Nicole

Time key frames:

0:00 – 0:02

Push underwater, you can go underwater still with your feet on the wall, then push horizontally.

Make sure to blow bubbles of your nose

0:02 – 0:14

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.

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.

Your hips are a bit bend, try to stretch them more, bring them as close to the surface as possible.

When your leg is going down keep it straight, then bend your knee to kick up.

0:14 – 0:26

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.

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.

Backstroke examples:

Time key frames:

0:00 – 0:16

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)

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

0:16 – 0:31

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.

When you kick change your feet to dorsiflexion position

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 or a stretch band above your knees. 

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.

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 🙂
• We are about to upload a dryland video on the breaststroke kick here: Videos

Breast examples:

Time key frames:

0:00 – 0:12

When kicking your leg comes up have it straight, right now you are bending the knee to bring your feet up.

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.

0:12 – 0:15

Good flip turn! Just remember to do the turn then you start rotating, you are trying to rotate into freestyle at the same time you turn. Keep practicing the turns when you swim and it will get easier every time.

0:18 – 0:26

You are taking your head out too much to breath, remember it should only come out half of the face. Try breathing every stroke with shorters breaths and keep your opposite arm gliding to the front do not drop it. 

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.

Areas to work on, in general:

• Work on your ankle flexibility, do dryland training these videos can help you: videos
• Sometimes is good to forget about the technique and just try to make it flow, by trying to move as gentle and smooth as possible.

Free examples: