Butterfly
Upper body
Head
When you breathe your head is coming out too much, remember that you should use the power of your arms to pull you forward not up, when you pull forward it will be enough for your head to come a bit outside and take a breath.
The head should enter the water before the arms, make sure you put in your head before the arms.
Arms
Do not put bring your arms too deep when you have them in front of you, keep the arms closer to the surface but your head and chest does go deep.
You are taking too long gliding and this make you not being synchronize your 2nd kick with your pull, you want to finish them at the same time. You need to start the pull before
Recovery
Remember to have a relax recovery. Make sure you do not rush your stroke,
Have a good extension of the arms on the recover.
Your hands are too close to each other, the arms should enter at the line of your shoulders, right know the arms are entering almost touching each other.
When you synchronize your 2nd kick and your pull, the recovery will be much easier, since you will combine the strength of both you will have more time to do the recovery with both arms.
Pulling
Your hands are pointing down towards the floor, this is why your head is coming out too much, change the direction of the hands to pull backwards, you want to move forward not up.
Start the pull before you are taking too long gliding.
You need to grab and pull the water strong every time, from when you start the pull to the end of the stroke your should accelerate your pulling. It will easier to bring your head and arms out of the water for the recovery,
You are pulling with your fingers too separated and loose, make sure you have them just a bit separated and a bit more tense.
Do not rush your stroke, even if you are sprinting maintain every step of the stroke, try going a bit deeper with your head and chest when you have your hands in front of you.
Chest
When you have your arms in the front put your head and chest deeper, but keep your arms up close to the surface, this movement is going to help you have a more fluent stroke and be able to move your hips more and have a stronger kick.
Lower body
Hips
You are missing lots of hip movement, the kick comes from your core not only by bending your knees.
Raise your hips higher when your arms are in front and your head and chest are sunken. This way you will have a more fluid kick and stroke.
Legs
Beginners:
You are missing 1 kick, in butterfly you do 2 kicks, one when you arms are in the front and the other when you finish the pull with your arms, the second kick (when your arms finish pulling) is the strong kick, the first one (when your arms enter the water is a smaller one.
You need to kick up just as much as you kick down.
Here you can see better how your feet are separated. Keep your feet closer when you kick. Big toes must be touching at all times.
The knees should not be separated as much, there is an opening but it is not very width. You can use an elastic band under the knees to keep the legs a little closer together.
You are doing the first kick stronger than the second, the second kick is supposed to be the strong kick
Synchronization
Beginners:
You are missing the fundamental movement of butterfly, chest and head down, hips up, do not rush your stroke or try to do many strokes.
Medium:
Start the pull before, your pull should finish at the same time that your second kick. You are gliding too long.
Your kick and your pull should finish at the same time, when you finish your pull and the 2nd kick.
The first kick is when your arms are entering the water you do not have to bend your knees too much on this kick.
Turns
When doing the turn you should bring one arm underwater and the other out of the water, the one that goes out, as soon as you touch the wall it comes out of the water.
You are doing your turn not compact enough, you have to bring your knees to your chest as soon as possible and get into a small compact position.
On the turn do not grab from the edge and then turn, keep your hands on the wall, and bring your knees faster to your chest.
Breakout
When you do the breakout do a strong for the first stroke so you can carry the speed of the turn/underwaters, if you start the first stroke and you are too deep or you do it slow you will lose your speed.
Go down on the wall then push, point a bit diagonal towards the floor this is to have more time underwarter, then with your butterfly kicks they starts to bring you higher until closer to the surface.
When you do the breakout try being closer to the surface for the first stroke so you can carry the speed of the turn/underwaters, if you start the first stroke and you are too deep you will lose your speed.
Make sure to have a tight streamline everytime you push off the wall. You want to take advantage of the turns and starts
Make sure to you head between your arms on a good tight streamline. From here we can see already that you are missing lots of mobility/flexibility on your shoulders and hips. Do dryland training for shoulders and lower back, these videos can help you: videos
Areas to work on, in general:
- Keep practicing the dolphin movement, the movement comes from your hips and core. You can practice on your back, front and vertical kick.
- Work on the flexibility of your shoulders to bury your head and chest further. So, you will develop more strength in your pull.
- Work more flexibility in the lower back and hips to have a stronger and wider kick.
- Your butterfly is on a good path, work on one thing at the time, first focus on having both legs together at all times, then on bringing your chest and head deeper, and so on.
- Work on the flexibility of your shoulders so you can keep you arms high when you bury your head and chest.
- Develop greater flexibility in the lower back and ankles to facilitate the support of the stroke and the kick
Dryland
- To help you with the hip movement and the chest down, arms up you are going to need more mobility, do dryland training for shoulders and lower back, these videos can help you: videos
- Work on the flexibility of your shoulders to bury your head and chest further. So, you will develop more strength in your pull.
- Work more flexibility in the lower back and hips to have a stronger and wider kick.
Butterfly examples:
Backstroke
Upper body
Head
Your head is looking down a bit too much, your chin is too close to your chest, try to having it right in the middle, bring your sight a bit back. Having it down can cause for your body to sink, remember the head dictates the position of your body.
You are filling your lungs with air, trying to maintain your head out of the water, this is making your legs sink, try not having as much oxygen as possible on your lungs.
Arms
Hands
You are pulling with your fingers too separated and loose, make sure you have them just a bit separated and a bit more tense.
Rotation
Use your shoulder rotation on your favor, when your hand goes in rotate and pull, it will be easier for your shoulders.
Sometimes your hips are rotating a bit too much, try rotating less, just enough so it can help you rotate the arms and shoulders.
Recovery
Your arms should enter in line with your shoulders, keeping them very close to your head, right know you have them going in too wide.
Your arms should enter in line with your shoulders, right now you are crossing the middle line of your head.
In the recovery when your arms are about to touch the surface you slow down, keep the same speed you have from the beginning, if you are sprinting then you can even accelerate the recovery.
Keep your arms straight at all times when you are in the recovery phase.
Pulling
Here you can see how you are not finishing your pull all way, make sure you move as much water as possible, do not do extra movements.
When your arm/hand enters the water let it go a bit deeper keeping it straight, then start bending your elbow so you pull the water backwards, it will help you grab more water and have a cleaner pull without many bubbles.
You are pulling with your arm straight, the arm needs to be bend while pulling underwater like grabbing and pulling from the lane line.
You are pushing the water down instead of backwards.
You need to grab and pull the water strong every time, the more strokes doesn’t mean you will go faster on the contrary, you will go slower and get more tired.
You need to do the full movement of the pull do not rush it, let your arm go in straight, bend your elbow to pull and finish all the way to the end then bring the arm up, the more strokes doesn’t mean you will go faster on the contrary, you will go slower and get more tired.
Chest
Lower body
Hips
Your hips are a bit bend, try to stretch them more, bring them as close to the surface as possible.
Your lower body is sinking a bit, engage your core and bring your hips and legs closer to the surface. This will help you have a more efficient stroke. Your toes should touch the surface.
Core
Think about squeezing your core or flexing your abs while swimming backstroke, this will help keep your body flat, your body position seems to be way better by the last session videos, as your hips are no longer sinking
Legs
Your kick frequency is too high, you are kicking too much and is not in sync with your arms, slow down a bit your kick, and make sure your legs are higher closer to the surface, your toes should be breaking the surface.
You don’t need to kick that wide, make your kicks smaller, and do not move your knees up and down, your knees should not break out of the water, work on keeping them underwater.
You are moving your knees up and down too much, yes is ok to bend the knee to kick up but you do not have to move it up and down too much.
When your leg is going down keep it straight. You want to bring your feet closer to the surface, the toes should touch the surface when you kick up.
You need to keep your ankles on plantar flexion at all times, if you kick in dorsiflexion it will not help you move forward.
Synchronization
Do not do a pause with your arms when you finish the pull, when you end the pull bring it up right away, your arms should be like a windmill, opposite from one another all the time.
You want your arms to alternate during the pull; when one arm is up getting ready to pull, the other one should be finishing the pull. Notice how this is not reflected on your stroke, you wait until one of your arms finishes the pull completely before even bringing the other one up to begin the pull. Again, alternate is the key word here.
UW
Practice your underwater dolphin kicks, do them strong from your core all the way to the feet.
Turns
When you do the flip turn turn your hands to do a curl with your arms so it helps you turn better and land better.
Be sure to practice your backstroke turn, so when you turn your feet are well position for a strong push and underwater dolphin kicks.
Make sure to have a tight streamline everytime you push off the wall. You want to take advantage of the turns and starts
The flags are there to help you know how far out you are from the wall. Once you see the flags count how many strokes it takes you to get to the wall and memorize this number, next time reduce one and do the last one in a freestyle stroke, this will help you turn better.
Breakout
Everytime you push of the all practice doing it underwater, go down in the wall and push underwater then slowly start to come to the surface, it will make your swim smoother. Make sure to blow bubbles of your nose
When you do the breakout try being closer to the surface for the first stroke so you can carry the speed of the turn/underwaters, if you start the first stroke and you are too deep you will lose your speed.
Make sure to push off closer to the wall, use your dolphin kicks to bring you closer to the surface for the first stroke, do this by pointing your hands/amrs diagonal towards the surface.
Push of the wall, then wait a little bit more then start the dolphin kick, if you kick right aways you will cut the speed of the push.
Your dolphin kicks are too wide, try doing them smaller and faster, do more dolphin kicks, you have a strong kick take advantage of it, start to come up slowly do not rush to come up.
Areas to work on, in general:
- Work on one thing at the time. Focus one day on one thing, then the next day another point, do not try to correct it all at once.
- Keep up the good work, you came to the camp not knowing how to swim backstroke and now you know how to, is time to start working on your technique and different points that will make it much easier to swim it.
- You can work slowly 2 times a week on your ankle flexibility, here is a video that can help you link
Backstroke examples:
Breaststroke
Upper body
Head
Do not bury your head down underwater, just keep it neutral, it comes up to breath then you take it down diagonally to the front and down.
Remember in breastroke you should breath every time you do a stroke, so when you pull with your arms bring your head out of the water.
Your head moves a lot up and down, try keeping it in a middle steady position. This helps you align your entire body.
Arms
Hands
Too narrow, now you are opening better the hand grabbing more water and getting your hands together faster and closer to you.
Keep the fingers closer together and bit tense, specially your right hand.
Gliding
One of the most important things in your breaststroke is that you learn how to glide, remember that gliding makes your stroke more efficient and faster, you need to stretch and tighten your arms to the front.
Recovery
Throw your hands to the front not down, it depends in the event, if you are swimming distances longer than 100 breast, then you can throw your hands a bit deeper to have a longer glide.
Throw your hands strong to the front with speed, not just put them in front.
Pulling
Make sure you finish your pull all the way, when you finish the pull your elbows should be touching your body, bring them close to your body asap.
You are starting your pull down; you need to pull to your sides and down at the same time in circular motion
The pull make it shorter/smaller, your arms are pulling too far back. Your elbows should never cross the line of your shoulders, when you arms pass the line of your shoulder they should be already touching your body.
Use your pull to bring your upper body out of the surface, your hands should finish touching the surface, from there throw your hands/arms and chest to the front,
When you pull, the first part is tu open your hands to the sides then you start to change the direction backwards and then bring them together, right now you are pulling with your hands down to only bring you up.
Chest
Lower body
Hips
Take the momentum from your kick and use it to bring your hips up to the surface when you finish kicking, it will help you have a better body position In the water
Core
Legs
The opening of your knees and the kick is too wide. You are doing 3 movements you open the legs, then you extend them and then you bring them together, instead it should be 2 movements, you open your legs then in one circular movement you bring them together.
The knees do not separate too much from one another, there is a small opening but not to wide. A good drill is swimming breastroke with a pullbouy on your legs.
When you kick change your feet to dorsiflexion position
When finishing your kick, extend your legs and point your toes as much as you can
Doing butterfly kick, Work with you breast kick, you can practice even outside of the water: Breast kick video
Synchronization
You are doing your kick and your stroke at the sametime, it should be your stroke first hands to the front then your kick, so when you begin throwing your hands to the front you should be starting your kick, and when you have them on the front you finish the kick (it will be the fastest part of your stroke)
UW
Turns
Keep working on pushing from the wall deeper and doing the pull out to bring you up.
Make sure to have a tight streamline everytime you push off the wall. You want to take advantage of the turns and starts
When doing the turn you should bring one arm underwater and the other out of the water, the one that goes out, as soon as you touch the wall it comes out of the water.
You are doing the turn facing down to facing up, the turn in breast and fly is on the side, you touch with both hands, one arm underwater and the other out of the water, there you start rotating to the side, so you can push sideways then turn horizontally.
Breakout
Try practicing your pullout everytime you push of the wall, on the turn you push a bit deep, stay a bit in a tight streamline, then when you start to lose speed, do a dolphin kick and then the pull all the way, then wait a bit to take advantage of the pull and then do a breast kick and a stroke to do the breakout.
Make sure when you do the breakout after the pullout you are close to the surface so you carry the speed from the turn to your swim.
On the turn you push a bit deep, then change the position to horizontal or maybe a bit diagonal towards the surface on the pullout .Make sure when you do the breakout after the pullout you are close to the surface so you carry the speed from the turn to your swim.
You want too high when you did the pull out, it should be diagonal towards the surface, then when you do the first stroke you break the surface,
The first day you were missing the last stroke before the breakout, you corrected it the last day, Make sure when you do the breakout after the pullout you are close to the surface so you carry the speed from the turn to your swim.
Do not rush the pullout, push of the wall, stay a bit in a tight streamline, then when you start to lose speed, do the dolphin kick and the pull, then wait a bit to take advantage of the pull and then do a breast kick and a stroke to do the breakout strong and to carry the speed.
Areas to work on, in general:
- Work on one thing at the time, start with the synchronization of your stroke, then move to the next point 🙂
- Keep working on pushing from the wall deeper and doing the pull out.
- Make sure to work on a stronger pull, to bring your body into a better position for the recovery.
Breast examples:
Freestyle
Importancia
- Posición del cuerpo
- Cuerpo horizontal cerca de la superficie, subir piernas
- respiracion
- Brazada
- abrir codo y Jalar fuerte y acelerando el jalón
- Delizar estirar al frente
- recuperacion
- Patada
- patada eficiente y fuerte (no importa si son muchas o pocas)
Upper body
Head
You must lower your head more when you are not breathing and when you breathe, rest your head on your shoulder opposite the side that you breathe.
Your looking down too much your head position should be in the middle between down and the front.
You are taking your head out too much to breath, remember it should only come out half of the face.
Sometimes you have the tendency to look forward during the stroke, mainly during the turn, try avoiding this. It will keep a good “flow” or fluent stroke
Keep your head more steady, rotate breath then come back to a neutral position, you sometime move your head up and down.
Arms
Hands
Try to not crossover the line from the middle of your body/head when breaking the surface with your hands.
You are rotating your right hand when gliding to the front, you corrected it but sometimes you still do it, keep practicing until it comes more natural.
Gliding
When your arm goes in the water, try to glide more with your arms and do not drop your arm, when your hand enters the surface, rotate and glide it as much as you can to the front, right now you are gliding diagonal down and front (specially your right hand)
Here when your arm goes in, it is supposed to glide horizontally not diagonal, make sure that when your arms enters the water you change the direction to the front not down.
Make sure that when your arms enter the water you fully stretch your arms to the front before starting the pull. Right now you keep your elbow a bit bend.
When your left arm goes in you are moving your hand to the left, the hand keep it always in line with your forearm.
You can glide a little longer, make sure that when your arms enters the water you fully stretch your arms to the front before starting the pull.
Recovery
Your left arm is still crossing a bit the middle line of your body/head, try keeping it in the same line as your shoulders.
Sometimes your elbow breaks the surface first, the hand should enter first then the arm follows.
Pulling
You are pulling a too wide, when your arm goes in and you finish your glide, bend your elbow so you can pull more under your body and not on the sides.
Don’t forget you need to finish your pull all the way back, do not bring it out before.
Your stroke rate is too fast and you are cutting your stroke, when you finish gliding, bend your elbow to start the pull.
Your pull is too slow, when you finish gliding and you bend your elbow to start the pull, accelerate the pull and do it strong.
You need to grab and pull the water strong every time, the more strokes doesn’t mean you will go faster on the contrary, you will go slower and get more tired.
You are pulling with your arms straight, bend your elbow more.
Do not bend your wrist to pull, open your elbow and pull with your hand in line with your forearm.
You are pushing the water down more than backwards, remember that you want to move forward and in order to move forward you have to pull the water towards your feet, this will increase the speed and will make you float more.
You are pulling with your elbow first, you need to “open your elbow to the side so it gets in the same line as your hand and you pull with your hand/forearm. You might need to work on your shoulder mobility in order to achieve this. Mobility videos
Chest
Lower body
Hips
You are kind of bending your lower back, which make your hips to sink a bit, make sure to have the hips touching the surface at all times.
Core
Legs
When kicking and to bring your leg up have it straight activating your glutes and lower back, right now you are bending the knee to bring your feet up.
You can practice this movement laying down on the floor or bed and just bringing your leg up straight.
The strength of the kick does not comes from just bending your knees it starts with your glute, hamstring, and a small bend of the knee.
You are dropping your legs when you breath, try keeping a more constant kick so you can keep your legs closer to the surface.
Focus on is bringing your kick closer to the surface and focus on having your legs straighter when going up, you want your toes to touch the surface when you kick.
Try keeping less oxygen on your lungs and push your chest down so your lower body comes higher.
You can work on kick on your back, and having your toes touching the surface of the water at all times.
The first thing you have to focus on is bringing your kick closer to the surface, you are doing too many kicks, the more kicks doesn’t mean you will swim faster or be able to bring your legs up. Work on kick on your back, and focus on having your legs straight and your feet touching the surface.
Look at your knees you are moving them up and down, remember the kick comes from your hips/core. Do not push your knees down, keep your legs and hips almost straight at all times.
If you are sprinting you should narrow your kicks and have them in a faster tempo.
Improved
Much better position on your legs closer to the surface the last day, you can still have them even closer to the surface, try to touch the surface with the sole of the feet.
Synchronization
UW
Turns
When you turn, rotate your hands and use your arms to do a curl so you can flip better and have a better position to get into a streamline faster.
Just remember you push then you start rotating, you are trying to rotate into freestyle before you turn. Keep practicing the turns when you swim and it will get easier every time.
Do not rush your push, land in a good position and make sure to have a strong push every time you do a turn.
Do not do the turn with both arms in the front, keep on arm on the side finish the last stroke keep both arms by your sides and with your head towards the wall do the turn,
Breakout
Make sure to have a tight streamline everytime you push off the wall. You want to have your biceps touching your head to take advantage of the turns and starts.
Work on the flexibility of your shoulder, these videos can help you: exercises
When you push of the wall after the turn, make sure you push a bit deeper, then with the dolphin kicks you start to come closer to the surface.
Make sure in the breakout you are almost in the surface.
Move more your hips when doing butterfly underwater kick. With the dolphin kicks you start to come closer to the surface, and make sure the first stroke is as strong as possible so you can carry the speed of the wall to your stroke.
Areas to work on, in general:
- Work on one thing at the time. Focus on correcting your pull, then once you correct it go to the next point.
- Be sure to practice sets like counting your strokes and reducing them so you start to have a stronger pull and grab more water.
- Work on your ankle flexibility, you should point your toes while kicking.
- In swimming you want to have a good relationship with the water, if you fight the water you wont move forward, if you try to glide and move through it will be much easier.
- Overall your freestyle is good. Be sure to practice sets like counting your strokes and reducing them so you start to have a stronger pull and grab more water.
- Work short distances keeping the best possible technique, as you improve, increase the swimming distances without changing your technique.
- Lots of improvement from the first day to the next ones, specially on your gliding, you are gliding much more, also your kick you started to bring your toes closer to the surface, you are just missing to bring you whole leg straight towards the surface.
- Sometimes is good to forget about the technique and just try going faster, by pulling strong and getting your kick up in the surface is going to help you bring your legs up.
- Work on your ankle flexibility, do dryland training these videos can help you: videos
Free examples:
Dive
Arms
Make sure to really use your arms to pull strong and fast from the blocks.
Make sure to put your arms into a streamline very tight before breaking the water.
Legs
Don’t just drop into the water, use your legs to jump strong and take the speed into the water.
Make sure to have both of your legs tense and in line when you dive, right now you are going in and your legs are separated
Do not drop your legs down on the block, instead move forward and jump.
You went in too vertical, you need to change your legs more horizontally so you enter and take the speed forward not down.
Jump
Try to enter with your whole body in the same place where your hands broke the surface. Imagine a circle where your body has to through
UW
Work on your ankle flexibility, on your underwater kicks we can see that your feet are bit stiff. The more mobility the stronger your kick. these videos can help you: exercises
Turns
Breakout
Make sure to have a tight streamline everytime you push off the wall. You want to have your biceps touching your head to take advantage of the turns and starts.
Work on the flexibility of your shoulder, these videos can help you: exercises
When you push of the wall after the turn, make sure you push a bit deeper, then with the dolphin kicks you start to come closer to the surface.
Make sure in the breakout you are almost in the surface.
Move more your hips when doing butterfly underwater kick. With the dolphin kicks you start to come closer to the surface, and make sure the first stroke is as strong as possible so you can carry the speed of the wall to your stroke.
Areas to work on, in general:
Free examples: