Technique is important in nearly every sport; golf, tennis, baseball, basketball, track….all the way down the list. For one big reason, the relative importance of good technique in the sport of swimming seems to outweigh all other sports. That reason is water.

Because water is a totally different medium than air, the effects, good or bad, of stroke technique are magnified. Take, for example, the fundamentals of fast swimming, which are governed by the physical laws of drag, motion and inertia. At the speeds of human performance, drag forces are much greater in water than they are in air. Since our bodies are partly in air and water while swimming, there is a third component of drag, called surface drag that is not relevant to land sports.

When the human hand first touches the water after the racing dive, the body is traveling about 15 mph. Yet within one second, even in the most streamlined body position we can manage, our speed diminishes to about 3.5 mph under water. The reason is drag. You can imagine how long it would take you to reach a complete stop if you held your arms out to the side while diving in. Not long.

Becoming a great swimmer requires skill in a number of different categories; power, flexibility, stamina (aerobic conditioning), technique, mental toughness, body type, physiology (cardiopulmonary capacity) just to name a few. Why is it that a muscular, well-trained, aerobically fit athlete who dives in the pool for the first time can barely swim, if he can swim at all? It is about technique. All of that energy, power and stamina of the athlete, if not channeled in an efficient manner, results in a body going almost nowhere in water.

Most of us learn to swim (even with good instructors) by trial and error. We learn what makes us propel faster through the water and what doesn’t. At least in that fashion, we can learn to get by. We can manage in the water. To become an exceptionally good swimmer, requires more than trial and error. The reason is that many of the techniques used by fast swimmers are not obvious and require additional work to perform. Also, nearly every swimming technique one can prescribe that has some potential benefit, will also have a potential drawback. That means we must learn to compromise. Let me give you some examples.

In the act of flutter kicking, one can create a more powerful propulsive force by bending the knee more, prior to the kick. Yet the position of bending the knee creates a huge drag problem that will slow the body immediately, more than negating the benefit of the more powerful kick. Therefore, great swimmers learn to use rapid, tight kicks to become more efficient.

The act of breathing slows us down (except in backstroke) because turning or lifting the head increases drag and slows the stroke rate, both detrimental to fast swimming. Yet without that precious oxygen, we go into lactate production sooner than when we breathe more. On any swim over 50 meters, one must compromise between more breaths (less lactic acid and stronger finish) and less breaths (faster way to swim). Great swimmers not only learn the right combination for their physiology and training, but also learn techniques where the breath minimally increases drag or reduces stroke rate.

The act of rotating the body along the long axis of freestyle and backstroke not only transfers energy to the forward motion, it also sets us up for the more important counter-rotation, which is the stabilizing force from which we gain more power on our underwater pull. However, if we allow the arm to follow the body underneath us on the rotation, the upper arm will create a significant amount of increased drag, negating the benefit. Therefore, keeping the elbows high to reduce drag, while rotating the body to increase power, is an awkward, yet more efficient way to swim. Getting more powerful in that position requires practice.

Finally, because we slow so rapidly in water, the law of inertia becomes critical to fast swimming. That is, we must come as close as possible to holding our speed constant in the stroke cycle. Most swimmers have no idea that during one arm stroke of freestyle, for example, that their speed changes by 40% or more from the fastest point (one arm out in front, the other getting ready to release) to the slowest point (arm at the shoulder level underwater, other arm in the air recovering). Because we power with long arms and legs, we cannot avoid the drag issues entirely and will always have fluctuating speed. By increasing our stroke rate and by narrowing our kick, we can reduce the magnitude of changes in speed, however, and increase our efficiency. The slower we get, the more energy is required to power us up again.

In swimming, little changes can make big differences. The right techniques are not always obvious or easier to perform. If you want to swim faster, though, you must pay attention to details. Or better yet, let us pay attention for you. See you down here soon.

Yours in Swimming,

Gary Sr.