Swimator Blog

Breaststroke Like an Inch Worm

2012-02-20T09:59:00.087+02:00

Breaststroke is probably the easiest stroke to learn, however, the toughest along with butterfly to learn correctly. If you look around your local swimming pool, you will see many people casually swimming breaststroke or at least something that very distantly resembles proper breaststroke. Many open water swimmers or triathletes also use breaststroke to take a break from their swim or to take a few moments to orientate themselves and sight their target (whether breaststroke is the best choice of stroke for this is another discussion :)). So, one could make the assumption, there is not much to breaststroke since majority of people can perform some sort of variation of the stroke. As someone wise once said though, "the devil is in the details" and this principle can also be applied to swimming breaststroke on a higher competitive level.

Breaststroke glide - Needs a bit more work :)

On my masters swim team in Finland, I have one very capable breaststroker (Johanna) who is a multiple national record holder in her age category and was second in all her breaststroke events in the 2011 European Masters Championships in Yalta. Very impressive results, however, there is always room for improvement right? :) And furthermore, one should never stop striving to be better otherwise we'd never evolve.

Since Johanna is an advanced swimmer, she masters all the common beginner breaststroke mistakes, so we need to look at her stroke from different angles. One of the approaches is to streamline her stroke with the focus on converting all her power and energy to help her go forward by minimalizing any other movement which would cause her body to slow down in the dense water. This may seem a simple concept, but it is not as easy to achieve as one might think.

We made an underwater video of her breaststroke swim and looked at different ways (not all) to make her body glide through the water smoother. Here are just a couple of pointers which you can take away from the analysis:

1) Streamline off the wall and on the underwater pullout: It is very important to keep the body in a long tight streamline when coming off the wall or off the start. Since you have a great momentum from your push off, your speed is the fastest during this part of the swim, therefore you need to take as much of an advantage of this as possible by making sure your body is as smooth as an arrow. (btw, this does not pertain to only breaststroke). After the initial streamlined glide, you will need to do the underwater pull with a breakout which consists of one double arm pull, one double leg kick and another double arm pull to get you swimming at the surface. Even if your off the wall streamline is as smooth as a javelin, a lot can go wrong during this arm pull and leg kick sequence. Any movement of your arms and legs which deviates from your body line or goes against the direction you are going in is a hindrance, so eliminating as much of any unnecessary big movements is a key.

a) On your initial arm pull, make sure to pull water backwards and not lift your body one or two steps up in the water column. Very common mistake indeed. Many swimmers, are very excited and try to make the initial underwater pull as large as possible not realizing that while doing so, their entire body is bending under the exerted arm pressure and instead of going smoothly forward, they travel upwards in a very abrupt jump. This first breaststroke pull is nothing else then anchoring your arms in the early vertical forearm stage and moving your body around those anchors forward. It cannot be rushed otherwise you will miss out on finding the proper initial catch. Hint: after you finished your catch and are gliding through the water in head first position, try shrugging your shoulders, you will be amazed at the effect:).

b) After you pulled and glided for a bit, you need to move the arms back forward (also called the recovery). We usually do not pay much attention to this, however, during the recovery your elbows can easily come high above your back and your hands far away from your body thus causing a disruption in your body line. Keep your arms and elbows as close to your body and chest as possible, so you minimize the drag and finish in an extended streamlined position again.

c) The breaststroke kick that comes after the recovery can also cause you to slow down. (this does not only pertain to underwater breaststroke, but to breaststroke as a whole). If you think about it, when you are loading your legs by bringing them closer to your body, the motion is against the direction where you are going. So ideally, the kick will be quite narrow staying within the constrains of the hole our body already made through the water. Obviously this is impossible as we have to bend the legs, but we can get very close. First, do not bring your knees forward, keep them back and think of it more as bringing your heels to your butt (practicing breaststroke kick on your back while keeping your knees under water is very good drill for this). Second, when you do the actual kick, do not concentrate on pressing out with your legs, but push the water backwards as if there was an imaginary wall and you are using your outer rotated ankles and shins to push off of it. Finally, don't forget to squeeze your legs together. Use those butt cheeks and inner thighs at the end of every one of your kicks to squeeze the soles of your feet together at the end of the kick. This will make sure your body is nicely streamlined during the glide phase of breaststroke. Word of caution here though, this squeezing part of the stroke, as simple as it sounds, is actually quite tiring on your body and on your mind, so introduce it into your stroke gradually. Perhaps, you can utilize this techniqe every other lap and see how you get on, before you add it to your stroke permanently. Just a reminder, don't forget the dolphin kick during the breaststroke underwater pullout phase.

Inch your way to breaststroke success by just_a_name_thingie

2) Horizontal body line is another aspect of how swimming breaststroke can go all wrong. If you look under water at majority of people who swim breaststroke, I bet you'd see an up and down motion at the beginning of their stroke. During the arm recovery, hands are shot out forward and downward which causes the entire body to follow down into the water only to later angle up to start the breaststroke pull closer to the surface again. This wave at the beginning of the stroke causes a bit of resistance as oppose to just shooting arms forward and keeping them at the same water level without going down and up again. Many coaches compare breaststroke to butterfly and teach it in a similar fashion, however, I am not convinced this is as good of an idea as it sounds, exactly for this reason. When we tell a swimmer that the breaststroke motion is like the butterfly motion which in turn is very wavy (at least from the sternum down), it brings up the idea in the swimmer's head that he/she should move the body as in butterfly which is one cause of the initial arm dip after recovery. A more accurate way to swim breaststroke would be to compare it to an inch worm movement, where the front legs and back legs are in the same horizontal plane and only get closer or further apart from each other as the worm inches forward. There is no up and down motion of the front body anywhere.

Johanna, the masters swimmer I mentioned at the beginning of this breaststroke streamlining post, has been working very hard to optimise her stroke in the last few months, so it will be very interesting to watch, what the little tiny improvements she has made to her stroke will do to her swims at the 2012 World Masters Championships in Riccione. So far, it has been quite exciting as she has been breaking one record after another to cause any disturbance in forward motion.

The above pointers are quite advanced when it comes to learning the correct breaststroke technique as they are tedious details, however, no matter what your breaststroke skill level is, you can take away the fact that swimming is not as simple sport as one might thing. The truth is actually the opposite, since water is so much denser than air to optimise a swimming movement, one must really pay attention to everything a body does, be it better streamline or less up and down motion etc. So if you are frustrated with your swimming skill level, don't worry, even the top swimmers in the world are battling little tiny details. So, be patient, mindful, and go out there and optimise your breaststroke :).

Guide to The Swimmer's Diet (Carbohydrate Me Please)

2012-02-13T11:22:00.002+02:00

Should I eat those smiley gummy bears lurking at me from the cupboard? One more piece of chocolate before I give it back. I'll just even out this corner of the ice cream box and then stick it back to freezer. I know we have all been there :). The temptation is everywhere and the media bombardment with delicious looking advertisements do not offer much help. However, eating something in your regular daily life is totally something else than creating a diet in order to give your body maximum chance to perform at its best. In this post, Marina will give us more insights on what it means to have a swimmer's diet.

Eat more sweet potatoes

This is a guest post by Marina Salsbury who planned on becoming a teacher since high school, but found her way instead into online writing after college. She writes around the web about everything from education to exercise.

Enter Marina:
Swimming is an excellent form of exercise, not only providing huge improvements in cardiovascular fitness but also developing muscle strength. In addition, swimming is easy on the joints, making it ideal for anyone with aches or injuries that other sports like running simply exacerbate. For those who consider themselves to be swimmers, a healthy swimmer's diet is an important part of feeding the muscles, having enough glycogen for workouts each day and adequate protein for recovery. Medical transcription services are beginning to be used in sports-related injuries, and as a result medical experts are becoming more understanding of the rigors of sports injuries. This guide introduces readers to the typical recommended diet for swimmers, as well as how to calculate calories required to perform as peak potential. It will also outline what foods and drinks are necessary leading up to and immediately following an important swim practice or swim meet.

What should your daily diet consist of?

During a typical week, swimmers should focus on their carbohydrate consumption. Carbohydrates are the main sources of energy that will be used during exercise. However, it is important not to think that focusing on carbohydrates means eating processed foods like cookies or chips. Instead, focus on healthier, wholesome foods like rice, whole wheat breads, fruits and sweet potatoes. Avoid high-fat and high-sugar foods that provide only empty calories and no nutrition. Having a small dose of these high-sugar foods will give you a temporary burst of energy, but the energy that comes will only result in a crash later in the day.

Pasta me up baby

Determining how many calories to consume?

In order to determine how many calories you'll need to consume daily, consider wearing a waterproof heart rate monitor during a typical week of swim training. This will help you see exactly how many calories your body burns in a week, which will need to be added to the maintenance calories you already consume. You should be consuming enough calories to provide you with adequate energy for swim workouts, but not so much that you are gaining weight while training.

What to eat BEFORE a swim meet or an open water/triathlon race?

The days and hours leading up to an important swim event are the perfect time for you to load your body with sufficient food to perform your best. Swimmers should ramp up their carbohydrate consumption in the days prior to a major event, but when doing so being careful not to over consume calories. Simply replace some of the typical fats or proteins you eat with high-carbohydrate items instead. Avoid trying any new foods or liquids, and focus on plain, typical foods that the body agrees with. Eat 3 hours prior to the swim meet, topping up your glycogen stores with pure carbohydrates just prior to the event.

What to eat AFTER swim meet or an open water/triathlon race?

After a strenuous swim event, it is important to refuel with food immediately. Some swimmers don't feel hungry right after exercising, but it is important to consume some calories within 30 minutes of the swim meet. There is a small window of opportunity where protein and carbohydrates can do the most good to replenish and restore muscles for a faster recovery, so take advantage of this and drink chocolate milk or eat a protein bar for quick nutrition.

By understanding what to eat during a typical week, it is possible to get more from your swimming and dryland workouts. With the right nutrition before and after your swim races, you give your body best shot on having a great race.

Note from Swimator Blog: I am no nutritionist, and am true believer of eating what you are hungry for, however, I've had my fair share of good and bad eating and swimming experiences, so I do know thing or two about what works and what doesn't when it comes to swimming. One anecdote that I find the most interesting would relate to the carbohydrate rich diet before swimming competition. Long time ago, when I still lived in the Czech Republic, I was in Viareggio, Italy at a Carnevale swim meet. We were there a few days and every day for lunch and dinner we had exactly the same pasta (baked Ziti I believe). As a young kid, I hate it to eat the same thing every day, however, that meet was one of the best ones in my life. I broke all my records and I felt like my swimming was out of this world. You also have to realize we drove down to Italy, so it was like 24hrs in a small car, no great picnic to be competing after :). Magic authentic Italian al dente pasta :).

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Best Swimming Tips of 2011

2012-02-06T09:38:00.003+02:00

After a short break, we are back with some highlights from the Swimator Blog archives for 2011. What swimming tips did you find the most interesting in 2011? That is the question. Below is a short list of the top 10 Swimator Blog swimming tips:

Libor from Swimator Blog in action

1) As traditionally, our novice and beginner swimmers are taking over with the two part beginner tips series on floating and standing up from floating tips and on relaxation and elementary body position tips.

2) Many visitors also wanted to know more about the proper body position in swimming and how to be more efficient in the water. Without mastering this concept, you might as well swim against the current.

3) Swimming faster is an elusive reality for many swimmers, so no wonder everyone wants to know how to do it. However, swimming faster is about stroke technique improvements, not being a yard/meter junkie, so be patient and master the basics first and always come back to them.

4) Among the popular topics on Swimator Blog is also a brief freestyle video analysis. One step in the learning to swim process is the ability to recognize issues in someone else's stroke, so knowing how to pick out the top freestyle stroke flaws brings you one step closer to your swimming success.

5) Getting water up the nose is an ongoing problem for many swimmers. Some swimmers master it from the start without even thinking about it, for some it is an unbeatable challenge. The two part series on how to stop water from entering your nose teaches you about the connection between the mouth and nose and how to close it and the more advanced human nose clip technique. Say no to choking on water :).

6) Ahh, the legs and the kick. This continues to be a pitfall for many triathletes and beginner swimmers. You should learn what to do with your body when your legs sink and how to improve your kick with special kicking workouts.

Open water and triathlon swimming tips

7) Swimator Blog has also avid breaststroke enthusiasts who are keen to learn more about the complex breaststroke arm movements, to conquer the even more difficult breaststroke kick and to recognize the top breaststroke flaws.

8) Finally, many swimmers and coaches are starting to focus more on the "if this than that" approach, than just blindly swimming laps. Swimator Blog's article on the effect of streamlining and better technique on the drag forces is also among the top 10, so that is exciting.

9) Along the same thinking as above, knowing what your freestyle swimming type is can help you determine what drills and workouts are the most beneficial for you. Do you know which freestyle type you are?

10) Not everyone is as comfortable in water as the most of us. And it appears it is actually more people than we might think, so no wonder that our novice swimmers or concerned parents found the "what should I do when I am drowning" article useful.

Bonus: To improve your swimming even more, join our 360swim Facebook or Twitter @360swim communities where we have daily posts of useful swimming tips, swimming advice, swimming trivia, swim workouts and many more.

There you have it. The most popular swimming tips from Swimator Blog for 2011. Happy belated New Year to everyone and don't be afraid of 2012, for what we know, the end of the world prediction was just a clerical error :).

Extreme Swimming Events in the New Year (Are you up for the challenge?)

2011-12-29T13:35:00.004+02:00

If you are after some challenging yet exciting New Year resolutions, why not set your goals a bit higher this year and attempt to properly train for and then undergo an extreme swimming event. I stress one more time the "train" part of the resolution as taking part in extreme swimming events without proper training is just plain reckless and could lead to serious injuries as we saw with David Walliams' Thames swim charity event. However, don't let this put you off. If you train a correct and smart way, your venture into the world of extremes should be an exciting one.

Polar Bear Swimming by farlane

This is a guest post by Jenna, a journalism student at Saint Louis University. Upon graduation, she hopes to travel the world while producing compelling content for the masses. When she isn't writing, you can find Jenna with her nose in a book, or her headphones in to block out the rest of the world.

Enter Jenna

Extreme Swimming Events

As swimmers, we like to challenge ourselves to go a little bit further or a little bit faster every time we hop into the water. While at times, we do enjoy a leisurely swim or snorkel, there are also times when we feel as though pushing ourselves to our outermost abilities is a must. For those swimmers who are looking for a way to spice up their swimming, here are a few challenges that just may be right up their alley:

Note: While entertaining, we don't necessarily recommend that all swimmers, even those with advanced skills attempt any of the following without proper training and preparation:

Swimming the English Channel (La Manche)

If you are looking for a challenge, then by all means try to swim the English Channel. The swim is a 21 mile swim in cold water with strong currents which are bound to move you over and double your distance. The best days for swimming the Channel are in the summer, but even then the water is only 60 degrees, and those that keep records of the swim only certify swimmers that do not wear wetsuits. On top of combating strong currents and chilly waters, swimmers will also have to keep an eye out for boats and jellyfish – neither of which are too fun to encounter.

English Channel Swimming Association

However, there are people certified to help you out if you so choose to cross the Channel. Certified pilots will help you stay on course and help you avoid jelly fish and boats so that you can experience the safest and most efficient swim. They will also give you food and water, and help you if you should run into an emergency situation. Either way, you will be in for one heck of a swim. Swimming the Channel is by no means an easy feat. In fact, more people have climbed Everest than swam the La Manche.

Polar Bear Plunge

If you live somewhere that gets cold in the winter, or is just near a body of water that stays pretty chilly all year long, then you have probably heard of the Polar Bear Plunge. These events are usually held on or around New Year's day and require swimmers to strip down to their swimsuits in chilly temps to jump into frigid waters. While this may not be a great swimming challenge, it is definitely a water challenge in and of itself that will be sure to shock your system. The largest plunge in the U.S., called Plungapalooza, is held in Maryland at the Sandy Point State Park every year.

While many Polar Bear Plunge veterans claim that the event cleanses them and boosts their mood, many doctors forewarn plungers of the dangers of jumping in to ice cold water because of the shock it can have on the body. (Note from Swimator Blog: It is much better to take it nice and slow when getting in and make sure to do some test runs before the actual event, so your body gets slowly used to the extreme temperatures).

Swimming the Cook Strait

Although not as long as the English Channel, swimming Cook Strait in New Zealand is just as daunting. This 19 mile swim is between the North and South island of New Zealand in waters that are teeming with marine life, and is considered one of the most dangerous stretches of water in the world. In addition to giant squid, Cook Strait is home to numerous species of dolphins, fur seals, and whales, including Orcas. However, it isn't the marine life that you have to worry about.

Cook Strait extreme swimming conditions

The Strait often has strong winds, large swells, and rough waters, and it is also right in the path of the roaring forties. The Strait also has strong currents which are often undetectable due to lack of tidal height change. Only 65 people have successful swam the Cook Strait, so you can imagine it is not for the faint-hearted.

So if you are in shape, undergone the proper training and looking for a challenge, consider one of the aforementioned. A few other honorable mentions include Catalina Channel and the swim around Manhattan Island. You could even attempt the Triple Crown of Open Water if you feel up to it.

From Swimator Blog: There are literally thousands of opportunities out there to get your extreme swimming bug out of your system. The above mentioned events are just a few of the most challenging examples. However, I will stress it one more time. If you are thinking about taking part in any of the plentiful extreme swimming events around the world, please do make sure you have a proper training plan starting many months prior to the event. As with marathons in running, swimming in extreme conditions in open water is becoming more accessible and more interesting for swimmers from all over the world, however, it could cause serious injuries if not taken seriously. So, don't be foolish, get your swimming technique sorted, then build up some endurance and rough/cold water conditions tolerance before becoming an extreme swimming junkie :). All the best to the New Year, may all swimming dreams and attempts come true.

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How to breathe with Swimmer's snorkel (front/center mount snorkel)?

2011-12-19T10:06:00.001+02:00

Since I am on the topic of breathing while swimming, let me explain, what seems as an obvious procedure, how to breathe through the swimmer's snorkel. Before we get to that, perhaps a bit of an introduction of what the swimmer's snorkel is and how it can help you improve your swimming technique.

Swimmer's Snorkel - #1 swim gear

Contrary to a common belief, the centrally mounted snorkel is actually not a modern invention. The first documented record of a front mount snorkel as an aid to swimming can be traced back to 1860s. Wow, how impressive is that? And today 99.99% of swimmers thing how hip and cool they are swimming with the newest gadgets :). Funny, how most of us associate things with the first experience we have.

Well, anyway, so what is swimmer's snorkel. As the name indicates the front mount snorkel attaches to the front of the head instead of the side as regular scuba or snorkelling snorkel equipment. It also has a more of a streamlined shape where the tip bends towards the back of the head and the snorkel body is flatter instead of round. And finally, it attaches to the head with a strap and not clumsily to a scuba mask (I opted into not wearing my snorkel when I scuba dive as it always just gets in the way).

Front mount snorkel is designed to help swimmer's technique and the snorkel can do this in several ways. First, when swimming with the center mount snorkel, the swimmer does not have to worry about breathing, therefore has one less thing to worry about and can bring undivided attention to some other part of the stroke such as body roll, early vertical forearm or healthy kick. Second, the snorkel serves as a sensory cue to keep ones head down while swimming. The swimmer can use the snorkel as a reminder to look at the bottom. Third, it is just plain fun to swim with a snorkel and it breaks up the monotony. Fourth, a swimmer can also use the center mount snorkel to help with chicken peck breaststroke problem by attaching the snorkel upside down and in the back along the spine. Fifth, using the front mount snorkel can help strengthen your lungs and here we come to the whole idea of this article.

So how do you breathe with the front mount snorkel you may ask? There are two basic ways. Obviously the intake of air has to go through the snorkel pipe, so I will not discuss that. However, the variation comes in when we talk about exhalation (getting rid off your air or blowing the air out of your lungs).

Exhaling through your nose

First method is to utilize your nose to blow the air out before the next inhale. This method makes sure that you are not sending breathed out air back into the snorkel pipe, so your pipe air is nicely rich with oxygen at all times. As we all know, when we exhale, our breath contains much higher concentration carbon dioxide than during the inhalation process, so by exhaling into the water we are getting rid off it there instead of the pipe. Furthermore, by exhaling through your nose, you actually get rid off the air quicker since you cannot control the amount of air coming out of your nose as you can with your mouth. However, this is not necessarily an advantage at first as it takes some time to get used to the fact that you inhale and exhale through different parts of your face. So, until you get used to it, you might feel like you get rid off all your air and then need to very quickly inhale. Also, don't forget that you still need to purge the water from the snorkel via your mouth when you push off the wall or if you get water in your snorkel at any time of your swim.

Exhaling through your mouth

The second method uses only the mouth to exhale, so the excess CO2 gets sent back into the pipe, it mixes with the fresh air and then it is inhaled as mixture back into the lungs. You may be wondering, why in the hell would I want to breathe out into the pipe through my mouth, that doesn't make any sense. I want oxygen, you told me so in the bilateral breathing article, don't I? Yes, you are correct, however, as anything in training, we always strive to improve something about what we do, be it perfecting your technique, strengthening your kick or improving your lung performance. And this is where the swimmer's snorkel also comes into place. Since you inhale and exhale through your mouth into one single plastic pipe, the air that you subsequently inhale has less oxygen and more carbon dioxide than normal fresh air. This in turn makes it over time a bit more difficult to breathe and you need to really focus on properly purging the air out as well as your stroke. Think of it in similar terms as in hypoxic breathing swimming sets where you'd breathe every 3rd stroke, every 5th stroke and every 7th stroke for a certain distance (25,50,100 or more if you are advanced).

There is one handy piece of additional attachment which can be placed on top of the snorkel tube and the sole purpose of this gadget is to restrict the flow of air into the tube. It is called the Cardio Cap. While using the Cardio Cap your lungs have to work even harder to get the appropriate oxygen intake. In a way, it is like swimming in an altitude where the air is a bit thinner. So, you can be in Colorado or apparently now even in Australia, even if you are at your local swimming joint. If you are not into buying gadget and you'd rather try this in some other way, you can always stick your tongue into the tube during the inhalation process which makes the inhalation a bit harder as you are restricting the intake flow.

Dry Top - keeps water away

So what is the key take away from all this breathing through swimmer's snorkel stuff? It is simple, there is no right and wrong here. If you use the snorkel to improve some part of your stroke and do not want to worry about getting into an oxygen debt, then breathe out through your nose (if you can master this technique). If you are a bit more advanced and can do many things at ones or if breathing out through your nose causes you some issues, then why not purge your excess air out through the pipe to make you work a bit harder. Ideally, you'd be able to switch your breathing type and pattern on the fly, so either of these is possible, but this comes with time and practice as everything else in the complex world of swimming motions :). For example, I've been always using only my mouth to breathe in and out of the snorkel. If I switch to the nose exhalation, I get a bit confused and constantly have to think about breathing through my nose, so in theory it actually defeats the purpose of the snorkel as I cannot concentrate on something else. Of course, if I were to practice the nose breathing technique, after while it would be like second nature to me and I could enjoy my technique work in more comfort.

If you really struggle with using the center mount snorkel, perhaps the issue is that you are afraid of getting water into the tube and choking on it. In that case, you should check out the Dry Top attachment. The Dry Top is a small, yet sophisticated device which attaches to the top of the snorkel and prevents any water seeping into the tube while you are swimming. So, leave your worry behind and get snorkeling :).

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Top 7 Swimming Gift Ideas this Christmas (Gifts from Swimmers for Swimmers)

2011-12-15T10:37:00.000+02:00

If you are still on a hunt for the one perfect Christmas swimming gift for your loved ones or even for yourself, don't look any further. Let me highlight a few swim items which I think would make a perfect gift for a swimmer.

Gifts for swimmers of all abilities

Firstly, I apologize to those swimmers who do not celebrate Christmas, but this swim gift list does not have to be only for this holiday occassion, so feel free to get ideas for your holiday or for any other celebration such as birthday or nameday. Or sometimes giving a swim gift, just because it is a nice thing to do, can go a long ways.

Personally, I am not a big fan of useless gifts which one does not need or which are for decorative purposes. If I give a Christmas gift, then it has to be a true useful item which the person will get to utilize in their live. I know, I know, this ideology does not work well with many as it should be the idea of a gift that counts and not the gift itself. But I still have hard time giving something that I know the other person will not use. With that in mind, same ideaology can be applied to swimming gifts. Some swim items are not very useful, even though they might be cool looking, on the other hand, some swim items make swimmer's journey to a good swimming technique much easier. With further ado, here are the top 2011 gifts for swimmers:

Swim Gift #1: Swimmer's snorkel to get your mind focused without the breathing distraction. Whether you want to work on your rhythm or your above water recovery using the Swimmer's snorkel will keep you distraction free.

Swim Gift #2: TechPaddles or Antipaddles to get that forearm feeling the water and improving your stroke efficiency with the high elbow catch also called the early vertical forearm.

Swim Gift #3: Zoomers Gold or shinfing leg fins to stop your legs from sinking to the bottom, to teach you the right way to kick and to strengthen the right kicking muscles.

Swim Gift #4: SafeSwimmer Float or Aquaspotter for your open water safety. If you are in the triathlon or open water group, safety is the number one concern when you are out there without any swimming lanes or swimming pool walls. So do not take it for granted.

SwimSense Performance Monitor

Swim Gift #5: Wetronome or the Finis Tempo Trainer to find your perfect stroke rhythm and to keep you going like the Duracell bunny.

Swim Gift #6: Subscription to goswimtv.com or the Clean Up Your Stroke DVD set to be better equipped with the right knowledge from the best in the swimming business.

Swim Gift #7: SwimSense or Swimovate Pool Mate performance monitoring watch gadgets to give you even more to think about when you swim :). These swim gadgets are really only for the advanced group who need to keep track of their swimming with online training logs, analyze their stroke counts and pace. However, they do add a bit of a motivation to your swimming which is always useful.

Bonus Swim Gift: last but not least you can recommend Swimator Blog to all the enthusiastic swimmers on your list to give them the gift of knowledge :), so their swimming improvements come in leaps and not in strides.

There you have it, the best Christmas gift ideas for swimmers as I see them. I just concentrated on swimming technique related gifts, so have omitted some obvious swim items such as swimming Ts with different slogans, customized swimming caps or just plain ol' swim suits.

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Three Tips for Learning to Float (Set yourself up for a floating success)

2011-12-12T10:35:00.015+02:00

Learning to float can be a daunting tasks for many novice swimmers. If you are just starting out or tried it out before and got discouraged because you couldn't get passed the floating stage, perhaps the following piece of advice will help you to get over the initial learning curve.

Keeping your arms at the surface or out of the water causes
your butt and legs to sink

Whatever the reason may be, whether you are afraid of falling due to the weightlessness feeling in the water or you are afraid of hitting your head on the bottom of the pool or just the thought of tipping over to your back scares you, without learning to float you cannot continue and enjoy swimming. Learning to float is an absolute necessity in a good learn to swim program, so do not try to skip this step. The more time you spend on learning to float and the better you will get at this will determine your next progress.

From my previous head and body position posts, you already know that your eyes need to be pointing towards the bottom of the pool and you need to stretch your body into a nice straight line at the surface of the water. However, as simple as this sounds, it is still very difficult for many to get to the relaxed long position. So let me give you a few tips which will ease your transition from standing up to floating, thus setting you up for success.

1) Eliminate any unnecessary movement

How you start your exercise determines in many cases how well you can do the exercise, so let's focus on what to do with your body before you actually get into the floating position. The main point here is that you need to be flush with the water and ease yourself into the float instead of starting your float from high up and falling into it. Imagine the following, take a tennis ball and drop it into the swimming pool while standing on a chair on the side of the pool. Chances are the tennis ball, driven by gravity, will hit the water and get submerged and then pop back up to surface and then again gets submerged a little less and pop back up to surface. The tennis ball will do this few times until it reaches a calm floating state. Now, instead of dropping the ball from the standing on a chair position, bend down to the pool's edge and nicely place the tennis ball onto the water. Because you were gentle, there is no bopping in and out of the water, the tennis ball just nicely floats without any distractions. Similar concept applies to anything you do in swimming, especially when you are just starting out to learn to float. If you start too high, you will more than likely be sinking and coming back to surface and sinking again, so it is important to eliminate this extra movements from the start. So, next time you are practicing your floats, assuming you are in a shallower water where you can stand up, squat down (bend your knees), so your shoulders are flush with the water. I don't mean, bending forward, just get yourself lower into the water, so your distance from the surface of the water is smaller (like with the tennis ball). The only thing that is sticking out of the water is your head. Your body is still vertical, just lower in the water due to your knee bend.

Keep those hands under water.

2) Start below the water

When you are nicely submerged up to your neck in the water, you are basically in a good position to get started. When you first learn to float, you should have your arms extended forward (no elbows bending here please :)), so you add more weight to the front of your body which in turn will make it easier for your legs to float. However, this is where many novices run into trouble as they try to stretch very tensely with their arms forward like they'd be reaching for apples. This causes their body to be rigid and more importantly their arms stick out of the water when they float. So, extend your arms forward and relax them. You can pretend there is a ledge 1/2 foot (~15cm) below the water and you want to rest your palms on that ledge. Let the water support the arms and relax your neck and shoulders. At no point in time should your fingers or hands break the surface of the water, otherwise, you will start slowly sinking.

3) Get into the position before you start

Let's recap, you are close to the surface with your shoulders below the water, your arms are extended forward, yet relaxed and they are below the surface of the water. The only thing that remains is to take a breath, put your face in the water, so your eyes are looking at the bottom of the pool and your entire head is below the water. At this stage you are ready to give yourself a little gentle push from the bottom of the pool or from the side of the pool and you can float. Note: if you want to blow bubbles, feel free to do so, but I'd suggest to try both variations, with blowing bubbles and without as some folks do not float very well and when they start blowing bubbles, they are getting rid off their floating ability even more :). However, don't be afraid, most of you will float very well as your lungs will keep you at the surface.

Applying downward pressure on the arms and upper body.

As mentioned above, the major issue here is that your arms should never ever break the surface of the water as it is with majority of novices which try to float. Another way to think about it is that your arms and your body do not actually form a true straight line, you are pushing your arms a bit down when you float. This is very bad analogy in terms of our history, but it could work in this sense. Do you remember Hitler's straight arm greeting which was used by Nazis during WWII? If so, then just move the arm from that position another foot (~30cm) up towards the sky and you will have the right position for your arms. Maybe a bit less gloomy analogy is to pretend you are laying on your stomach on a bench (as if you are floating). The bench is about a 1/2 foot (~15cm) high off the ground. Your chin is right at the edge of the bench, eyes looking down and your arms are extended forward and your fingers/palms are touching the ground somewhere in front of the bench as opposed to being a straight line extensions of the bench itself.

Have fun with it and remember, patience and gentle movements are very important when learning to float. You can get more tips to improve your swimming by joining our growing Swimator Facebook community or following us on Twitter @360swim.

Get Speedo's Fastskin3 for Free (Swim Smarter, Not More Expensive)

2011-12-05T14:05:00.000+02:00

That got your attention didn't it? Well, now that you are here, let me reveal the well guarded secret how you can get your own Fastskin3 from Speedo totally free.

Fastskin3 Swimmer Models (sponsorship=slavery)

What is Fastskin3?

It is a supposedly revolutionary swimming equipment composed from 3 parts of swim gear: swimming cap, goggles and a jammer suit for men and shorty suit for women. Not much innovation there in terms of type of equipment, is it? However, the main idea here is that by wearing the Fastskin3 equipment you eliminate or streamline certain contours of your body to make yourself more efficient in the water, therefore become faster swimmers. Sounds good so far?

Well, don't go celebrating an efficient swimming stroke just yet :). I have nothing against Speedo and am a great fan of people who try to promote swimming or bring swimming to the next level, which obviously Speedo's Fastskin3 racing system is doing, however, I just can't help and be critical in response to the video Speedo put out as an introduction to the Fastskin3 swim wear. It just seems that swimming is becoming more about technology than about the swimmer him/herself which makes the sport exciting (at least for me). However, who can argue with our society if this is what it takes to keeps people interested in the sport. Without interest, any sport is as good as dead, so introducing a new technology is unfortunately a necessity in today's world.

If I watch and listen to the Fastskin3 video (watch it below), I can't help but wonder what the hell they are talking about half the time. Perhaps this was their marketing approach to provide a video full of terms 99% of people on the planet do not understand and confuse trustworthy swimmers into thinking that by purchasing the Fastskin3 equipment they will become faster. Sure, we can't stop technology from entering our daily lives and we definitely cannot stop progress as that is a natural way of things. However, we can still wonder and question it can't we? :) Let's breakdown the Fastskin3 swim gear and see what we can get out of it for free.

Fastskin3 Swimming Cap

Speedo indicates that the swimming cap was designed with 3d global head scan. Hmm, unless they are going to custom scan everyone's head, how does that help you, since everyone's head and neck are different. They also indicate that the cap features IQ fit profile. I can't even begin to understand what that is. Does that mean if you have certain IQ it works better for you? And don't even get me started on the Speedo hair management system which goes below the cap. It totally resembles a very old school Lycra swimming cap, nothing more and nothing less. However, I can see how it helps to keep your hair out of the way and smooths out the contours of the head. Finally, the Fastskin3 cap is designed to fill the curve in the shape of your neck, to make the back of your neck more streamlined. From the video, I fail to see this feature, but let's take their word for it.

So, how can you get the Fastskin3 swimming cap for free? Well, the cap helps to streamline your body, so let's focus on how you can achieve the same result with your head without a cap. No matter what slick and fancy bleeding edge swimming cap material you have on your head, you will not swim faster unless you fix up your head position. I discussed the high head position problem on this blog on many occasions, so next time you are working on your head position with nice and tall body line and flat neck, just imagine you have the Fastskin3 cap on your head and perhaps this visualization will help you get the right streamline effect. So in a way you will use the new Fastskin3 cap technology to your benefit without actually spending a dime. If you really would like to get even closer to the Fastskin3 streamline efficiency, you can opt into wearing two swimming caps. One latex and another silicone over top of it. Beware though, this will increase your head's buoyancy a little, so you will have to push your head down with a bit more effort, so get used to it before you race in it.

Fastskin3 Goggles

The goggles just look plain bizarre for my taste, but let's say we give them a futuristic chance. Again and IQ fit type of stuff with 3D seal. Can you imagine something else than 3D seal? How would a 2D seal work? :). The Fastskin3 goggles are advertised to improve contours of swimmers head. Ok, I can see how that would make some very small efficiency difference if the goggles were smoother, but then again, everyone's eye socket sizes are different, so not one size fits all solution here I am afraid. The next thing is the advertised hydroscopic lense with 180 degree field of vision. First, humans don't even have 180 degree field of vision and I am not so sure how something like that would help you in the swimming pool anyway. I've never heard anybody complain about needing more field of vision in the pool. In open water swimming, there it is a bit of different story and that is why those full goggle masks are quite popular. Speedo also says the Fastskin3 goggles have secure and confident fit. I say, any goggles have secure and confident fit if they are under a swimming cap, they match the swimmer's face and the swimmer feels good about them.

Put goggle strap under your swimming cap

So, how can you get the Fastskin3 goggles for free? Well, make sure you buy goggles which are comfortable and not too large on your face. When wearing a swimming cap, put the goggle strap under the cap, so they are more secure. Then if you can, move the edges of your cap over the goggles, so the goggles and the cap create more of a smoother contour. That said, however, no goggles will make you swim faster if you do not fix your stroke. So instead of buying the newest of the newest swim goggles, why not concentrating on improving your head position during breathing. Keep your head low, make sure you blow out bubbles before you breathe, so your breath is brisk and try to maintain one goggle in/one goggle out of the water position. Another way to describe it, if you breathe during freestyle, push the top of the head into the water, so it will feel like you are swimming down the hill. This is an unusual feeling that many of use need to get used to before it becomes natural. The SwimSmooth guys explain it very well in their Clean Up your Stroke DVD set.

Fastskin3 Suit

Speedo is definitely onto something when they say their Fastskin3 suit is a network of bonded seems and panels. In fact, majority of newer swimming suits are just that. :) The Speedo Fastskin3 suit is uniquely zoned and graduated body compression system, it offers precision support and greater stability in the water. Ok, now this makes sense, the more you compress your body the more streamlined you will be in the water, right? However, what is precision support and how can you get greater stability with a swimming suit in the water? What you will get is your butt and thighs not flopping around while you swim, thus reducing a bit of a drag, which is a good thing of course, but unless it is a flotation device you will not get any extra support nor will you feel more stable. And we all know what happened to the full body suits, last time swimming companies tried to change the swimming rules. Speedo also claims that the suit enhances the speed of starts and turns which I actually believe, as your body is in the highest speed during the start or turn activity and it is fully submerged under water, so any small extra wiggle will slow you down.

So, how can you get the Fastskin3 suit for free? How about improving your core body muscle strength in order to be able to hold better streamlined position when your feet and arms are forcing your body in all the directions. Also, what about not swimming on your stomach during freestyle, but practice a proper body roll, so your body glides better. Finally, improving your freestyle kick efficiency by making sure your kick is small and compact as if you were kicking in a bucket and paying close attention to what your legs do when you take a breath. Do they go into scissor like motion? If it is a yes, then just keeping your feet in line with your body instead of doing a scissor kick trumps any drag reduction by utilizing a Fastskin3 suit or any suit as a matter of fact.

Speedo is a pioneer, but not for everyone

I don't doubt that Speedo has done a great job on their research when producing the Fastskin3 cap, Fastskin3 goggles and the Fastskin3 suit and the claimed 16.6 passive drag reduction, 11% improved oxygen economy, 5.2% active drag reduction is probably true. However, this only applies to the top of the crop Olympic swimmers such as Ryan Lochte, Michael Phelps, Jessica Hardy, Rebecca Soni, Ian Thorpe or Sun Yang. It is not an accident they mention the following sentence "the world's fastest racing system combined with the world's fastest swimmers". Without the world's fastest swimmers, it is just another ordinary cap, goggle and suit combination, so don't be fooled by marketing and swim smarter instead of more expensive. On the other hand their marketing probably works well since I spend the time writing this article :).

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What is bilateral breathing? (Does bilateral breathing mean to breathe bilaterally?)

2011-11-28T12:59:00.001+02:00

There is a fundamental difference between actually performing bilateral breathing and the ability to perform bilateral breathing in freestyle. Many beginner swimmers get confused with the terms they read on miscellaneous swimming blogs and learn to swim sites. They often read about bilateral breathing and automatically assume that they have to breathe to both sides all the time. By all the time, I mean breathing every 3rd arm stroke, so the rhythm would be: breathe to the right, stroke, stroke, stroke, breathe to the left. Then they are all confused why swimming has suddenly become very hard for them and they are breathless when they reach the end of the swimming pool. Finally, they resort to reading more about bilateral breathing and wondering how come it is not helping their swimming. It actually made their swimming harder. If you fall into this category, read carefully the following advice.

Do you have the ability to breathe bilaterally?

The key concept to understand is that bilateral breathing is just a term used to describe a motion in swimming where a swimmer breathes to both sides. That does not necessarily mean that to swim properly you need to rhythmically breathe to both sides though. What it means that you should know how to breathe to both sides aka bilaterally, but there is time and place where the actual rhythmical bilateral breathing is needed.

Like it or not, our bodies have two sides and if we heavily strengthen one side by repeating a certain activity our bodies will evolve, so to say, and adapt to that particular activity. The adaptation usually comes in terms of strengthening or stretching muscles. Unfortunately, the majority of us are either right handed or left handed and only few are ambidextrous. My guess is that if you do a bicep flex to show off your muscles, your leading arm will probably have a bigger bulge. Or next time you are in your bathroom, try cleaning your teeth with your weaker hand. You will see how difficult it is. Swimming on the other hand, requires a certain level of ambidexterity and here we are back at the bilateral breathing problem. If a swimmer only knows how to breathe to one side, it could create a whole lot of problems such as, not having the same body roll to both sides, not swimming in a straight direction in open water, imbalance in important neck muscles or you might permanently end up with a Popeye like mouth grimace :) (and many more). So, learning to breathe to both sides has also a health benefit as well as swimming benefit.

Make a Popeye mouth to breathe

Also, imagine you are swimming in a race or in the ocean and you only can breathe to your right side. Now, what if there is a swimmer with very strong and splashy kick to your right side or there are huge waves coming from the right. What will you do then? Take the beating and keep breathing water instead of air and potentially choke your way back to the finish line or to the beach? If you can't breathe to the other side, then that is probably what you will do, but if you can, then you just switch your breathing to the left and you are set and water choke free.

So as you can see, breathing bilaterally has a lot of benefits, but back to the initial point I was making. Bilateral breathing does not only refer to breathing rhythmically to both sides, it most importantly refers to the ability to breathe to both sides. You need to understand that your body needs oxygen. While you can strengthen your lungs and make your oxygen consumption more efficient, the more oxygen you have the better you can perform. Therefore, the more breaths you can take during your swim, be it 100 meters (yards) or 1500 meters (yards), the better off you are in terms of not feeling out of breath. Therefore, if you set yourself up to rhythmically breathe every 3rd stroke, which means you breathe once to the left and once to the right and so on, this means you are not getting oxygen for three strokes and this is where most beginner swimmers go wrong. Even though it is only 3 strokes between breaths and it might feel ok for the first length of the pool after a little while you start feeling the lack of oxygen. You might as well quit swimming and join the extreme apnea divers if you get high on lack of oxygen :). It would be much more beneficial if you breathe every other stroke, where you only have one stroke without breathing and you breathe only to one side at a time. Sounds much better doesn't it?

Keep a good body line when breathing

You might now be wondering, well, how is that bilateral breathing if I only breathe to one side all the time? Easy answer. You will not breathe to one side all the time. You can try breathing to the left half the pool length and then breathing to the right the other half or 20 strokes to the left and 20 strokes to the right etc. This way you will make sure your body both gets enough oxygen and stays healthy. Note of warning though, the assumption I was making here is that you are able to breathe properly and every time you take your face out of the water to breathe you do not slow down. In other words, your breathing technique is not causing drag problems in your swimming. If you feel that this breathing every stroke is not for you, why not change it a little and breathe two times to the right and then two times to the left with three strokes between. This is still much much better in terms of oxygen intake than breathing every third stroke at all times.

If you think you have the freestyle bilateral breathing ability down to 100% perfection, you can test your breathing skills by breathing every stroke. This means you breathe with every arm stroke and maintain the true rhythm of bilateral breathing. In other words, the rhythm is breathe right, breathe left, breathe right, breathe left :). This is an advanced skill and you might feel quite dizzy if you try to do this for too long with too high a stroke rate frequency. However, it is a great test of how well and efficiently you can breathe without sacrificing your freestyle streamline. If you can do this well without zigzagging all over the place, it comes in extremely handy during your freestyle swimming races or swim workouts as you will get much more oxygen than anybody else. If you think I am crazy, think again. This is a true pro skill which is used by the best of the best in the world.

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Swim Smooth DVD review: Clean Up Your Stroke (Practicing one thing at a time)

2011-11-24T11:23:00.005+02:00

Swimator Blog November 24, 2011 Final rating: 5/5

The Swim Smooth's Clean Up Your Stroke DVD set is not your usual learn to swim program on DVDs. It is more of a series of short hints and tips addressing a few important aspects of an efficient freestyle stroke. The DVD is split up into a few logical sections: Breathing, Head Position, Leg Kick, Body Roll, Recovery, Hand Entry, Catch and Pull, Visualization. Paul Newsome, an accredited level II triathlon coach who coaches triathletes in Western Australia, will breakdown each of the parts of the Freestyle stroke into a few drills, so you can concentrate on one part at a time and don't get all tangled up with trying to swim the full stroke whilst also trying to fix a problem.

Swim Smooth's Clean Up Your Stroke DVD set

Breathing - Get the oxygen in

Breathing is the essence of any sport's activity and swimming is not any different. Actually, a good breathing technique in swimming is even more crucial than anywhere else since we are a bit tied to a certain rhythm and cannot take a breath whenever we want. The first part of the Clean Up Your Stroke DVD explains the importance of bubbles and the usefulness of bilateral breathing as well as shows you some drills to make your breathing a bliss. If you want to know what bubble bubble breath stands for or what a very useful isometric exercise is, just get Swim Smooth's DVD set and you will find out :).

Head Position - Say no to neck pains

Your head position is one of the key factors which determines how efficiently your body moves through the water, so it is very pertinent to get this right. Paul describes the pros and cons of the two schools of thought regarding your head position in the water. The old school, water at your hair line vs. the new school with eyes at the bottom of the pool and water going over your head. Which one is better for you? I am a fan of the new school of thought, so if you are starting out your learn to swim endeavor, this is the way to go. Once you become more advanced and go into open water or triathlons, then it is time to play around with your head position, depending on the water conditions and your body floating ability.

Leg Kick - Turn on the motors

Strong legs is one of the key spices which make your swimming delicious. Without a good kick, you can forget it. Even though you should not kick very fast at all times when you swim, your entire learning to swim career revolves around drills which require a good kick for a good balance of your body. In the Leg Kick section, Paul discusses the proper way to streamline (or torpedo as they call it down under) and the drills that can help you with keeping your body in an arrow like body shape for as long as possible. He also shows you the right way to kick with a very simple yet effective drill as well as explains when you should utilize fins in your workouts to maximize their purpose for kick improvement.

Paul Newsome working with his swimmers

Body Roll - Rollin', rollin', rollin'

The importance of body roll was discussed on Swimator Blog many times and it is a key concept in swimming. Without a proper body roll, you will struggle to breath, you might suffer from shoulder injuries and you will also never reach your full potential in your swimming. Paul shows you an unarguable fact which proves that rolling your body is better than swimming flat. Then he explains and performs a few effective drills which will help you get the right balance and body roll in the water. For example, the 616 or 323 freestyle drill which helps you with improving your body roll and subsequently with bilateral breathing.

Recovery - Relax and enjoy

Recovery is the motion your arm/hand performs out of the water. This is what most of us see when we watch a swimmer in the pool or in the Olympics. However, instead of just an aesthetic part of the stroke, the way a swimmer performs arm recovery determines how effective the swimmer's stroke can be under the water. In the Recovery section of the DVD, you will be introduced to Alexander Popov drill which made the Russian swimming tsar the elegantly graceful swimmer he was. Paul will also show you the difference between high elbow and straight arm recovery and how they affect your stroke.

Hand Entry - Don't over think it

How you enter your hand into the water usually determines how well you can grab onto water and push yourself through the water at the later part of the stroke. Fingers first, flat hand, crossing over or thumb first? Those are just a few concepts Paul addresses in the Swim Smooth's DVD section called Hand Entry. Furthermore, if you suffer from shoulder impingement, perhaps Paul's Spearfish drill for hand entry practice could just be the thing to get you rid of the pain.

Paul Newsome explaining the importance of a high catch

Catch and Pull - Go forward

"To S pull shape or not to S pull shape, that is the question :)". If you ever wondered, how your hand/arm should move through the water during freestyle, wonder no more. Don't be stuck in the 80's, forget about S pull shape. Pull straight through and maximize your swimming force. In the Catch and Pull part of the DVD, Paul Newsome explains why the S pull shape is an old school thought and why it is inefficient. He then goes on to explain what sculling is and how mixing cold and warm water in your bath tub could actually be an important motion in learning the under water pullthrough in swimming (btw, this is one of the best analogies to explain a concept in swimming I have heard in a long time). Finally, Paul talks about the time and place for using paddles and pullbuoys, which goes hand in hand with what I am preaching on the Swimator Blog, trying to get all the triathletes to start swimming smarter and not just following what they see in other inexperienced triathletes.

Visualization - Smooth swimming is priceless

Some of us like to learn by reading, some by listening, some by watching. We all are different, however, no matter what your learning style, if you combine two or three of these learning styles together, you will be more likely to succeed. In swimming or any sports, seeing someone perform the particular motion and trying to mimic this motion is priceless. In the last Visualization section of the DVD, Bill Kirby, a 2000 Sydney Olympic gold medalist from an Australian relay team will swim for you for a few minutes, so you can visualize his lean and smooth stroke next time you are in the pool. Give it a shot, it could just do wonders for you.

Clean up your Freestyle stroke

Bonus, who does not like bonus?

There are a few extras included as a bonus in the DVD. You can learn how to improve your stroke rate with the revolutionary Metronome device, how to write your own swimming workouts, what is the equipment that should definitely be part of your swim gear bag and more. An important Open Water Skills section is also included. It is loaded with tips on wetsuit purchases and specific open water swimming drills. Even though swimming is done in the water, to be a good and healthy swimmer, you need to have some core strength and good flexibility. In the last extra section, Paul will guide you through some important stretches to improve flexibility and some dryland exercises to help you gain the right swimming muscles strength. The third and last DVD included in the package contains a full 8 week program for you, so you have some initial guidance in and out of the pool to get you started on your way to perfect freestyle stroke.

Finally, if you really want to see Paul Newsome in his sexy blue swim suit :), you should definitely get his DVD set. If this does not entice you, how about a great English and Australian accent guiding you through your swimming stroke correction drills :).

Summary: Pros and Cons

So, there you have it. The Swim Smooth's Clean Up Your Stroke DVD set is a very nice resource for swimmers who are looking to improve their freestyle stroke or just overall swimming fitness. All the different sections have nice guidance from Paul as well as a few example swimmers in the water with a commentary and text to explain what you should be focusing on and what you should avoid. Each section also has some examples of how not to do it, which in my opinion is priceless comparison for the visual learners out there. In a way, listening to Paul is like having a coach on the pool deck tell you exactly what you should be doing.

I'd say that the Clean Up Your Stroke DVD is targeted towards swimmers who have already acquired some basic skills and are now looking to make their swimming more efficient and streamlined. The breakdown of the DVD into meaningful parts of the freestyle stroke brings a quite logical view of what an improving swimmer should focus on. I would not recommend this DVD to true novice swimmers who are just getting accustomed to the feeling of their bodies in the water as the concepts, yet not advanced, are a bit tough to apply to your swimming if you struggle with some basic body and head positions. I'd mainly recommend this DVD to all the folks who can already swim up and down the pool a little and are feeling frustrated that they are not really improving anymore or just don't know where to go next with their improvements.

Remember, focus on one thing at a time and if you start feeling like all is going to hell, then stop, refocus and try again. Otherwise you are just wasting your time.

Final rating: 5/5

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Zoomers Gold review: Improve your freestyle kick in a soft rubber comfort

2011-11-17T00:22:00.003+02:00

Swimator Blog November 15, 2011 Final rating: 5/5

One of the toughest things to learn in swimming is a proper effective and efficient kick. Many coaches can tell you that having a great kick is the essence of fast swimming, however, many coaches also struggle with teaching the proper kicking technique. No wonder though, the right kicking movement, whether it is freestyle, breaststroke or another style, requires good body coordination, so the right muscles get fired up at the right times. Swimming coaches can explain the kicking technique in many different ways, using different analogies which might bring out the ahaa moment in your kicking learning process, but there comes a time where we do need to enlist the outside help of some swimming gear, in particular swimming fins. I've already talked about the shinfin leg fins and how they can help you with your kick and proper body position, however there is another type of fin which is used successfully and widely by swimmers. The special fins are called zoomers and I'll introduce you to the youngest of the zoomer family, the "Zoomers Gold" edition from Finis.

Zoomers Gold Review: improve your freestyle kick

What are the features of Zoomers Gold?

In layman's terms, a zoomer is actually just a regular fin with the tip cut off, so it is shorter without the flexion at the end. However, don't let that undervalue the work Finis has done with their Zoomer Gold edition. Apart from having a very cool yellow color (btw, great product marketing approach on Finis' part), the material and the shape of the Zoomer Gold fin is much much better than any fin that I have come into contact with. The zoomer fits very snugly on my foot and is very soft around the heel area, so I don't have to use socks or plasters to keep my heel from getting chaffed and blistered up as is the case with the majority of fins out there. The tip of the zoomer is more rigid, however, it still allows for some flexion, so you don't feel like your ankle is going to snap off every time you kick. Since the zoomer fins are shorter than regular fins, they are much easier to throw into your swimming gear bag and transport around. You can use Zoomers Gold to improve your freestyle, backstroke and butterfly kick (no breaststroke sorry :)). The fins are designed to help the swimmer build strength in the right muscles during the kick as well as improve ankle flexibility, so the final kick without the fins is a beauty. Finally, if you are naive enough to refuse to buy items produced in China to cripple the Chinese economy, you are in luck as the Zoomers Gold is made in Malaysia and Finis even provides a toll free US based phone number to call in case of any support questions. I wonder if anybody ever called them during a swim workout :), I haven't tried it, but if you do, don't hesitate to share your experience with us. The Zoomers Gold edition comes in many sizes which accommodate the majority of the feet in the world and is as good swim gear for beginners as for competitive swimmers, so you can't go wrong.

What will Zoomers Gold do for me?

It is no secret that the more flexible your ankles, the better kicking potential in the water you possess. If you have friends who are competitive swimmers, you might very often hear them complain about twisting their ankles very often. I lost count a long time ago as to how many times I sprained my ankle playing ultimate Frisbee. Ankle braces became standard equipment for me when doing any type of running sport. All this is due to the extreme ankle flexibility needed to maximize the kick's efficiency. Don't worry though, most people will still kick just fine without having ankles made out of rubber. Usually, triathletes, runners and cyclists have very stiff ankles, as they should, in order to keep them stable during their specific activity, however, this creates an issue when they enter the water element. Their ankles and subsequently feet do not act as extensions of their legs like a fin, so triathletes generate much more drag and less power from their kick which causes them to sometimes struggle during their learning to swim process. Zoomers Gold are here to help though. The stiff front blade adds an extra pressure to the top of the foot which stretches the ankle in the right direction. So if you suffer from the stiff ankle syndrome and decide to use zoomers regularly and properly, you should see some results in your kick in a few weeks as your ankles get a bit looser.

Another common mistake, this time not caused by genetics and repetitive motions :), is the size of the kick itself. Many swimmers tend to over do it and have a very wide and slow kick, instead of a faster smaller kick (like kicking in a bucket). With the Zoomers Gold this is actually almost impossible to do without feeling very awkward. The shorter, stiffer blade of the zoomer pushes you to maintain a faster, shorter kick which by itself should help you with the propulsion needed to go forward instead of a stationary or even backward kick struggle.

Since Zoomers Gold are so short and have a very intuitively designed angle of the outside fin, they feel as if they are a part of your foot. This is good from the aspect of being able to feel the right motion of the top of your feet as they freely press against the water going down on freestyle and up on backstroke. (Let's not talk about the other part of the kick where you kick with the sole of your foot - this is a bit too advanced.) As a bonus, it is very easy to walk in zoomers since they are so short.

Finally, you have probably heard this many times from your swim coaches and swim instructors or you have read it in swimming magazines, but it is pertinent that while kicking freestyle or backstroke kick that there is very limited knee bend. So keeping the legs straight and only letting the water pressure slightly push your knee back is the way to go. If you pretend to swim with straight legs, you will probably think you have straight legs, but in reality, you will actually have the correct kick which allows only for a very slight knee bend. The power of the kick comes from the quadriceps (your thighs) and hips, so if after using the Zoomers Gold fin you don't feel slight burn in your thighs, modify something about your kick. You can strengthen the right muscles for your kick with variety of kicking drills.

Zoomers Gold Review: stop the blisters

Summary: Pros and Cons

To summarize, the Zoomers Gold fins are one of the most comfortable fins I have ever had the pleasure to train in. They work the correct thigh and hip muscles to improve swimmers' kicking ability. The zoomers are very easy to carry around as they are quite light and small. With the zoomers, it is much easier to perform certain swimming balance drills as the swimmer has more power in the kick. Finally, the yellow color is very hip and cool :).

Word of caution though, do not use Zoomers Gold throughout your entire swim workout. You should incorporate usage of zoomers into your workout to help you with your kick, however, stay away from using zoomers just to keep up with the faster swimmer in the next lane. This is a pitfall which many swimmers and triathletes fall into. Remember, first slow down and learn the right kick, before you can speed up and enjoy it. I'd not recommend swimming more than 20% of your workout in fins.

Pros:

soft foot pocket
improves kick as advertised
awesome color
great cost - only $31.99

Cons:

could be a bit odd feeling at the beginning to swim with zoomers, so you need to have patience and determination to get your kick right

Final rating: 5/5

usability/effectiveness - 5/5
material - 5/5
look and feel - 5/5
price/value - 5/5

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How to start with open water swimming (Tips on how to transition from the pool to open water with ease)

2011-11-07T10:24:00.001+02:00

Open water swimming is supposedly one of the fastest growing sports around the globe. I am not sure where I heard this statement, and it is probably not true, however, the fact is that open water swimming and triathlon are becoming very popular. If nothing else, just the simple fact that there is a market for enjoyable open water swimming holidays all around the globe is a good indication that the sport is gaining traction. And since, 70% of our planet's surface is covered by water, it only makes sense we'd discover it sooner or later :).

Rostislav Vitek - Capri-Napoli Grand Prix winner

With the increasing popularity of open water swimming popularity,there also comes quite a big challenge for open water event organizers and for swimmers themselves. The open water events organizers struggle to make sure that swimming events are safe and many swimmers have a hard time understanding that swimming in open water is not the same as swimming in the pool. New swimming skills and an understanding of the environment are required in order to fully enjoy mother nature's outdoor liquid wonders.

I've sat down to discuss some open water training tips with one of my friends from my younger years in the Czech Republic, who has gone through the difficult transition from wall to wall pool swimming to a very successful world wide open water swimming career. Meet Rostislav Vitek (Rosta), a 2008 Beijing Olympic participant, English channel swimmer, multiple Czech record holder in open water races and one of the world's top open water swimmers. In fact, Rosta is an extreme marathon swimmer as he loves participating in events, such as the Argentinian 57km swim from Santa Fe to Rio Corondo. He has won this event on a few occasions. Just to bring his achievements into perspective, he swam the 4th fastest English Channel Swim time (7:16,25) in the history of the La Manche crossings. Now these are credentials any swimmer would be proud of.

Anyway, enough of the bragging, let's get down to business and talk about what you are interested in as a beginner open water swimmers and what you can do to help yourself with the swimming pool to open water transition. I asked Rosta a few questions:

Swimator Blog: What would be the first tip to give to someone who is just starting out or thinking about joining in the open water and triathlon frenzy?

Rosta: At the beginning you need to swim a lot in open water. I know this sounds simple, but just going for a swim in your local lake or pond instead of being in the pool makes a huge difference. Spend some time in open water before going to your races, so you get accustomed to the different environmental conditions (wind, water temp, rain, waves etc.) as well as reliance on yourself and not the swimming pool walls. Usually, whatever conditions you swim in at your home open water hole, you will be comfortable when swimming in a race. Just to give you some perspective, I spent three years plowing the open waters back and forth before I felt comfortable during my races and I started to understand the open water environment. After that I could migrate back into the pool and only use my races as my open water swims. However, to leave out practicing in open water, you would need to go to a race almost every week, so this is not for everyone.

Rosta keeping his swimming rhythm in the ocean

Swimator Blog: So what sort of things should a person do in open water? Obviously, not just mindlessly swim as fast as possible.

Rosta: For sure, open water swimming has a lot of nuances that the pool swimmers don't know much about. For example, sighting. Sighting is the process of raising your head out of the water to look where you are going during your swim. The idea is quite easy to understand, however, the hard part is to figure out how often to sight and what to look for. You can practice different sighting intervals until you figure out what is a good one for you, so it does not necessarily slow you down and make you more tired. One way to do this is to count your strokes in between your sightings, so for example, you can sight every 50 strokes to begin with and see if you can keep a straight line. With sighting also comes the experience of knowing what to look for. The most common mistake is to look for a floating buoy or something on the water, however this technique does not work. You need to pick a large object (house, tree, TV tower etc.) in the distance in the direction you are swimming before you begin a race and then just quickly look for that object during your sighting while swimming. There are many other things you also need to think about and consider while in open water, for example how to breathe, how fast to move your arms, when to eat etc.

Swimator Blog: That's a good advice. Should you have any tactics during a race or how does racing in open water differ from swimming pool racing?

Rosta: Well, in the swimming pool, it is just you in the lane with nobody around, so you have to rely on your speed. In open water, it is not so much about who the fastest person is, but about who is the smartest tactician. Obviously, you do have to swim fast to be with the best, however, you don't have to do it alone. In open water races, and this is very hard to get used to coming from the swimming pool, you should attempt to swim in a pack of swimmers so you can utilize drafting. If you swim alone and employ the same tactic as in swimming in the pool, you will be doomed. Just pick a group of swimmers that have a similar or a bit faster speed than you and stay inside the pack. It is the same principle as in cycling. So, sometimes you need to conserve your energy by letting someone else do the work, instead of letting your competitiveness get the better of you. However, in shorter triathlon races, this is a bit different. For triathletes, your race tactic will depend on how long the swimming part is and on how good of a swimmer you are. Either you will just fight to survive the swim, in this case, you should heavily invest in improving your swimming technique or you will cruise to the end of the swimming leg with plenty of juice left to continue with the race. While swimming in a triathlon, you do need to keep in mind that there is still biking and running left afterwards, so not much sprinting is done at the end of the swim here for most triathletes. Instead the focus on fast swim to bike transition is in sight.

Sunny destination for outdoor swimming workout

Swimator Blog: Ok, the drafting makes sense. Very hard to get used to coming from the pool though :). It needs a lot of practice. You mentioned that for someone starting out in the open water sport, swimming in the open water should be the main aspect of their training. Do you recommend leaving out the swimming pool altogether?

Rosta: No, not at all. For beginner open water swimmers, the importance of swimming in the open body of water is not necessarily for energy draining workout purposes, but for getting familiar with the environment and learning the different tactics and techniques such as sighting, drafting, recovering, right arm movements etc. However, you can still get great preparation workouts in the swimming pool. Preferably in 50 meter swimming pools as it better mimics the open water scenario.

Swimator Blog: What type of workouts should you do in the pool then?

Rosta: Well, this fully depends on how skilled a swimmer you are, but you should definitely focus on your swimming technique, so your stroke is efficient. Some technique work should be part of every workout no matter how advanced a swimmer you are. Then you can simulate open water race conditions by for example swimming series of 50s. 4x6x50 or 4x20x50 (depending on your skill ability) and every set of 50s is on a bit faster interval while maintaining the same speed. So the first set of 6x50 is on let's say 1:00 interval, second 6x50 on 55 seconds etc. You need to maintain the same time for every 50 even with the lower interval. This simulates how your body gets more tired during the race and also the sprint towards the end of the race to the finish line as that is where most of the races are won or lost since drafting tactics are used. It is something called the "endurance speed".

Swimator Blog: Would you recommend the use of any swimming gear for the open water swimmers or triathletes?

Rosta: If I really have to choose, I am a big fan of technique oriented swimming gear, so my number one recommendation would be the front snorkel. This tool is great for getting your body aligned and keeping you in the rhythm while also improving your lung power. As far as other swimming gear products currently popular among triathletes and open water swimmers, such as paddles and fins, these are not necessary. I would not recommend using these unless you already are a pretty good swimmer as this type of gear can cause more harm than benefit with a bad technique. You are much better off doing some technique work.

These were just some introductory tips from Rosta about how to get started with open water swimming. If you have any specific questions you'd like to ask Rosta, please feel free to put them in the comments as this is a unique opportunity to gain inside knowledge on open water swimming from one of the best open water swimmers in the world.

I will bring more insights from Rosta's vast open water experience in future open water posts, so stay tuned and don't forget to join our growing Swimator Facebook community or follow us on Twitter @360swim.

New 50 meter pools contribute to swimming success in the UK (Improve your swimming in 50 meter pool as well)

2011-10-31T09:01:00.004+02:00

Many swimmers do not have the luxury to train in 50 meter pools, however, some of us do have the option and still choose not to do so. The following article will give you some information about 50 meter pools and Olympic size pools in terms of what it could mean to your swimming success.

outdoor 50 meter pool with a 25 meter diving well in Finland

This is a guest post by Matthew White (@serious_square) a swimmer and water polo player based in the UK.

During my time with the Great Britain Junior Water Polo Team one of the many places I had the privilege of playing was Barcelona. When I was there in 2001 there was a rumour that there were more 50 meter swimming pools in Barcelona than the whole of the UK, a statistic that we all knew could easily be true but were never able to verify.

What may have been the actual fact was that there are more 'Olympic size pools' in Barcelona than in the whole of UK. This is because in 2001 there appears to have only been one, Ponds Forge International Sports Centre. This was the only pool to meet the 50 meters by 25 meter (10 lanes) standard. In 2011, there are now 3 more official Olympic sized pools in the UK: London Aquatics Centre (the venue for the 2012 summer Olympics), Sunderland Aquatic Centre and the John Charles Centre for Sport, in Leeds.

Since 2001 there have been a number of swimming pools built that are 50 meters in length, notably Manchester Aquatics Centre, Cardiff International Sports Centre and the K2 near Gatwick airport to name just a few, we seem to be getting the idea that for our swimmer athletes to compete at the very top level they need to be training and racing in full length swimming pools. Just as it would be ridiculous for a 100 meter runner to sprint 50 meters, turn and run back, the dynamics of training in a 25 meter pool are completely different to that of a 50 meter pool.

In Australia, a country with a population a third the size of the UK they have built 47 Olympic Sized swimming pools and they consistently produce swimming and water polo teams that compete regularly with the very best in the world. Does their success boil down to having more quality swimming facilities? I would argue that it is an important factor, however, probably not the only factor.

Swimming is amongst one of Britain's most participated sports, so the pool of potential athletes probably matches or exceeds that of Australia, therefore, nurturing top athletes with the very best swimming facilities is very important. Looking at UK swim teams performance in the pool since the Sydney Olympics in 2000 the theory of an increased number of 50 meter pools aiding top level performance could gain a more weighted argument.

Year	2004	2008	2012
Gold	0	2	?
Silver	0	2	?
Bronz	2	2	?

The table shows an increase in medals between 2000 and 2008, plus in 2008 British swimmers made more finals than any other Olympics before. Looking at this purely quantitatively, more pools = more medals – but it is not as simple as that. What will happen in the 2012 Olympic Games in London is still to be decided and your guess is good as mine. Will the team GB break records and bring home more medals than before?

One might argue other factors contribute to a country like Australia's success, firstly, the climate is far warmer and from my own experience potentially Olympic standard athletes get fed up with getting up on a cold dark mornings and training for two-hours before school – therefore just quit or 'burnt out' as it is called. I don't know what the 'burn out' rate for Australian athletes is, but personally I find it far easier to getting up to a bright warm morning as opposed to a cold dark one. So one could argue, to be an Olympic swimmer in UK is much more psychologically challenging than in warmer and sunnier countries like Australia.

Olympic size pool with 10 lanes in Cyprus

Other factors have to include training strategy, when Bill Sweetenham came in as National Performance Director of Team GB after the unsuccessful 2000 games, he employed what was known as 'tough love'. The details of his methods are unknown to me, however, what we do know is that he was heavily involved with Australian swimming before he joined Team GB and therefore must have been the same. We also know that those methods helped improve the GB swimming teams world performance.

There are always going to be more factors than 'the quality of swimming facilities' and accessibility. But looking at the number of recent pools built in the UK, someone must be realising their importance, both for elite athletes and for the general public. For me, the increase in 50 meter pools has directly influenced UK swim team's national performance and I would be interested to hear from readers about their own country.

The future seems quite bright for swimming in Britain, and no doubt the 2012 Olympics effect will go further in increasing funding and participation for the next swimming generation. At an age still young enough to compete, but getting nearer to coaching 'age' I personally am quite excited about the potential new facilities and interest in aquatic sports has received and where they can take us in the future.

More about Matthew: He writes swimming and pool related articles for Aspect Pools who sell everything to do with aquatics from swimming pool chemicals to garden swimming pools.

From Swimator Blog: If you have the option to train in 50 meter pool, you should definitely jump on the opportunity. Practicing in 50 meter pool has many benefits Here are just a few. It is much harder to swim as one cannot rest on the wall every 25 meters, so you will get stronger over time and coming back to the 25 meter pool for training will feel like a walk in the park. You also have more time to practice the miscellaneous swimming drills since you do not have to loose focus with too many wall turns. Also, usually, there is more space in the 50 meter pools, so you have less swimming traffic in the lane. If your main swimming goal is to improve in open water swimming or triathlons, 50 meter pools should take up majority of your indoor training. However, that said, it is not a good practice to only train in 50 meter pool as it is quite easy to loose speed and loose the grip on your turns. So make sure you strike a good balance between your training locations. Happy swimming!

Triathletes - Learn to See Swimming in a Different Light (Drills, Drills, Drills)

2011-10-24T09:56:00.002+03:00

Stereotypically, I find triathletes to be very self-motivated athletes always pushing their limits in whatever they do. And rightly so. In order to achieve competitive level in all the three sports combined, triathletes have to manage their workout regimes very tightly, so they have time to practice and improve in all of the sports. Talk about time management skills :). This, however, also brings with it a big challenge for many triathletes when it comes to improving in swimming. Running and cycling are very similar sports in the sense that if you run or cycle for longer periods or more often, you are bound to improve as the motion is not as complex as in swimming and the activity is on dryland which we are more accustomed to. Going for weekend 6 hour rides feels very tough at the beginning, but after a 3 month period of continuous riding, it suddenly does not feel so bad. One cannot, however, simply use the same principle in swimming. If you enter your swimming workouts with the following idea in your head, "I will swim as hard and as much as I can and I'll improve" you are already setting yourself up for a failure. Swimming smarter and not harder is the cliche that gets repeated over and over, but it is actually very much true.

Arm lead balance drill

Swimming needs a bit of a different, more scientific approach to training. You cannot simply turn your brain off when you swim and hope for the best. The swimming movement is such a complex matter that it needs to be broken down into parts and these parts need to be practiced over and over before they can be slowly put together again. Similar to babies finding their hands and practicing putting them in their mouths and practicing their first steps.

Human bodies weren't originally built for water, so we need to work extra hard to be efficient swimmers. To break down swimming into parts, we use what we call in swimming lingo "swimming drills". Each swimming drill focuses on a specific small aspect of the swimming stroke with the goal of improving the overall stroke. Some drills are easy, and some quite difficult, but they all have a purpose. For example, we could have a side balance drill where a swimmer only kicks on his/her side to practice correct body line position, increase core body strength and overall ballance in the water. Or to help with the underwater catch we could use the freestyle one arm drill where the swimmer swims freestyle only with one arm while the other is pointing forward or by the body. There are hundreds of swimming drills for every stroke out there and the best coaches incorporate them into their practices every day. So why shouldn't you?

I know what some of you might be thinking: well, if I swim slower with one arm or just kick on one side, I don't feel I am working as hard as I do when I train in running or cycling. Sure, your heartrate might not be as high, so you feel like you are wasting your time since you are swimming slowly or you might get bored as your body needs that rush of exhaustion all the time for you to feel that the workout was worth it. Or you might be thinking that I don't have time to worry about this, I just need to swim as I don't have enough time to master all three sports and, I have to swim as much as I can. If you belong to this category of triathletes and you train in this way, you are just asking for trouble, especially when it comes to improving in your swimming. Not improving your technique by incorporating miscellaneous swimming drills into your swim routines, is a bit like running or cycling with untied or unstrapped shoes. You can tie them at any point you want, but you do not and you keep running or cycling with them untied even though you'd run much faster if you took the time to tie them. You can perform swimming drills during your workouts, but you do not because your mind and stubbornness get the better of you.

One arm freestyle drill with an early vertical forearm catch

The same problematic behavior can apply when swimming in a group, on a masters team or in a lane with other lap swimmers. Your competitiveness or pride gets the better of you and you try to race the person in the next lane or pass a slower swimmer in front of you. This competitiveness spirit is awesome and it is what makes you better in one way (so don't lose it), however, it also cripples your ability to slow down and properly understand the different movements your body is making in the water. The same goes for choosing what time intervals to keep during your swim practices. Many of you may feel you have to keep up with the faster swimmers all of the time and therefore cut your rest or interval workouts so you can stay with the group. As much as this is very good practice once in a while, most of the time you are damaging your swimming more than you are helping it. First, the intervals and rest are there for a reason: if you cut them short you are suddenly practicing on a different heart rate level which has a different effect on your body than planned by the workout. Second, since you are working harder than you are supposed to, your swimming technique deteriorates and your stroke suffers.

Next time you are doing your workout or are in the pool just cruisin', take these words to heart and do me and most important yourselves a favor. Start to think about your stroke. Swallow your pride, learn to think like a swimmer (not a triathlete) when you are in the pool and swim at your own speed and utilize swimming drills in your workouts. You can't go wrong, if 50% of your swimming workout is composed of miscellaneous swimming drills. So happy drilling everybody!

Swimming in college in the USA - Do you have what it takes?

2011-10-17T19:27:00.003+03:00

Learning to swim at an early age can have many more advantages than just mastering a necessary water survival skills. It could for example lead to a longer term swimming career which will affect ones life even if they do not plan on it. Sure, not everyone will be in the Olympic ranks with Ryan Lochte, Alexander Popov, Ian Thorpe or Michael Phelps, however, if some swimming dedication is present in a person, it is not unreachable to pursue swimming at a collegiate level. There are many collegiate swimming levels and therefore many opportunities for a swimmer to take part in this wonderfully competitive sport. However, as it is with every good thing in life, swimming in college also comes with a price. More about what it entails to be a swimmer in college from Marina.

Swimming Pool at the Olympic Training Center, Colorado

This is a guest post by Marina Salsbury who planned on becoming a teacher since high school, but found her way instead into online writing after college. She writes around the web about everything from education to exercise.

Enter Marina Salsbury
If you're considering participating on a swim team in an American college or university, more power to you. There are, however, some issues you should weigh before taking that literal plunge. Being on a collegiate swim team has tremendous advantages and positives such as team comraderie, but it also demands hours each week in the pool and away from your free time in addition to time in the library and taking online college classes. If you or your child is considering swimming in college, please understand that it requires a firm commitment in order to excel. Moreover, if you're thinking about going pro, swimming in college is invaluable and depending upon your individual event(s), may require you to swim 7,000 - 10,000 yards (~6500 - 9000 meters) or more each day.

So what are the ups and downs of swimming in college? You'll have to wake up well before any of your other fellow students, for starters. Swim practices typically begin at 6:00 AM sharp. For many students, this means no late-night partying, but instead going to bed much earlier than everyone else because it’s guaranteed you will need that rest for the morning training. A typical morning swim workout will consist of roughly 3,500 yards (3200 meters) of swimming over the course of 90 minutes. However, don't despair, you will not have to do this alone. A plethora of devoted teammates will keep you company and will not hold back any sly remarks about your morning hairdo.

Not only will you have to get up before the crack of dawn, you’ll have to participate in yet another training session later in the afternoon for another swim team workout. By committing to swim team training five or six days a week and three or more hours each day, your social life outside of the swim team will be severely impacted. You also have to be careful about choosing the right foods, especially before a big competition. There is no question being a competitive swimmer in college requires an enormous commitment on your part but there is an upside to all of these countless hours of training in the pool.

Improve your swimming skills at university

The big positive is that you have the sense of pride of being a college athlete and excelling at what you love. Because you'll be paying careful attention to your nutrition needs, you'll also very likely be much healthier than your partying friends. If you search hard enough and apply yourself, you might even score a swimming scholarship, so your tuition fees will be cheaper. The luxury of traveling to meets means you will be able to see many places throughout the country that you might otherwise miss. For elite collegiate swimmers, this can even mean travel to other countries. As an example, if you are an elite swimmer you can compete in one of the premier swimming events in the Pan American Games, this year’s event to be held next month in Guadalajara, Mexico.

If you excel in elite swim events such as the Pan American Games, the NCAA Swim Championships, and other top events, you might even have the honor of representing your country even further by swimming in the most prestigious swimming event of all, the Summer Olympics (held next year in London, England). Many world-class athletes dream about the incredible honor of standing on the Olympic podium and receiving that coveted gold medal while representing their countries. While as a college athlete your status has to remain as an amateur in these competitions, you still can earn many other rewards including endorsements from sport companies and others sponsors, which can kick off an ongoing professional athletic or other career.

Beyond your collegiate career, you'll have gained immeasurable experience in swimming and fitness from your coaches and peers as well as life long skills such as ability to perform under pressure, ability to work on a team or ability to pay attention to detail (if you work on perfecting your swimming technique). All of these skills become an advantage after the college education is finished and decision to pursue ones career path has to be made. Especially, if you choose to pursue a career of coaching, collegiate or otherwise, swimming in college is invaluable. Perhaps most rewarding of all, incorporating swimming into your life after college might grant you the distinction of working in field you truly love and can enjoy for the rest of your life.

From Swimator Blog: If you are interested in swimming in college and what you read above scares you as it feels like a lot of work. Stop and think of it this way, many millions of students have done this before you, so it cannot be all that bad. Yeah sure, swimming at a university requires some dedication and commitment, however, the benefits of life long friends, skills and attitude by far outweigh it all. If it would be easy, would you get as much out of it? Probably not :). If you are considering swimming in college, learn more about your scholarship opportunities.

Tips for Swimming Outdoors (Nature's Wet and Wild Phenomenon)

2011-10-10T15:48:00.006+03:00

Outdoor swimming can be a bit of a shock for people moving from the swimming pool for the first time. After all, the pool is nice and safe, with enclosed sides, a non-slip surface and everything you need on hand. In fact, maybe it's a bit too tame during the times when the public decides to stay home instead of swimming with you! If you're ready to get wet and wild and make the move to the great outdoors, then follow these tips to get the most from the experience while still staying safe.

Ahh, the calmness of water and the nature - priceless

This is a guest post from Dee Mason, a sports and fitness enthusiast who looks forward to the Olympics in her home city, London, next year. She can frequently be found punishing herself in the gym, with cycling and swimming being particular areas of interest.

Enter Dee Mason

What You'll Need Before You Jump In

The pool may feel chilly when you first jump in, but it's positively toasty compared with lake or river water, especially outside the summer season. If you're swimming in cold water, you'll be at risk of hypothermia if you stay in too long. So, it might be a good idea to measure the water temperature before you jump in. If the water is not too cold for you, you should still pay attention to the warnings your body gives you to avoid trouble. If your teeth are chattering and you start to shiver it's a sign that it's time to get out of the water. Change into warm, dry clothes, drink a hot tea or soup which you brought in your thermo bottle and warm up by running, doing star jumps (jumping jacks) or press-ups (push-ups).

You can, however, increase your water time by investing in a good wetsuit which will also improve your buoyancy, so you won't have to work so hard during your swim. Get a swimming wetsuit (or triathlon wetsuit) for maximum flexibility when swimming. And when it's really cold, it's wise to cover your hands and feet with neoprene boots and gloves, even though swimming with booties might not be the most efficient way to get ahead. If you opt into booties you might want to also use fins, so you get some extra propulsion. For some crazy, cold temperature swimming, check out the Ice Swim in South Africa video below.

Deep and Wide (Swimming Safety First)

Unlike pools, lakes, rivers and seas don't have convenient markings to let you know how deep you're getting. In fact, they may have no safety features at all. That means it's up to you to look after your own safety. When you step into the water, the bottom may drop away sharply once you leave the shore, so don't get taken by surprise. Checking the depth of the water is also important if you're planning to jump in or dive. Many of the worst swimming accidents are caused by people hitting their heads on rocks or jarring their necks and spines. And watch out for slippery algae covered rocks, too. Bare feet or a rubber grip shoe are the best footwear for an outdoor swim.

Lakes may also be wider than they look, so make sure you have built up some stamina so you don't get stuck half way across. If you're swimming in a river or in the sea, then watch out for fast moving currents such as the rip current - you don't want to be dragged downstream or out to the horizon.

Swimming Buddies Welcomed

It's never a good idea to swim alone, especially in deep water, because if you get into difficulty, there's no-one to help. That's even more important when swimming outdoors. Swim with a friend, or have someone in a boat in case you get into trouble. If you must swim alone (even if you are not alone), wear a brightly colored silicone cap so people can spot you in the water. The silicone will also keep your body heat from rapidly escaping via your head. If you're swimming on your own and you get a cramp, then lie on your back, paddle with your arms and shout for help. (Swimator Blog Note: It is always better to have some safety device with you, such as the Safe Swimmer, even if you are with friends.)

Water Hazards (Weed Me Out)

Weeds aren't just a problem in your garden; they can also be a hazard when swimming outdoors. You'll often find them in rivers and while one or two aren't a problem, your legs can get caught in large amounts. The trick is to move slowly through clumps of weeds and avoid kicking so your legs stay free. Many swimmers also get frightened by running into a clump of weeds in the water, so just try to stay calm and tell yourself that they are just grass and the worst thing that can happen is that you get a few grass cuts.:) (assuming you are not running into some poisonous plants)

Group swimming is awesome fun

In lakes, it's algae you have to watch out for. This green scum isn't nice to look at and can cause eye irritation and skin rashes. If you spot algae, swim somewhere else. Another lakeside hazard is swimmer's itch. Caused by contact with the snails that live in marshy lakes, it's harmless but unpleasant, making you itch for up to two days.

Weil's Disease

Rats are responsible for another water-borne hazard. More specifically, their urine may carry Leptospirosis which, if left untreated could turn into Weil's Disease - and that can be fatal. If you're swimming in an urban area, especially after heavy rains, and get symptoms like flu or jaundice 3 -14 days after an outdoor swim, get a Leptospirosis test. If you have it, antibiotics will soon take care of the issue.

What Else Should You Know

Here are a few more tips for safe outdoor swimming:

Get local information about the places you are swimming in
Assess water quality before going in
Cover open cuts with a waterproof plaster to avoid infection
Build up your stamina slowly
Never drink and swim

These may seem like a lot of rules, but they are the best way to stay safe and if not taken lightly they will contribute to your outdoor swimming enjoyment. However, don't forget to have fun. Swimming outdoors offers unparalleled opportunities to get close to nature - you might as well enjoy it.

From Swimator Blog: If you are only a pool swimmer, you should consider venturing out of your comfort zone and explore the unexplored. Outdoors or open water swimming is a great rush and usually much more enjoyable on a nice day in a nice water. You do not need to go into extremes as the guys in the Ice Swim Africa video, but throw in an open water swim here and there. You will see that you'll get hooked. We have literally thousands of lakes in Finland, some even with no boat traffic, so getting out there for a swim in a warm summer day is just priceless (I have not tried the ice swimming yet). Don't take my word for it. Try it yourself!

TechPaddle Review: Forearm braces for better propulsion (Early Vertical Forearm Trainer)

2011-10-03T19:55:00.008+03:00

Swimator Blog October 3, 2011 Final rating: 4.5/5

Getting more propulsion during a swim is a huge problem for many swimmers and even more advanced individuals shouldn't stop exploring their stroke for potential improvement in propulsion. Actually, nobody should ever stop improving their stroke, no matter how good a swimmer they are. It is one thing to reduce drag by streamlining your body or strengthening your core to keep a nice and straight body line. However, it is a whole other ball game to increase your propulsion to swim at a higher speed. There are two main ways a swimmer can increase his/her propulsive power. Let's just assume I am not talking about increasing your strength in core body and other swimming related muscles in the gym with the aim of getting stronger in the water to generate faster arm movements (also called turnover or stroke rate). Instead, I am referring to changes in your swimming stroke that, allow you to generate more propulsive force and thus swim faster. One way to move faster through the water is by utilizing your arms to catch/pull more water. As it is with many aspects of swimming, there is a piece of equipment which helps to guide your arm, specifically the forearm, in the right direction so you get more out of your arm movements. Say hello to my little friend the "TechPaddle (Early Vertical Forearm Trainer or EVF Trainer)" (not to be confused with Speedo's totally different and not so useful IM tech swim paddle).

TechPaddle - Early Vertical Forearm Trainer - Reviewed

If you read this swimming blog regularly, you might notice I do not recommend using too much swim gear unless it has a particular purpose, be it technique related or keeping your swimming workouts boredom free. Not too long ago I was raging about the triathlete community and how using paddles to swim with a bad technique is a really bad idea. TechPaddles, along with the AntiPaddles invention, however, do not fall into this category as they are no ordinary paddles. In fact, the word paddle in the TechPaddle name is probably not the luckiest branding effort as TechPaddles are not used for paddling to make you go faster or to exert more power in your stroke. Without seeing or reading any instructional materials, many swimmers could initially get the wrong idea about the TechPaddle. TechPaddles could be perceived more as very light braces for your forearms which keep them in the right motion for the swimming stroke. Perhaps a different name like "Catch Master" or "Extreme Catch" would be more appropriate. However, since the word paddle is so universal and very well known in the swimming community, it is catchy.

What are TechPaddles and what do they do for you?

TechPaddle can be also called the Early Vertical Forearm Trainer. As the name suggests this unique swim equipment encourages the swimmer to keep the elbow nice and high during the initial catch phase of the freestyle stroke (or any other stroke for that matter). The EVF (Early Vertical Forearm) is a very difficult motion to master as it requires strength in muscles you don't even know you have. The TechPaddle will help you strengthen the right muscles and will also move your forearm in the right position. As with any swim equipment, this swimming product will not do the work for you. You, as a swimmer, still need to think about the proper hand/forearm coordination in the front of your stroke, however, the TechPaddle will help you remember and will make it easier for you to do so.

Velcro straps, front stubs, inclined front - all good features

TechPaddle Specifications

The TechPaddle is made out of a very light and fairly flexible material which is a bit of a change from the regular heavy duty paddles as we know them. Also, what is different is the attachment that secures these paddles to swimmer's hand. In regular paddles, there is usually rubber tubing that attaches to the swimmer's fingers and wrists. However, in the TechPaddle the attachment is made by a velcro strap that wraps around the wrist. I have to say that putting on the paddles is not as quick as with regular rubber tubing, however the TechPaddle is so much more secure and can be used in other ways than just for the early vertical forearm catch training as intended (see bonus section below :)). So, in the TechPaddle design, this is definitely a huge plus. The front of the paddle has a tilted tube like structure which allows for a nice and relaxed grip in the swimmer's hand. This is also totally different to the more traditional paddle where the hand is placed flat on the paddle. Furthermore, the front tip of the paddle does not start at the swimmer's finger tips but at swimmer's wrist and it is not straight. The front part of the TechPaddle is bent down towards the bottom of the pool. Finally, the paddle part itself snugly touches the swimmer's inner forearm instead of sitting on the palm as in the traditional paddle style.

The TechPaddles come in a nice small mesh bag and with an educational DVD made by the product inventor Coach Tom Topolski who gives a very nice introduction to the strengths and usage of the paddles. Every time I watch Coach Topolski's high energy delivery I itch to jump into the pool and have another smart training sessions with the TechPaddles.:).

The TechPaddle is not a one size fits all product (that does not really work with swimming equipment and don't let anybody tell you otherwise). It comes in three sizes to fit shorter or taller swimmers.

What do TechPaddles do for me?

Ordinary paddles focus on generating propulsive power with your palm by increasing its surface. With TechPaddles, most of the paddle surface is on your forearm and your hand is closed around the front stub, so your forearm is forced to do most of the work. In a way, the principle is very similar to the AntiPaddle, however, with the TechPaddle, your wrist is nice and stable since the paddle spans from your hand to the middle of your forearm. This allows you to focus on increasing your underwater forearm catch instead of only the hand catch.

You have probably heard the term muscle memory where repetitive movements get ingrained into your brain and, after a while, you do not have to even think about the motions as your body will just perform them. In the same manner, the TechPaddle helps you to get rid of dropped elbow syndrome by constantly driving your hand underneath your elbow. Remember the front ledge of the paddle which is like an incline instead of being flat? This part of the paddle is responsible for pushing your hand deeper into the water and rotating it, so your palm faces to the rear of your body sooner. The earlier you get your palm facing backwards and underneath your elbow, the more powerful front catch you will have and the faster and more efficiently you will swim. Ideally, all this happens in front of your shoulder and not after your arm has passed the shoulder area, otherwise you are loosing the advantage of the early vertical forearm.

One thing I have to stress though, is to make sure you swim slowly with TechPaddles as they are not meant for fast swimming. Make every stroke count and move your arm through the water in a nice and smooth early vertical catch. It might feel a bit awkward and you will have to adjust a few things at the beginning, but trust me if I tell you that it is all for a good cause :).

Extra Bonus: Backwards Swimming

Interestingly, since the TechPaddle attaches with a velcro strap to swimmer's forearms, it is possible to use them to swim in the opposite (backward) direction. What I mean is, instead of pushing backwards on the paddles with the palm and the inner forearm, turn yourself around with feet first and push forward with the top of your forearm and the top of your hand. Ordinary paddles do not allow for this as the rubber tubes are too stretchy and would come out in the reverse pressure scenario. I will not get into details on how to swim backwards freestyle in this article, but stay tuned for more detailed tutorial. Swimming backwards is an awesome way to work on keeping a straight body line and on awareness of what your body is doing in the water.

Summary: Pros and Cons

I think the TechPaddle is must-have swim gear in your swim bag if you are just starting out in your swimming technique adventures or would like to move into open water or triathlon swimming. I really like the design and the way the paddle attaches to the forearm, however, if I were the inventor, I would not make it so wide as it could cause you to feel a bit awkward at the beginning of your TechPaddle training.

Everyone likes to swim faster and win over competitors, however, not that many of us like the hard work which this entails. The TechPaddle might just be the answer to get you swimming faster without having to work very hard. So, this is your chance to get on the Free Speed train and swim smarter, not harder :).

Pros:

very light and flexible material
wonderful forearm attachment
great cost only $26.95

Cons:

takes some time to get used to
bit too wide for my taste

Final rating: 4.5/5

usability/effectiveness - 4/5
material - 4/5
look and feel - 5/5
price/value - 5/5

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Prescription Swimming Goggles No More (Unexpected Advantage of Laser Eye Surgery)

2011-09-27T14:08:00.003+03:00

Squinting my eyes to see the pace clock's red hand to tell me when to start my next swim set. Worse yet, having to take off my darkly tinted goggles all the time to be able to see the clock is just plain annoying. All I want is to enjoy my swim workout without having to come out of the water with a headache from constant squinting. Don't even get me started on my open water and triathlon races. Without proper vision, it is plain impossible to have a good and efficient open water swim as I end up swimming in a zig zag since I can't see the landmark I am aiming for and I end up spending too much time lurking around and squinting to find the turning buoy. I am sure that those of you who wear prescription glasses or contact lenses on the dryland can relate to some of the experiences I have had. There is, however, one solution to the swimmer eye sight problem which is, in this time of modern technology, accessible to almost everyone: "laser eye surgery". Jason is here to tell us more about how the swimming community can benefit from laser eye surgery and how it is actually not that expensive an investment as one might think.

Bad eyesight keeping you from swimming well?

This is a guest post from Jason Sanderson, an extremely keen swimmer who uses the sport as a great way to keep fit and healthy. He often seeks to compete in local events around him and enjoys the social aspects that have appeared with his local sporting club.

Enter Jason Sanderson
One of the unexpected advantages of laser eye surgery is the freedom it can give to dedicated swimmers. More than 10 million people enjoy swimming in the UK, and many, many millions more around the world, but having poor vision can often spoil your enjoyment of the sport. If you can’t see to the end of your lane, the landmark or buoy during your open water swim, your pulling away competitors during triathlon swims, your coach, the pace clock or even the scoreboard, it’s very difficult to be ahead of the game, particularly if you swim competitively or plan to join the ever popular triathlete crowd.

Swimming in contact lenses is not generally recommended due to the high chlorine concentration in the pool water and open water bacteria which can cause eye infections in soft lenses. Furthermore, it is quite easy to lose a contact lens in a swimming pool and pretty much impossible to find it again. Many swimmers with poor eye sight wear prescription swimming goggles. However, these can be uncomfortable if worn for long periods of time and in the long-term can prove more expensive than laser eye surgery. Furthermore, if prescription swimming goggles are for some reason lost or stolen, unless there is a spare, your swimming race is over.

The price of prescription swimming goggles range from approximately £25 ($40) for standard prescription goggles up to £250 ($400) for custom-made bifocal goggles. You may also have to pay extra for anti-fog treatment. Optometrists generally recommend an eye test every two years which could potentially mean replacing your goggles every two years. You may want to do this anyway for hygiene reasons. So, a 30 year old swimmer changing his/her averagely-priced £150 ($230) swimming goggles every two years will have spent a whopping £3,000 ($4600) on prescription swimming goggles alone by the time he/she reaches 70. This is in addition to his/her regular eye tests and prescription glasses. For around the same cost he/she could benefit from laser eye surgery, which ranges from around £850 ($1300) to £1,900 ($3000) per eye. This not only benefits his/her sight during swimming endeavors but also throughout every other activity and task during his/her lifetime.

Laser Eye Surgery is painless :)

Laser eye surgery from a company such as for example Ultralase Eye Surgery is effective, painless and over in just a few seconds. Recovery time is quick and you will be able to return to swimming in just four weeks. Most people achieve 20:20 vision after having the surgery and enjoy the rest of their lives without needing prescription glasses again. The process is simple and painless. Anaesthetic drops are placed in the eye and your eye lid is held open with a small speculum. Depending on whether you choose LASIK or LASEK surgery the surface of your eye is either cut to create a flap or softened to allow the laser to perform. The laser treatment takes less than one minute and your vision will return in just a few hours with complete recovery over a few days. Millions of people around the world have had laser eye surgery and the risks are very low. The majority of any complications arising from surgery are not serious and are easily treated. The risks include: discomfort following surgery, including dry eyes; eye lid droop which is rare and usually resolves itself within two weeks of surgery; corneal infection which is easily treated with antibiotics and eye drops; and over/under correction which is easily treated with a laser enhancement once your eyes have fully healed. There have been no reported incidents of blindness following laser eye surgery and any serious or long-lasting damage to vision is extremely rare.

From Swimatog Blog: This definitely sounds like a career saver for a competitive swimmer. One of my friends who is a top level open water swimmer praises the laser eye surgery very much. When he first started open water swimming (a long time ago), he too wore glasses and struggled to see during his swims but, after he made the difficult decision to undergo the laser eye surgery, he never looked back. His career as an open water swimmer has taken off: he even represented his country (Czech Republic) in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and is currently preparing for the 2012 Olympic Games in London. So, if you do have a less than normal level of eye sight and it causes you problems in and out of the pool or open water, why not find out more about what modern science can do for you. Laser eye surgery technology has been here for many years now, is undergoing constant improvements and, most important of all, getting affordable for us swimmers who would like to finally see :).

Swimming with Little Britain (David Walliams vs. Thames swim marathon)

2011-09-19T09:06:00.001+03:00

I love the Little Britain comedy show and the humor the main comedians, David Walliams and Matt Lucas, bring us in their other sketch comedy endeavors. You don't see very many celebrities joining the swimming crowd and therefore, I was quite excited when I saw that David Walliams is putting on a charity event to swim 140 miles (225 km) in 8 days through the river Thames in England. I mean, can you imagine swimming that far in 8 days? He is definitely not a lady :). Not even Olympic athletes like Michael Phelps do such insane amounts of swimming in such a short period of time. Sure, there are the occasional training camps with massive amounts of swimming and, also, let's not forget the open water swimmers who do their share of long distances in free flowing waters. However, they probably very rarely average 28 km (18 miles) per day over 8 consecutive days and in such a dirty water conditions such as the Thames. Open water swimming was added to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing as an official event for the first time in the history of the games and it has become much more popular amongst the general public since then. It could be that David is riding the open water popularity wave as well; however, swimming 140 mi(225km) in 8 days for a non-competitive lap swimmer is a sports feat to be applauded. Very impressive, David Walliams, and keep up the good work in the water and out. I take my hat off to you.

David Walliams vs. Thames
by sportrelief.com

That said, I am not sure that swimming so far in 8 days is a very smart thing to do if you have a bad swimming technique. This is not a Little Britain sketch and it could definitely lead to injuries, which I am sure David would like to minimize if he wants to keep swimming to raise more money for charity in years to come. The Walliams vs. Thames marathon swim raised over 1 million British pounds which is a whopping figure and I am sure it will do a lot of good somewhere in the world. Again, very well done David.

After watching a few of the videos on David Walliams' Walliams vs. Thames charity site, I decided to give David some swimming technique advice, since it appears his personal trainer, Prof Greg Whyte, more than likely lacks the needed knowledge to improve David's technique from his 2008 English Channel crossing to this year's Thames challenge. I do not know Mr. Whyte personally, so cannot judge his expertise as a personal trainer, however, as a trainer for swimming he still has a lot of room for improvement. Obviously, Mr. Whyte must have done a great job preparing David's stamina to withstand such a long energy draining swimming event. However, if I was David's swimming coach, I'd be ashamed to see him swim with such a lack of correct technique and it would make me quite reckless to support his decision to do the 140 mile swim with his current swimming stroke. (Sorry, I am not going to use Mr. Whyte's plethora of professor titles as I find it ridiculous when people still use these. I find that people who hold titles such as PhD or Prof, or whatever, utilize the titles to hide some of their inadequacies assuming people are in awe of a name with 3 titles. Call me crazy, but that is the way I feel). Anyhow, enough of my rambling :), back to the marathon swim and my swimming technique analysis.

The footage of David swimming is not the greatest, but it is enough to give us a high level picture of his stroke and how he is doing. The first mistake that hits me in the face is the position of David's body in the water. David, you need to swim more on the sides of your body and not just on your stomach. Think of it as slicing the water with your left and then your right side and using your flat stomach position only as a transition between the side switch. What you will achieve with modification of your stroke is less drag while swimming and also a longer stretch with your arm, so you can pull more water. A great way to enhance your side balance and hip rotation would be to perform a series of side kicking drills where you are on your side with your eyes looking to the bottom of the pool and arms at your side or bottom arm extended forward. You should incorporate these swimming drills into every workout and you will see what a big difference this makes.

Walliams swimming in Thames by sportrelief.com

My next issue with David's stroke comprises two parts. One is the fact that David crosses the middle of his body with his hands when entering them into the water in front of his head (cross-over). The other mistake is that David's hand enters the water with thumb first. So, David, entering thumb first into the water causes inner rotation in your shoulder which could cause serious shoulder problems. Your fingers should go in first with your palm flat, without extra twisting. With regard to this cross-over problem, perhaps the following technique tips will help you out.

David, with his height and build, has a great swimming advantage as he can utilize his long arms to catch more water. But with 2 miles (3.2km) / hr average speed, it is apparent he is not as effective a swimmer as he could be. David, you should work on utilizing your forearm to pull yourself forward through the water, instead of dropping your elbow early in your catch. The early vertical forearm technique would work very well for you since you are so tall. You can start improving by doing a lot of one arm freestyle drills and also catch up swimming. Also, there is a great tool called the Antipaddle which can help you get more out of your pull.

Finally, David's head position and breathing are way too far out of the water. However, this is a bit tough to assess from the footage as David spends half the time waving at his supporters cheering him on from the river bank. Also, since the river is so dirty, it is probably not a good idea to utilize the one goggle in, one goggle out rule to prevent accidental breath of the water. So, I'll let this one slide David :), but just in case you find yourself in cleaner waters, getting your head deeper in the water and breathing to the sides instead of the diagonal front will give you a better body position and let you take advantage of the water's buoyant properties instead of trying to stay on top of the water. It should feel like you are pressing the top of your head into the water as if you are swimming downhill.

These were just some quick tips for you, David Walliams. I hope you take them to heart and work on your swimming technique so your next gruelling challenge is a feast for swimmers to watch. If this is too much negative feedback at once, please believe that I am a huge fan of yours and Matt Lucas' comedy and that your sports challenges are inspiring for us all. Great job, however, be smart about your swimming and keep it up!

If you like the charity swim David Walliams performed in Thames and you are wondering how you as a swimmer could contribute to our ever growing society and the environment in which we live, why not checkout the Blue Mile 2011 initiative. Blue Mile's aim is to raise funds and awareness for the protection of our rivers and oceans, by getting resourceful swimmers to organise their own swimming events. The Blue Mile staff will guide you through the process and help you with event organization as much as they can. You can be very creative with your event - swim in fancy dress, swim in shoes, design your own swim suit etc. So go out there and help the world to be a better place!

Update: As I predicted, David Walliams has suffered some serious damage to his back or at least the media say it was serious:). So, this is actually a good learning experience for us all. Let's be smart about sports and select your coaches wisely.

Why Swimming The English Channel Should Stay (Keeping the La Manche monster alive)

2011-09-12T14:38:00.007+03:00

Swimming is not a much talked about sport on TV unless Michael Phelps, Ian Thorpe, Mark Spitz or one of your local swimmer superstars create some unusual hype such as for example the expected clash of the titans (Michael Phelps and Ian Thorpe) at the next 2012 Olympic Games in London. Once in a while, however, there is some news regarding more extraordinary swimming events which take place around the globe. One of those swimming attractions is the English Channel crossing. The Channel has taunted hundreds of swimmers since the late 1800s and still remains a very popular achievement to have under a belt for many many swimmers and even ordinary people such as newsreporters. There, however, could be a gloomy future for the English Channel and Dee Mason is here to tell us more.

Matthew Webb's Memorial

This is a guest post from Dee Mason, a fitness and sports addict who looks forward to the Olympics in her home city next year. She can frequently be found punishing herself in the gym, with cycling and swimming being particular areas of interest.

Enter Dee Mason
If the French coastguard have their way, swimming across the English Channel will be banned forever. That means nobody else will get the chance to follow in the footsteps (swim strokes?) of Matthew Webb, Gertrude Ederle and the hundreds of hardy swimmers who have successfully crossed the Channel.

There's no denying that crossing La Manche, as the French call it, isn't for everyone. It takes a particular blend of strength, stamina and sheer guts to even attempt the crossing - and not everyone makes it the first time. Matthew Webb certainly didn't. His historic crossing on 24 August 1876 was his second attempt that year. Those who have made the crossing are an elite group. We humans always like to have something to strive for, so is it right that we should prevent others from trying the crossing of the English Channel?

Safety is one of the key reasons for the proposed ban. The French banned crossing the 21 mile route from Calais to Dover some 18 years ago. Part of the reason was the fear of accidents. The English Channel is the busiest shipping lane in the world, with more than 500 vessels crossing it daily. That means, in theory, that there's a lot of potential for collisions between swimmers and boats or ferries. Only in theory because there hasn't been such an accident yet. In fact, serious Channel swimmers take all the right precautions to ensure their safety and that of others, because the rules of drowning prevention do not really apply here.

Final stretch of the English Channel swim

Channel Swimming - Who Rules?

A classic endurance test pitting man against nature, the English Channel swimming is regulated by a number of bodies who make it their business to keep things safe. These include the Channel Swimming Association (CSA), which 'observes and authenticates' cross-Channel swims and the Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation which provides guidance on Channel crossings and maintains a register of recognized pilots.

Extreme Conditions

So why does Channel swimming remain such a draw? Perhaps it's because of the extreme conditions. Temperatures which range from 15-18 degrees Celsius. Swimmers who are used to swimming in temperatures of 21 degrees Celsius and above have to train specially to endure the cool water. Swimmers are not allowed to wear wetsuits and must wear a regulation swimsuit that does not offer thermal protection or buoyancy. The same rule applies to swim hats. Since swimmers lose body heat from exposed areas, colder air means a colder swimmer. Swimmers are advised to be comfortable in low temperature water for up to 15 hours before making an attempt.

It's also about the external air temperature. The daytime temperature over the water is 10.6 to 13.9 degrees Celsius during the day and only 6.7 degrees at night. Swimmers are at risk of hypothermia because body temperature is apt to drop well below the norm of 37 degrees Celsius. And as well as the water and air temperature, they have to cope with tides and choppy conditions.

Cheering action on the La Manche boat

The Role of the Escort Pilot

One of the keys to safety when swimming the English channel is your escort pilot. These professionals are in such great demand that they are often booked up two years ahead. The pilot has ultimate charge of the swim and can decide if conditions are too dangerous or the swimmer is too fatigued to continue. The pilot boat stores all the items swimmers will need, such as food (usually supplied in the form of a drink thrown into the sea to the swimmer and then reeled back in). The pilot boat also stays in contact with the coastguard and has safety equipment. Swimmers tend to keep feeding time to a minimum so they can keep moving and not lose too much swimming time, but they do need to nourish themselves at intervals over a 10-15 hour swim where they are burning calories at a rate of 600-900 an hour.

Safety Record

All the safety measures mean that there have been only four deaths since Channel swims went official in 1875 - and none of those were due to collisions with shipping. It's all very well for the French authorities to get upset, but so far there are no signs that the British are thinking of putting an end to this ultimate swimming challenge. Yes, swimming in the sea in low temperatures can be dangerous, but every precaution is taken and those who have completed the challenge remain among the world's elite in endurance swimming. It would be a shame to end an 80 year tradition now, wouldn't it?

From Swimator Blog: And there you have it, the English Channel (La Manche) story is a fascinating one and it would definitely be a shame to stop swimmers from dreaming of one day making the unforgettable journey across the continental gap. What do you think about the English Channel swims? Should they be banned or left alone? The La Manche crossing is of course not for everyone, but we all can take some pre-cautions when we swim in open water. Always use some type of a safety equipment like the SafeSwimmer Float or the Aquaspotter and bring some nutritious bar with you. Try to swim in a group and not go out there by yourself. If you happen to go swimming alone, tell someone where you are going and when you will approximately be back, so a rescue can be send out if you happen to deviate from your plan. Know your swimming limits and do not push passed them if you are in an open water environment, leave that to the pool. More safety tips for open water swimming in a later post.

How to relax in the water? (Sink to float and float to sink)

2011-09-06T14:45:00.001+03:00

If you are just starting out learning how to swim, or if you struggle to improve your swimming, you have probably heard someone along your swimming journey say: "You just need to relax more". At that moment you also probably thought to yourself: "Yeah right. How am I supposed to relax if I am using every muscle in my body to stay afloat and to go forward?" Believe it or not, being tense while swimming is probably one of the biggest issues many swimmers face. No matter what level swimmer you are, relaxation and trust in your body's buoyancy in water are the foundations of your learning to swim progress and thus make your swimming more enjoyable.

If even Frankie says "relax", it must be true.

To help you relax in the water it is pertinent to learn and understand how your body behaves while submerged and how your body and water interact with each other during different swimming motions. Without this closely knit water-body relationship, it is very tough to progress any further in your swimming career. However, if you spend time playing in the water, feeling the water, and listening to the water, you will soon notice that your body is less tense and you feel more comfortable.

So, indulge me for a moment and stop worrying about how far or fast you swim; go back to the basics and you will not be sorry. By basics, I refer to floating and sinking exercises which will get you more attuned to the water and yourself in it. Before I show you a great floating and sinking exercise, let me break a myth about how you should move in the water. Above I noted that many swimmers think the following: "How am I supposed to relax if I am using every muscle in my body to stay afloat and to go forward?" This is actually a bogus question and an excuse because the majority of us float in water just by taking a breath into our lungs. So it is not really about using all your muscles to stay afloat, it is more about using the right muscles to keep your body in a correct horizontal swimming position. If you think of swimming in terms of the swimmer's body going through the water as opposed to swimming on top of the water, you will realize that your body suddenly behaves in a totally different way, you can relax more and focus all your energy on going forward instead of floating.

Now to the actual floating and sinking exercise. I already explained that to increase efficiency and effectiveness in the water, a swimmer needs to maintain a proper body positioning while swimming, so I will not go into details here. However, in order for you to maintain such positioning and balance you need to relax and control your movements. You can reap the the benefits of the wonderful feeling of relaxation in the water if you work on getting aware of your water environment while moving through the water. The best way to start on your way to total relaxation is to perform a series of sinking and floating exercises where you work on consciously relaxing most of the major muscle groups in your body and only engaging the muscles that matter.

The sinking and floating exercise that I like to teach maintain the body in a prone position at all times, so you will need to engage your core body muscles to keep yourself straight and learn to trust the buoyancy of your body in the water. Let's begin.

1) Stand up in a pool where the water reaches at least to the middle of your chest (the higher towards the neck the better though).

2) Put your arms alongside your body like a soldier and straighten your neck, so there are no wrinkles. Eyes look straight in front of you.

3) Now, take a breath and slowly start shifting your body weight forward keeping your feet planted on the bottom of the pool. The toes and heels of your feet (depending on what direction you are sinking in) do not leave the bottom of the pool at any stage of this sinking/floating exercise).

4) When you are slowly falling forward, start exhaling bubbles out of your mouth. After you hit the water, you will float for a while as there is too much air in your lungs. However, after a few seconds of bubbles you'll notice your upper body sinking towards the bottom. When you reach this negative buoyancy, stop blowing bubbles to preserve the air in your lungs and just enjoy the free fall down.

5) When you sink all the way to the bottom, just lay there for a moment, relaxed and take in all the noises and water disturbance around you. When you have had enough or you run out of breath, just slowly stand up (no jerky movements - think relaxation)

Repeat the exercise and each time work on relaxing one more muscle in your body. You can repeat this sinking/floating exercise until there is no fear of falling into the unknown and you feel like you can relax while sinking. When you are comfortable with the forward sinking exercise, try shifting your weight backwards, so you go back first into the water. In this exercise you might want to either hold your nose with your hand (don't forget to relax the arm though) or employ the natural nose clip technique to keep water from going up into your nose.

You can create your own variations of this exercise, sinking sideways (not dropping your hip first) etc. After you are a relaxation master and can sink without a muscle twitch or fear of being under water, then you are ready to go on to the next stage and learn to balance yourself in the water.

Michael Phelps Diet Explained: Should We Eat as an Olympic Swimmer?

2011-08-29T10:19:00.049+03:00

What should I eat before a competition? How much of protein should I consume? Is too much pasta bad for me? There are many questions about the right eating habits for athletes floating out there on internet among the athletic community. Brett from Force Factor feels that Michael Phelps might just have the answers to your athletic dietary needs.

An Olympic Swimmer - Michael Phelps
by feastoffun.com

Enter Brett Warren
They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Well, flattery is nice but some people take imitation to the next level. When it comes to following in the footsteps of those we admire, creative mimicry knows no bounds. Aspiring actors are always imitating the mannerisms of their movie star heroes. Little Leaguers constantly imitate the batting stances of their favorite ballplayers. And those of us who try to work out regularly and continually struggle to keep ourselves in good shape are always looking at those who are already in great shape while asking ourselves "How in the world do they manage to do it?"

If you are an amateur swimmer, one of your heroes is probably Michael Phelps. Heck, you don't need to be a swimmer at all---if you are an aspiring athlete of any type, or just a regular Joe who works out a few days a week and tries to stay in shape, then Phelps is very likely on your role model radar screen too. After all, very few of us are in his kind of shape, right? So if you want to be fit and are looking for someone to imitate, you can't make a much better choice.

OK, we want to look like Michael Phelps so where do we start? Well not too many of us can imitate Michael's swimming, but we all know how to eat. Maybe we can imitate him by following his eating habits. Many of you are already familiar with the gargantuan Phelps appetite, but for those who aren't, let's take a peek at his typical daily intake regimen (as reported in the New York Post):

Breakfast:

Three fried-egg sandwiches with lots of cheese, fried onions, lettuce, tomatoes, and mayonnaise;
A 5-egg omelet;
3 pieces of French toast topped with powdered sugar;
3 chocolate-chip pancakes;
A bowl of grits;
Two cups of coffee.

Lunch:

A pound of enriched pasta;
2 large ham and cheese sandwiches with mayo;
Energy drinks.

Dinner:

Another pound of pasta;
A large pizza;
More energy drinks.

Yikes! Try selling that to your cardiologist. When you total it up, Phelps actually consumes upwards of 12,000 calories a day! If most of us did that, we would look more like an Olympic stadium than an Olympic athlete. Does this mean the Phelps diet doesn't work? No, of course not; it obviously works very well---for him. But he can get away with a lot more than you or I can. He is able to absorb all those calories because he burns up so many as a result of his almost super-human daily training regimen.

So rather than mimicking his diet, maybe what we should do instead is take what works for him and adapt it to our own lifestyles---in other words, learn from his diet! Here are some aspects of the Michael Phelps diet that we can all put into practice:

1) Replenish the calories you burn. It all comes down to basic math. The math is the same for Michael Phelps as it is for us. The only difference is in the size of the numbers. Calories consumed replace calories lost. An athlete like Phelps, who exercises like a mad demon, has to eat enough to replenish the enormous amount of calories he burns daily. So do we, but we need to know what that number is. We also need to factor in our size. Phelps is a relatively large guy, which is another reason he needs a larger caloric intake. Here is a helpful calculator from the Calorie Control Council that will help you adapt the Phelps dietary strategy to your own lifestyle.

2) Muscle gain needs special attention. To be an Olympic-caliber swimmer or just an effective athlete, one thing you need almost more than anything else is muscle. Swimming works just about every muscle a human has in his body. The Phelps diet is rich in the two ingredients most important to muscle gain: protein and carbohydrates. This is not a coincidence. The pizza and pasta supply plenty of the carbs and the rest of the diet is very rich in protein.

3) Be careful not to over-consume. This almost sounds like a contradiction when you look at the amount of food Phelps eats. But look more closely. Knowing that he needs a large number of calories, he is packing it in densely---in other words, he is not filling his stomach with a lot of lower-calorie items that take up a much larger volume. If Phelps tried to consume the same number of calories in a more low-fat way, he would have to eat a whole lot more food, which would be uncomfortable to his stomach. This does not mean that you and I should not opt for a low-fat diet---in fact, just the opposite. For a normal person's caloric requirements, low fat is most often the optimal way to go. Either way, don't eat more than you need to.

We can't all be Michael Phelps, but we can all aspire to reach his heights or to become better swimmers. Those of us who take swimming seriously can get better by watching what he does in the water. And all of us can learn from what he does outside of the water. Eating smartly does not mean that we should copy his diet. But when we realize why his diet works for him, we can use the same principles to help construct a diet that works for us.

From Swimator Blog: Well, there you have it. In order to perform better, your diet should also consist of the right ingredients. So, next time you are at your local grocery store, give a bit of thought to what you are going to eat. Having a healthy varied food supply will not just make you perform better in your sport, but it will also make you more energetic and enthusiastic about your life.

This is a guest post by Brett Warren, a biochemical research scientist based in Boston, Massachusetts. He puts his expertise to work on a daily basis by developing sports supplements for Force Factor. Brett loves weightlifting and working out at the gym almost as much as he loves his job. In addition to his work, Brett also spends lots of time with his family hiking, biking, and enjoying the outdoors.

Learn the Flutter Kick by Doing it Wrong (Freestyle Swim Kick Explained)

2011-08-22T22:59:00.002+03:00

A proper flutter kick is one of the most important keys to an efficient, fast and enjoyable freestyle swimming experience; however, it is also one of the hardest parts of the freestyle stroke to learn. I’ve taught countless individuals with varied skill levels and everyone is different in the way they understand how the kick should be performed. Some get it right away and they move on in their swimming skill learning program, others struggle with the right leg motion which hinders their progress during the other stroke part exercises. Unfortunately, everyone learns in a different way so there is no single technique or sequence of drills which will work for everyone (the same as when learning to swim). If you struggle with learning to properly kick during freestyle, here are some pointers that might help you get over the flutter kicking plateau.

Feet, the pepper of swimming

Before you start, it is important you understand what it is that propels you forward. Many beginner swimmers start by using the so called "bicycle kick" which causes the swimmer to kick water backwards in the opposite direction to where they want to go. As much as this kind of a kick will get you going very slowly, it is very bad in terms of efficiency, effectiveness and, most importantly, it does a horrible thing to your proper swimming body position. Imagine running in the water, but instead of being vertical, doing it horizontally. Not a pretty sight, is it :)? So, where else can you kick the water if not behind you? Well, how about down and up. So, pointer number one is to make sure you kick down and up and not only behind you. You can visualize a dolphin swimming with the caudal fin moving up and down to propel the dolphin forward. A word of caution here though, do not get into the habit of kicking to the sides instead of up and down as you will end up with a so-called scissor kick which is ugly and inefficient.

Now you know a part of the very basic principle of how you go forward during flutter kick, but it is not that simple. What part of the leg and foot do you move and when etc. etc.? These are the questions that need to be answered in order for you to understand how the proper freestyle kick is done. So, let's break it down a little bit more.

Swim kick - keep it in the bucket

Freestyle kick actually utilizes the entire leg from hip to toe. Each part of the leg plays a specific part in a swimmer's kick movement. As you might have guessed, the kick starts from the hip and continues to the knee and then finishes with an ankle (a relaxed ankle). Imagine a garden hose with both ends loose laying in your favorite garden area. Grab one end of the garden hose with one hand and start moving your arm up and down. This up and down movement will produce series of snapping waves which travel down the garden hose to the other end. Each of the waves is basically one kick in terms of freestyle. It starts at your hip (the hand that holds the garden hose) then the wave continues through your knee and finishes at the ankle. Obviously the garden hose waves are much larger than the actual kick. Another analogy could be taken from football (soccer) where hip, knee and ankle are used to kick the football (soccer ball). The footballer (soccer player) starts the kick with his hip motion, then knee, then ankle and then the foot touches the ball. Now, you hopefully have a better understanding of how the flutter kick is performed. However, obviously, it is much easier said than done, so practice practice practice.

To practice the freestyle kick motion as described above, you should first try the wrong approach, so that you can feel how it should not be done. You have already tried the bicycle kick as I mentioned above and probably the scissor kick, so you know how they feel. Bad. Now, try kicking only from your knees. Pretend as if you are laying on the floor face down and you bend your knee with your heel to your butt and then kick down with your foot to the ground and continue doing so. You will feel certain propulsion forward, but you also find that you are forced to lift your feet out of the water which forces your lower body further down into the water which is not an ideal body position. Then you can try the other extreme, where you try kicking with straight knees and only with your hips. You will find that with this kick you will not go anywhere and your legs will more than likely quickly kick themselves all the way to the bottom of the pool. If you combine these two wrong kick types (hip only and knee only) and meet somewhere in the middle, you should be very close to having the right kick. Try starting out with straight legs and only using your hips to kick and then slowly loosen up your knee joint, so your leg from knee down gives in a little when you kick down.

Did I mention that during the flutter kick, your ankle should be relaxed and your toes always pointing toward the opposite direction of where you are going? No? Well, now I have. Keeping your ankle relaxed throughout the kick is important as it increases the flexibility of the ankle and it also maximizes the surface of your foot, so you can kick more water. Try it out. Do a freestyle kick with a very tight ankle as if you were a ballerina. Then perform a kick with a loose ankle and see the difference. To better understand how big a role ankle flexibility and relaxation plays in the freestyle kick, perform a kick where you point your toes to the bottom of the pool so you have a 90 degree angle in your ankle. This definitely does not work, does it?

Last, but not least, you might be wondering how wide the kick should be. Easy as 1, 2, 3; just imagine that your feet are in a bucket and you cannot kick past the outer perimeter. So we are talking about 30 cm or 12 inches apart at most. So stay away for spreading your legs like wings of a bald eagle.

There are a couple of great tools which you can use to improve your kicking. First, forget about a kickboard and do all the kicking in a tree log position. Second, you can use special fins which help you with balance and with lifting your hips to the surface. These leg fins are called shinfins. Finally, if you have mastered the basics, why not try out zoomers. Zoomers will add more power into your kick.

I've covered only the basics here, so rest assured there is a bit more to freestyle kicking than just what is written in this post, however, if you master the kicking basics, the rest is much, much easier to learn.

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Aquaspotter Review: Swimming Safety in Open Water

2011-08-15T08:35:00.053+03:00

Swimator Blog August 15, 2011 Final rating: 5/5

Roaring speed boats, slowly churning fishing barges, crazy youngster on jetskis, tourists in canoes and kayaks, all of these have one thing in common and it is called "danger to swimmers".When you do not have the luxury of swimming in open water without any boat traffic, you need to be extra careful in order to stay out of harms' way. Wearing a brightly colored swimming cap helps and is better than nothing, but your head gets easily lost under the water (assuming you have a good horizontal swimming position) or behind a wave. Swimming in open water can be safe once again though. I just got my hands on a brand new product called the "Aquaspotter made by Goat Gear" which is attempting to solve the swimmer safety problem.

Aquaspotter with a Goat Gear sticker

What is the Aquaspotter and what does it do for you?

Swimmer's safety has become a very hot topic in the swimming community as more and more swimmers leave the boundaries of their local swimming pool and venture out to open water. There are no lanes, no walls and usually not even people to worry about in the open water which makes the swimming experience very attractive, however, as I pointed out above, some waters are quite heavily trafficked by miscellaneous surface watercraft which bring a whole new challenge and dimension to the open water experience. The Aquaspotter was built for swimmers, triathletes and snorkelers to keep the focus on swimming and not on how dangerous it could be.

The Aquaspotter strives to protect the swimmer or triathlete by making him or her more visible. It allows anybody to see you from far away as you stroke uninterrupted through the open waters by waving a brightly colored orange flag extending from your back. Intrigued? Yes? You should be.

Specifications of the Aquaspotter

The Aquaspotter is a good old fanny pack (bum or belt pack in the UK) which was so popular in the 80-90's era and is still widely used in many Eastern European countries. However, the Aquaspotter is no ordinary 1990s fanny pack: it is a modern 21st century pimped up product. It is built from a durable neoprene material which floats at the surface, so you don't need to worry about losing it if it comes unattached by chance. It attaches to your body with a regular strong plastic snap buckle and has adjustable straps for a wide variety of body shapes. On the top of the pack, there is a small plastic holder which serves as the mounting piece for the brightly colored orange flag. The flag itself has a very light pole and a stiffer orange cloth to keep it from drooping when it gets wet. This is not all, however. What would a fanny pack be without a proper pocket? The Aquaspotter pocket has a protected zipper so sand and other debris cannot get in. In the pocket you will find a stretchy rubber hook which attaches to a plastic waterproof bag. The waterproof bag employs 3 consecutive ziplock mechanisms and also the fold over technique, so you can be sure the water will stay out of your precious cargo. Finally, as a bonus, there is a small holder for the flag pole when you are out of the water so you can actually wear the entire Aquaspotter set as a fanny pack even on dryland during your bike or cross training run exercise.

Waterproof bag and Aquaspotter

How do you use the Aquaspotter?

I've tested Goat Gear's Aquaspotter in one of our local Finnish lakes and have to say that it performed very well. I was quite impressed with the lightness of the flag and the flag pole. My first thought when I saw the Aquaspotter was that, the flag will get in the way and the drag will be just too much, but I was totally proved wrong. Yeah sure, you probably would not want to take the Aquaspotter to an open water competition if you are after your best time but, if you are after finishing the race, going for a practice swim, or are worried about any potential boat traffic dangers, this is a perfect solution. The Aquaspotter pack withstands the test of all four swimming strokes, so you can take a break once in a while from freestyle without compromising your water safety and visibility. If you turn on your back, just flip the Aquaspotter on your belly and voila, you are waiving a different (less perverted) flag pole around :).

The waterproof bag inside the Aquaspotter pack is perfect for storing your smartphone, your keys or a wallet. If you have some items you don't mind getting wet that you'd also like to bring along, just stick them into the pack along with the waterproof bag. I, for example, used it for some energy gels and my ring.

Aquaspotter improves your swimming technique!

But wait, there is more. There are a few hidden benefits of the Aquaspotter. If you worry about distorting your swimming technique while using this water safety equipment, stop right there. The Aquaspotter also serves as a swimming technique improvement tool. If you are a frequent reader of the Swimator Blog, you have experienced my obsession with hip rotation. Hip rotation is one of the essential ingredients for a proper and efficient freestyle stroke. Since with the Aquaspotter you have the fanny pack strapped around your waist and are also waiving a flag on your back, you will actually feel your hips move more, thus causing you to focus on rotating your hips from side to side. So, with the Aquaspotter, you can forget about flat stomach swimming and start being more efficient on your sides.

Earlier I also mentioned you can swim on your back with the Aquaspotter. The technique help provided by the Aquaspotter during backstroke is from a bit of a different bag. Remember, I talked about having a strong core to keep your body straight in the water. Your core muscles are not only used to keep you from snaking side to side, but also for keeping you in a good position when it comes to up and down movement. In backstroke many swimmers have a so called sinking butt, which causes them to plow through the water with a lot of drag and inefficiency. With the Aquaspotter, you can work on pushing your hips up to the surface which in turn will push the flag further out of the water. At the same time, you can push your upper back and head deeper into the water, so you end up in a nice straight horizontal position right below the surface of the water.

Bonus: Extra benefit

If you suffer from lower back ache (who does not in today's sedentary world), getting into cold water to swim might not be the best cure but, since you love swimming so much :), it is hard to resist. The good news is that, with the Aquaspotter, you can protect your lower back from the cold. Since the pack is made out of neoprene material, it serves as a very mild insulation on your lower back, thus keeping your muscles a bit warmer which in turn helps with preventing lower back injury.

Also, many of us go swimming in groups, whether it is for practice or for fun during exciting swim trekking holidays. The swimming groups are usually composed of swimmers with different strengths and swimming abilities, so it is very easy for the group to become spread all over the area. Everyone had better have very good spotting and orienteering skills to find their way to the goal destination. However, what if every group leader or a few of the group members were to wear the Aquaspotter flag on their backs? Everyone would see which direction to swim in and where the leader is and the problem is solved.

Summary: Pros and Cons

After swimming with the Aquaspotter for a few kilometers it became apparent that it does its job really well. The fact that you are reading this review already proves that I survived all the boat attacks that the open water threw at me:). It is actually quite a simple concept to begin with, however, it is apparent a lot of intuitive thought and testing went into the design as it does exactly what it is built for and it does it well without much hindrance to swimming performance. Since the flag and the flag pole are so light, they do not cause too much noticeable resistance. The waterproof bag is very useful and, as a bonus, you can use the Aquaspotter pack outside of the water on your trip to and from your favorite open water spot. Finally, as a very nice marketing touch from the Goat Gear guys, you'll also receive a very cool Goat Gear sticker along with the Aquaspotter.

Finally, as an afterthought, if you are after a fool proof method of swimming safely in open water, you will never be satisfied and had better stay confined to your shower. However, if you just want to be safer and have a convenient way of taking some of your belongings along with you, the combination of the Goat Gear's Aquaspotter and the ISHOF SafeSwimmer Float might just be the answer to your prayers.

Pros:

good light material
waterproof bag
great cost only $39.95
can be used on dryland as well

Cons:

if placed on the wrong place of the back, it lifts up a little when you swim
the belt is not suitable for obese individuals - max ~100cm around the waist

Final rating: 5/5

usability/effectiveness - 5/5
material - 5/5
look and feel - 5/5
price/value - 5/5

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Kickboards (swimming boards) are evil. Having a great kick is priceless.

2011-08-08T09:20:00.041+03:00

I try not to live by too many rules as they tend to constrict one’s ability to think creatively, however I do have a rule when it comes to kickboards (also referred to as swimming boards). Do not use them when you are learning to swim! Ok, it is not entirely true that kickboards do not have a place around swimming pools, but let me explain why I suggest not using swimming boards.

Leave your kickboard at home

If you remember from one of my previous articles, body and head position is one of the key elements to a successful swimming stroke. The problem with using a kickboard for kicking is that your body defies the proper positioning. With your head above the water, your legs sink deeper into the water and instead of swimming in a horizontal position, you suddenly find yourself swimming up a hill with your feet angling down towards the pool floor. This is totally not the position you want to be imprinting into your brain:).

If you learn to rely on a kickboard while you are learning to swim or learning a proper body position, it will take you that much longer to actually achieve your goal. If you resist the temptation to use a kickboard and practice your kicking without it, it might be a bit more difficult at the beginning, however, you will not only gain great body position, but also better balance and strength in your core body.

Not convinced to leave your kickboard at home yet? Well, just think about what is the reason that you started to use your swimming board in the first place. Chances are that you just do as others do and kick with a kickboard, because everybody else kicks with it (we are after all a society with monkey ancestry). Or you find it easier to kick that way, because you can breathe as much as you'd like or you use kickboard as a flotation device. Whatever your reason for using a kickboard is, trust me when I say you don't need it and here are more reasons why:

1) I already mentioned the improper positioning of your body with your hips down and your legs sinking, but this is so important I mention it again. This is definitely a no no. Instead you should work on keeping your head under the water and your butt at the surface while you kick, so your body is in a nice streamline.

2) Yes, it is easier to breathe while kicking with a kickboard as you can take in as many breaths as often as you'd like. However, if you practice kicking on your sides with your face down, or in a streamline with your face down, you can at the same time practice your side breathing and a proper breathing rhythm.

Wrong vertical position by Joe Shlabotnik

3) After you drop the kickboard, you can concentrate better on the kick itself and not on what your swimming board is doing or how you hold it. It is important that you focus only one thing at a time, so keep it simple.

4) You can eliminate the neck ache from kicking with your head above the water and any shoulder tightness due to extended periods of kickboard holding. Remember, keeping a flat, wrinkle free neck during the time your head is underwater is important to keep a nice streamline.

So, now you might be wondering. What do I use a kickboard for then? Did I throw my money away? Well, you did not throw your money away completely. Firstly, you supported your local swim shop :) but, more importantly, you could use your kickboard in more advanced swimming situations. For example if you want to kick fast for a time. Getting a lot of oxygen is very important during a timed swim. You could also use your kickboard as a resistance tool by holding it in front of you in the water in a vertical position as if you'd kick against a wall. Or if you kick on a side with your bottom arm forward, you could press on the kickboard to get it under the water (if the kickboard is small enough) and thus raise your hips and legs to the surface to improve your core body strength for better body position or to stretch your lat muscle. So, enough about kickboards, now it is time to improve your kicking skills.

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