the17thman

GoSwimTV - Weighted Flipturns

My flip turns suck.  They are slowly getting better but they still have very far to go.  I have a long list of things I do wrong. One of the things I do is look up at the wall before turning which I know is a no no.  When a coach corrected me I answered that when I don't look I'm either too close or far away.  The response I got was to have faith that the wall will be there by lifting your head you are stopping the momentum you have going into the wall.  Which leads me to another coaches critique of my turns and stroke.  In trying to correct my turns the coach once commented Like your swimming you have no technique in your turns.  You just go by momentum."  I believe I shut down to that coach for weeks after.  I was like a hurt animal who snaps back at ya.  That momentum has down me pretty well is basically what I thought to myself. 

With all the said at least in the warm up period of every workout I work on my turns.  As the practice goes on I get lazy or focus more on everything else and my turns fall apart.  I figure some work on the turns is better then none.  The last few practices I have been hearing voices while I do my turns.  I have four different coaches in my head telling me different things at different turns.  It's like I do the turn and think "doh!  flip over on your back" and a bunch of other errors from foot placement to looking at the wall before me.  when I'm not swimming I've been reading and watching a few you tube videos.  The thing that is pissing me off the most is when I think I'm doing the turn correctly I'm getting my ass kicked at the turns.  When I do my really bad fast toss my body in some sorta of a flip turn I can pull ahead at the wall.  I know in time they correct turn will be faster. 

With that said here is a video from Go Swim about wearing ankle weights while doing a flip turn drill. 

Funny that they mention stop when you start to feel dizzy.  One of our coaches has us do these 50 drills in which we start in the middle of the pool, swim into the wall, do the flip turn, then back in the middle of the pool do a sumbersault like flip turn, continuee to swim into the next wall, do another flip turn and stop at the middle again.  I so not only get dizzy during this set I get so much water up my nose.  After the second one I usally shut down and do whatever or take a pee break.  But I swear someday my turns won't be so ugly. 

GoSwim - Freestyle Flip Turn

My turns are the worst in the world.  Our team has a Turns Clinic next month that I signed up for.  Mind you I sorta know how to do the correct turn but I just am too lazy to practice it.  So come swim meet time my turns suck.  For a while I was making an effort during the warm up and easier parts of workout to make every turn as perfect.  Then I stopped for some reason that I don't recall.  I'm going to work on my turns during the slower parts of workouts between now and the turn clinic.  As for the rest of the workout I'm too busy worrying about making intervals to even care about a turn.  Just need to stop touching the bottom of the pool in my hand stand like position flip turn. 

Here is a video from Go Swim about the Freestyle Flip Turn:

Battle Over Swimming Pool Temps

I've blogged so many times about pool temperature that by now everyone knows I want it cold.  If I see steam rising from the pool than it's too hot.  Damn you noodlers bitching and moaning that the pool is too cold.  Just work a bit harder and get your heart rate going.  So before I rant on for 12 or so paragraphs let's head on over to GoSwim.tv's Questions of the Week:

In a pool used primarily for Masters and age-group swim practice and for lap swimming (and not for lessons), what's the ideal water temp?  Not talking meets here... but day-to-day practice time.

LINK

GoSwim: Kara Lynn Joyce's Freestyle

What temperature of water is too cold to swim in? Or... too hot?

Goswim.tv's question of the week is:   What temperature of water is too cold to swim in?  Or... too hot?

For me I like it between 78 F and 80 F.  But I like to dive in and have the cold water wake me up.  I swam one time when the water was 74 F and that was too cold.  As for too hot I'd gotta say anything above 81 F.

Go Swim - Swimming Set of the Week - September 16, 2008

Goswim.tv's set of the week is interesting in that it's all about doing IM but without butterfly LINK.  For me I'd prefer doing IM without the breaststroke.  This IM set is a pyramid made up of 100, 200, 300. 400, 300 200, 100.  Goswim based this set from a set that Michael Phelps does.  The set looks interesting even if the intervals seem a bit generous.  I personally wouldn't give this set for myself to swim but you IM'ers who don't like butterfly will love this set.  Check it out LINK.

One Arm Butterfly Drill

When the coach gives us choice in drill work I seem to always go for the one arm butterfly drill.  Why?  Well I find it easy to do and let's face it I hate drilling and kicking.  Since the coach normally uses drilling as part of the warm up portion of the workout I slack off and usually go last in the lane before I move up and lead the lane during the main set.  That is when I lead the lane which is not always.  After watching the video below I realize that I've been doing the one arm butterfly drill differently.  After a quick search of the internet it seems that one arm butterfly drill has two different schools of thought.  One which is demonstrated in this video has the swimmer extend the unused arm out front while breathing to the front.  The other school of thought is that you keep the unused arm to the side and breath to the side. 

Here is the GoSwim video of One Arm Butterfly Drill:

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Then here is a video from Youtube featuring a 1/1/2 drill in which you still keep the unused arm out front but breath to the side:

 

I know that I've seen a video before in which the unused arm is to the side and breathing is to the side but I can't find it for this post.  When or If I do find it I'll update this post.  I'll be trying the two styles in the above videos today at swim practice.