gravity to assist in your intention. It also results in your swimming with your body, rather than using your arms to drag it through the water.

In freestyle, as your left hand is "patiently" establishing a grip, the right hip will be higher than the left. Rather than exert left-arm muscles to push water back, use them to stabilize your hold on the water as you drive the right hip down. Indeed think of using your right hip to drive your right hand past the gripping left. This should result in a sensation of sending energy forward rather than back.

Some Swim Strategy for strokes and Races

2008-07-25T07:41:00.000-07:00

FREESTYLE

Distance	Pattern	Pace
25 yards	As few as possible	Sprint
50 yards	Every 6 or 8	Sprint
100 yards	2-2-4 Build 1st 50 or every 3rd (Bilateral breathing).	Spirit 3rd lap Last lap takes care of itself.
200 yards	2-2-4 or 2-2-3 or 2-2-2-3 Build 1st 100	Sprint 3rd 50 Last lap takes care of itself.

Starts	No too deep Kick and streamline Do not breathe 1st stroke
Turns	Accelerate inside the flags Snappy flip turn Streamline and kick off wall Do not breathe 1st stroke
Finishes	Accelerate inside the flags Do not breathe last 5 yards Reach and touch the wall underwater - no extra stroke
100IM	Breathe 2 down - 1 up in the fly Build your backstroke Faster pace on breaststroke - stretch & streamline Finish strong in freestyle and remember your breathing pattern Good transitional turns Do not breathe last 5 yards at the finish
200IM	Breathe 2 up, 1 down in fly Build the 1st lap and sprint 2nd lap of each stroke Remember your zones - accelerate in and out of all turns Good transitional turns - long streamlines off all walls Stick to your breathing pattern and do not breathe last 5 yards in freestyle

BREASTSTROKE

Distance	Breathing Pattern	Pace
25 yards	Every stroke	Sprint
50 yards	Every stroke	Sprint
100 yards	Every stroke	Build 1st 50 Sprint 3rd lap Last lap takes care of itself

Starts	A little deeper than freestyle 3-2-1 pulldowns Accelerate inside the flags
Turns	"Karate chop" - telephone call" Touch with 2 hands Snappy flip A little deeper than freestyle 3-2-1 pulldowns
Finishes	Accelerate inside the flags Stretch for the wall - do not take an extra stroke Always touch with 2 hands under water

BUTTERFLY

Distance	Breathing Pattern	Pace
25 yards	As few as possible	Sprint
50 yards	2 down - 1 up	Sprint
100 yards	2 up, 1 down or every other	Build 1st 50 Sprint 3rd lap Last lap takes care of itself

Starts	A little deeper than freestyle Long streamline and dolphin kick hard to surface Do no breathe the first stroke
Turns	"Karate chop" - "Telephone call" Touch with 2 hands A little deeper than freestyle Long streamline and dolphin kick hard to surface Do not breathe the first stroke Accelerate inside the flags
Finishes	Do not breathe the last five yards of your race Accelerate and charge the wall Always touch wall underwater with two hands Reach for the wall Do not take an extra stroke on your finish

BACKSTROKE

Distance	Breathing Pattern	Pace
25 yards	As few as possible	Sprint
50 yards	2 down - 1 up	Sprint
100 yards	2 up, 1 down or every other	Build 1st 50 Sprint 3rd lap Last lap takes care of itself

Starts	Hands on gutter Long streamline 2-4 dolphin kicks then flutter Strong breakout stroke - 1 arm only
Turns	Accelerate inside the flags Know your stroke count from the flags without looking for wall Snappy flip Long streamline 2-4 dolphin kicks then flutter Strong breakout stroke - I arm only
Finishes	Accelerate inside the flags Know your stroke count Last stoke-head goes back and kick Charge the wall Always touch wall under water Do not breath the last 5 yards YES, even in backstroke!

2008-07-24T11:54:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the Sanford Dolphins Swim Team Blog!
I will use this space to post items of interest to the team and to swimming news in Sanford, NC.