Glenwood Park Adult Team

Kicking

• A walk through of flutter kick including line drawings, a demo photo & midrace photo of elite swimmers during a sprint in Olympic races.
• Underwater vertical kicking footage.

Freestyle stroke

• Correct breathing technique.
• A video on the three most common kick patterns (2 kick, 4 kick & 6 kick).

Freestyle Drills

• How to improve your kick?
  • Vertical kicking is a great way to get immediate feedback on changes to your kicking pattern. If you rise up higher, it's a better kick!
  • KOB (Kick on Back) and kicking on your side are great ways to get a different feel for your kick. KOB also lets you watch your knees to make sure they aren't bending too much.
  • Sprint kick: Short bursts of sprint kicking are important because kicking technique is quite different during short races or the final 25 yards of any race.
• How to improve your pull? These drills are in order of skill level. Beginners will likely struggle with the drills at the bottom of this list and very fast swimmers likely would benefit more from the drills in the bottom half of this list. 
  • Kickboard hand entry drill. 
    • How? hold the kickboard in one hand with your arm fully extended. Stroke with the other arm, entering the water just before the kickboard then extending fully forward. Video demo. 
    • Why? Getting the full extension of your arm in freestyle creates a better full extension for your streamline. It also creats a coupling motion with the opposite hip for propulsion (like the arm swing in running). The rotation als sets up body rotation to engage back muscles on your pull.
  • Fist drill. Swim freestyle, but with your hands in fists. Focus on the feel of the water on your forearm. If you have an early vertical forearm with a high elbow position you'll be able to grab water more forcefully with your forearm and push water back towards your feet. To help with high elbow position, imagine reaching over a barrel as you pull. Video demo.
  • Stroke count challenge. Variation: only left arm or only right arm. Why? As with vertical kicking, counting your strokes and trying each length to reduce the count tgives you immediate concrete feedback on small changes with your form.
  • Catchup freestyle. 
    • How? Keep one arm in front of your body throughout the stroke cycle. Hands should not touch in the center but rather stay in front of your shoulders in an "11" position. 
    • Why? Working one arm at a time allows you to focus on form. For any swimmers whose hips tend to drop while swimming, catchup also improves your form in the water. Video demo. 
  • 6/3/6. Take 3 strokes to reach a fully extended position with body rotation. While fully extended, take a breath & kick 6 time. Focus: full extension and rotation.
  • 6/1/6. Take one arm stroke to reach a fully extended position with body rotation. While fully extended, take a breath & kick 6 time. Focus: full extension and rotation.
  • 1-Arm Max Pull Drill. 
    • How? One arm will be stationary straight out in front of your body at shoulder width. The other arm will also be in front of the shoulder. Take a moment to set up and concentrate then pull through with max pull effort. Set the arm back forward again pause to reflect and then pull again. Reverse arms after 25 yards. Video demo.
  • Underwater recovery. Do a full reach forward and pull back with each arm, then recover under water near the body. Like a long & lean doggy paddle. It’s almost a catchup drill, where you’re going to hold the extended arm in front almost until the recovery arm comes back. Focus: rotation & pull pattern (railroad tracks or skinny S).