By TritonWear
Every swimmer has their own set of ever changing goals throughout their swimming career. But, the one common big picture goal that most, if not all, swimmers have is to swim faster.
Whether you’re trying to break a plateau, or looking for new ways to see progress, here are 4 tried and true techniques that will improve your swimming speed.
1. Focus on stroke technique
Improving swimming speed is all about reducing drag and improving propulsion. This means working on perfecting your form and maximizing stroke efficiency. With good technique, you’re able to utilize the power of your strokes in the right ways. This will vary between different strokes, but there are a few general technique tips to keep in mind.
Get in good kicks. Strong, fast kicks are a great source of propulsion, and at the same time prevents your lower body from sinking, helping maintain proper body position.
Focus on the catch. Keep your elbows high, so you’re actually pushing water back to bring yourself forward.
Use your entire body, but minimize unnecessary movements. Coordinate your movements so you’re swimming fluidly, riding the momentum of one action to build up to the next. Maintain your balance through your rotations or undulations to keep good body alignment. Engage your core and back muscles to increase the force produced by your strokes and improve propulsion.
2. Don’t ignore the little details
The smallest adjustments can make all the difference for your performance.
Maybe it’s taking an extra underwater dolphin kick or putting a little more effort into your turns. Or maybe it’s pushing your arms back just a little farther, completing your pull to increase your distance per stroke. In a sport where a millisecond can determine the outcomes of a race, there is no detail too minor.
If you’re not sure where to start, record your workouts, note your times, and track your metrics. This will help identify hidden problems or weaker areas that may not be immediately noticeable.
3. Use transitions to your advantage
It can be tempting to use the walls to catch your breath. But improving transitions – taking quicker turns and optimizing your time underwater – provides you with extra speed, which you will not gain from any other part of your swim.
A fast turn not only lowers your overall time, but it also lends to a powerful push-off. Given that the push-off is the fastest part of a swim, the more momentum you can retain in your underwater, the faster your swim will be.
4. Gradually increase training load
Improving strength and stamina will require that you change up your workouts and increase your training load. This will come in the form of building up your total distance and increasing workout intensity. Your approach to this will vary depending on your goals, current capabilities, and personal preferences, but it is critical to build up to it slowly to find your optimal training load.
There can be a tendency to want to go all out with your training, especially when you’re highly motivated to become a faster swimmer. While it is possible to see big improvements with this approach, it’s often unsustainable in the long term. Not only is this the quickest path to athlete burnout, it also inevitably leads to overtraining and injury.
Swimming fast takes time to achieve, but train smart and show up to the pool consistently, and you will be well on your way to becoming a better swimmer.
Find more tips and actionable steps with TritonWear’s comprehensive guide to swimming faster.
About TritonWear
The most accurate wearable technology on the market, delivering performance measurement, injury prevention, and motion analysis. TritonWear is a sleek wearable device easily tucked under the cap, providing data and insights for faster, injury free swimming. TritonWear is committed to bringing elite swimming knowledge and tools to every swimmer and coach, helping athletes drop time and lead the fast lane.
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