Discover your life aquatic

Third Week - Home Study

This week we have worked on refining the fundamentals that support easy breathing.

• Glide/Streamline
• Single Switch
• Single Switch with breathing (pauses between both)
• Repeated rhythmic switches decreasing pauses (no breathing)

Again, this week's homestudy will be as simple as possible, the kind of general practice we recommend as you work on developing more body awareness and comfort in the water with these new skills.

At this stage, we see that it is the fundamentals that still matter the most, even as we develop some of the last components that bring in full breathing with your stroke. We emphasize still practicing streamline position and the single switch most as they can help fix any feelings of losing balance or sinking in your full stroke, which can prevent you from getting to air easily. What is the most important thing to maintain? That's right... streamline posture!! Now with the inclusion of breathing with your switch, return to emphasis on glide posture maintained throughout the breath.

A flowing series of switches or strokes (ie.switches without pausing in between) without breathing is also very important for laying the foundation for breathing that fits in with an efficient freestyle. 

The more you practice the drills each time you go to the pool and really focus on making your weaknesses your strength, you will find this swimming stuff easier and more fun!

What to Practice Dry Land

Practice the following:

• Full recovery and switches (one at a time): see notes from this week
• Body rotations and breath timing: see notes from this week

What to Practice in the Pool

Spend 15 minutes on each phase, still with mini-laps (10-15m). If you want to practice with 25m lengths, always pause in glide to breath as much as you need to in order to be relaxed and focused. Please don't rush this and you will discover the payoff very soon.

1. Streamline position and breathing skills: (start with fins, then without fins).

2. Stroke mechanics and single switch: (using fins is optional here in order to explore new sensations). Focus especially on recoveries, forward momentum, and always returning to streamline. Ensure that you pause between each switch.

3. Fluid switches (3-5) without breathing

4. Fluid strokes with a breath (synchronized head turn for breath - see notes from Thursday).

Review the session notes from this week to refresh your mind of the various focus points for each of the postures/motions.