Ladies, want to have some fun with me?

[alpinerabbit]

#1 - May of last year: could not swim 500 in one piece yet
http://youtube.com/watch?v=B4tv69ac4lE

#2 & 3 from 3 weeks ago....
http://youtube.com/watch?v=jscQho48rQQ
http://youtube.com/watch?v=NjFARNckeew
This allows me to swim 1K in 18.40 (yah, I am kinda proud of that. in that case I would be going quite a bit faster ). I worked on the push through and breathing, but I was told I have too much kick. And frankly I thought I was floating better in the water.

Any hints?

[skinny_kitty]

Well, you LOOK great. I mean, really comfortable in the water and you've got a nice, low stroke count which is amazing. I envy your kick; and if it's not taking up any of your energy, why change it? You DO float better in the second videos -- your kick has brought your legs up.

Can you have a Masters coach check on your stroke? It seems to me that your catch isn't quite right -- your arms shouldn't go into the water above your head, rather in line with your shoulder. When you push with your hand, be sure to push back and not down. When your hand is at your hip, you want to break your wrist so that you're pushing the water back and not up. You also want to bend your elbow so that you can catch the water effeciently.

They say that the crawl is the stroke you swim on your side. Do you feel like you're rolling enough?

OMG!! My response to your thread sounds so friggin' didactic! I'm NOT a swim coach, but rather someone who's managed to increase my speed exponentially by refining my stroke (er, that would be my swim coach that has refined my stroke). It's funny how swimming is just so darned technical and some minor changes can really get your speed up.

Anyway, I hope there's some info here for you. If not, sorry to sound so, well, technical.

[alpinerabbit]

I don't mind your being didactic, just a couple things I don't understand what you mean....

your arms shouldn't go into the water above your head, rather in line with your shoulder.

you mean don't cross over... ? I try and will try even harder...

When you push with your hand, be sure to push back and not down. When your hand is at your hip, you want to break your wrist so that you're pushing the water back and not up.

yep I try

You also want to bend your elbow so that you can catch the water effeciently.

yep I try

They say that the crawl is the stroke you swim on your side. Do you feel like you're rolling enough?

yep I try

Can you have a Masters coach check on your stroke?

We have practices with our club but he never pointed out any grave errors (will ask him to be more picky).

[Starfish]

One thing I notice (but, this will only help if you are swimming in a pool, not open water) is that you could gain some speed on the way you are coming off the wall after your turn. (I understand that for filming, maybe this was not the objective...).

I have always been coached that the body moves faster through the water when it is streamlined and under the water, rather than breaking the water's surface. So, a person can really work on the strength and stability of the push off (from the wall), as well as staying under water longer, in a very streamlined position (hands together to form an arrow shape, head down in between arms to reduce drag).

I am no expert swimmer by any means. But, I think it really helped my times in the pool when I got to pushing off and kicking in a streamlined way under the water until a natural surfacing point some time well after the competition flags hanging over the pool, several body lengths out from the wall.

Again, only helpful for pool swimming.

[alpinerabbit]

oh yes, totally, this was just for filming, and for triathlon turns are not really an issue.

btw I want to have this guy's kick AND catch.

http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=l30-F4kUnoM

[Starfish]

btw I want to have this guy's kick AND catch.

http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=l30-F4kUnoM

I dunno...that guy looks a little like he is coming down on top of the water when his hand enters, as opposed to knifing forward into the water?

[HillSlugger]

I'd kill for 1K in 18.40!

I'm no expert swimmer, but it looks to me like you are lifting your head a little bit to breathe rather than simply turning it to the side. It looks more this way when you breathe on your left than on the right.

After your hand enters the water it looks like it travels too much to the center as it moves forward. I think you want it going straight forward.

That guy in the video looks like his arms enter the water and go much too forward rather than angling downward (too flat).

[alpinerabbit]

I dunno...that guy looks a little like he is coming down on top of the water when his hand enters, as opposed to knifing forward into the water?

Oh - I do not care for what he does over water, but underwater he's good, and 18:30 is base endurance pace for him....

it looks to me like you are lifting your head a little bit to breathe rather than simply turning it to the side. It looks more this way when you breathe on your left than on the right.

sometimes. I know. I can concentrate on it and it gets better.

After your hand enters the water it looks like it travels too much to the center as it moves forward. I think you want it going straight forward.

Agreed - that may be a combination of a slight "crossing over" and an escape movement, I am working on strength now.

[Starfish]

18:30 is base endurance pace for him....

Help this silly North American understand that.

Is that 18 minutes 30 seconds? For...________?

Just curious!

[HillSlugger]

Help this silly North American understand that.

Is that 18 minutes 30 seconds? For...________?

Just curious!

1000m

[Wahine]

5/8 of a mile.

[Starfish]

OK...about 1093 yards?

[alpinerabbit]

a plain and simple 1k. Get metric. hehehe...

[Starfish]

a plain and simple 1k. Get metric. hehehe...

That might make for some strange laps in my 25 yard pool!

[KSH]

Overall it looks really good.

Like the others said... your right hand goes in at 1:00 (imagine your head being at 12:00, like on a clock)... but then drifts to 12:00 once it enters the water. Your left arm goes in at 1:00 and stays at 1:00 though. I would wonder if in open water, if you drift to the left a lot because of that.

Otherwise, I can't really see anything that looks like a grave error.

My boyfriend currently has a swim coach and this is what she has told him... and it might apply to you. You have the stroke down and now you just need to push yourself. Find someone who is a tad bit faster than you and try to stay on their heels in the water.

Push it. Work it. Get to the point where your breathing is labored. Do some speed work. Go as fast as you can for 50... and then stop. Are you breathing hard? Good.

Find your cruising speed and your sprint speed. Do you know what those are?