When you’re a beginner swimmer, getting comfortable in the water takes time. But once you’ve mastered the basics, you can improve your strokes and build endurance by learning how to reduce drag.
Swimmers who have better body positioning and alignment can generate less frontal resistance, which translates to faster speeds. This is particularly true of freestyle strokes, where the most drag occurs in the upper body. Keeping the chest up high, minimizing shoulder motion and achieving good hand entry are all important factors in decreasing frontal drag.
The most common mistake in freestyle is dropping the elbow below wrist-level during the arm pull. This puts your hands in a bad position for propulsion and prevents you from recruiting the powerful back muscles, which can boost speed. To remedy this, focus on catching the water with a “high-elbow” catch, in which your forearm stays near vertical in the water as you pull it through the water’s surface.
A strong kick is vital for speed and power, but many swimmers neglect this important part of their stroke. A well-developed kick prevents the legs from sinking, reducing drag and giving you the extra boost you need to sprint at the finish line.
Another common mistake is lifting the head too soon to breathe. This unbalances the body, causing the hips and legs to sink. To avoid this, try to roll your body from side to side with each arm stroke. This helps you to engage the larger back muscles in addition to the shoulder muscles, which can add power to your arm stroke.
A high-shoulder rotation is also important for improving freestyle strokes. It ensures that the elbow is kept above the water’s surface, reducing drag and preventing injuries.
One last tip for beginners is to work on the recovery of each stroke. For example, during the arm recoveries, consider whether your swimmers enter their hands straight or with a “finger-drag” situation (bad) or whether they rotate their wrist to enter the hand in a more horizontal position that allows the thumb to lead the recovery to minimize drag (good).
Lastly, when choosing your swim lane, be sure to communicate any special needs or concerns to the coach before the session begins. This will help them to assign you to the most appropriate lane and make necessary adjustments in their instruction. For example, if you’re a beginner swimmer, it may be best to start in the slow lane, while experienced swimmers should aim for lanes closer to the wall. Also, don’t be afraid to ask for a lane with more space between you and other swimmers, as this can help reduce the chance of collisions or lane hogging. In the end, it’s all about having a great swim that you enjoy!