The Labours of SwimStud

For some reason this got my attention. It is not what I expected.

Sweet, I get to put my breaststroke expertise to use!

I got nothin'

That's some of the strangest feedback I've ever heard.

Every coach I've swum with since I've done masters has told me my arms are too wide when doing breast. I've done drills, gotten feedback, etc and I is something I constantly work on. I really can't imaging being too narrow; or if you were you'd lose efficiency or speed, and your not losing either.

Did you chat about what breast events you're training for, and did she see you do all the drills?
My stroke count varies quite a bit from the 50 to 100 to 200 (the 200 breast is really so different). Depending how I'm feeling, what else I've done, and my focus for the set, my breast stroke count can be as low as 6 or 7 per 25 yards, and as high as 12-13.

I'd take the advice with a grain of salt. Obviously you're doing what works for you

Originally Posted by qbrain

Sweet, I get to put my breaststroke expertise to use!

I got nothin'

As a "fake it" sprint evilstroker, I would completely disregard her advice. It sounds old school. Sure, we'd all like more DPS, but it's a freakin' sprint.

Originally Posted by Speedo

For some reason this got my attention. It is not what I expected.

Originally Posted by That Guy

( o )( o )

OK now Guys?

10 strokes for a 25 is WAAAAAY too many. even sprinting. You can't be harnessing any of that terrific glide you must be generating with your legs. It's hard and counter-intuitive but you still have to maintain a ride and glide rhythm in a sprint, albeit a faster one.

As far as the outsweep, completely ignore her comment. your arms are basically useless in breaststroke. Like frog arms. You ever cut the legs off a frog and watch it swim? I have and it ain't pretty. Compare a 50 sprint kick with a 50 sprint and see how little your arms contribute. Then try the same thing with any other stroke. See my point? That is NOT to say to ignore your arms at all but generally speaking you want to build speed through the outsweep and thrust them forward. you want them always out in front of you, even when they are under your chin. I really like fast hands drills for that reason. but again, be careful not to cut off the glide too soon.

.

Originally Posted by Water Rat

10 strokes for a 25 is WAAAAAY too many. even sprinting. You can't be harnessing any of that terrific glide you must be generating with your legs. It's hard and counter-intuitive but you still have to maintain a ride and glide rhythm in a sprint, albeit a faster one.

As far as the outsweep, completely ignore her comment. your arms are basically useless in breaststroke. Like frog arms. You ever cut the legs off a frog and watch it swim? I have and it ain't pretty. Compare a 50 sprint kick with a 50 sprint and see how little your arms contribute. Then try the same thing with any other stroke. See my point? That is NOT to say to ignore your arms at all but generally speaking you want to build speed through the outsweep and thrust them forward. you want them always out in front of you, even when they are under your chin. I really like fast hands drills for that reason. but again, be careful not to cut off the glide too soon.

Yeah I have a mental mantra of "get the arms out of the way and kick" so I'm not too worried about that. The 10 stroke thing is interesting...points I think are a factor:

• it was night the end of the practice
• it was the shallow end 3.5
• it was the back half of the 50

I know I don't do that many normally, but it's not hard to over giddy-up...i was working on jamming my arms together so I may have be rushing to get to that point...


However, I just watched my 50 from Nats I took 10 on the way back....along withthe majority of the heat..the winner took 9 but he was also about 2 secs ahead. I probably took 7 or out on the way out....it was missed.



I'm not going to worry too much as long as the speed drops. I had plenty of glide in my middle 100 of my 200BR and that was horrenduss.

The other thing I noted was maybe I bring my arms too far back--she may have seen this and felt that's where the muscling comes from....but I hope the focus on getting elbows together and working on keeping arms in front will help.

Originally Posted by Water Rat

As far as the outsweep, completely ignore her comment. your arms are basically useless in breaststroke. Like frog arms. You ever cut the legs off a frog and watch it swim?

The arms are all I got in the evil! Those and my one allotted dolphin kick per length.

I liked the idea of a mean nasty EVF with the arms. I probably need to work on squeezing the damn forearms together too, Stud.

Originally Posted by SwimStud

OK now Guys?

I was talking to Speedo...

Originally Posted by That Guy

I was talking to Speedo...

That's what I thought too but I couldn't read your body language.