USMS Master Your Freestyle Guide
USMS Master Your Freestyle Guide
USMS Master Your Freestyle Guide
We know swimming! Think of us as your expert resource. We’ll give you the secrets
you need to improve your technique, swim farther, and increase your cardiovascular
fitness starting with one of the most common strokes, Freestyle. Master this one and
you’ve got it made.
We recognize that you can’t do this alone, which is why we’re here to support you
both in and out of the water. U.S. Masters Swimming has an abundance of online
resources and member benefits that can help you achieve a wide variety of you
swimming aspirations and goals.
As CO2 builds up within you, your body senses it and tells your brain
that you need to breathe. Your breathing urges are driven by excessive
CO2, not by a lack of oxygen. Getting rid of the CO2 helps relieve the
out-of-breath distress.
Swimmers who don’t exhale properly will quickly feel winded because
of this reflex, even though they probably aren’t really suffering oxygen
debt. This is why many extremely fit triathletes may feel that they can
only swim a few lengths of the pool before needing a long rest break -
they’re holding their breath.
TIPS
Distance runners and cyclists would never dream of holding their
breath during a competition, yet our instincts are to clamp up and stop
breathing when our faces are in the water. To become an effective
swimmer, we must fight this instinct.
Start blowing out as soon as you finish inhaling, and that you’ll more
effectively get the CO2 out of your lungs before turning for the next
breath.
Some people find it helpful to count “1, 2,” or to silently think the words
in and out to create the habit of rhythm. Experiment to find what works
for you.
It's also important to blow at least some of the air out your nose to
maximize the airflow and avoid getting water in your sinuses. This
is especially critical when exhaling while you're upside down during
a flip turn or on a backstroke start. Getting water up your nose is a
memorably unpleasant experience.
ALTERNATE BREATHING
Many coaches urge swimmers to breathe on every third arm instead of
constantly breathing on the same side. This has two primary benefits:
Once you have mastered breathing ever two strokes, then you can then
move to trying out alternate or bilateral breathing
About the Author: Terry Heggy has been swimming for more than 50 years. He won his age group
in the 10K Open Water Championship in 2006, competed in the National Championship Olympic
Distance Triathlon in 2014, and qualified again for USAT Nationals in 2015. The 2019 Jack
Buchannan Service Award winner is the head coach of Team Sopris Masters in Glenwood Springs,
Colo., a USMS-certified Level 3 Masters coach, and an NASM Certified Personal Trainer.
1 CONNECTING YOUR STROKE
TO THE REST OF YOUR BODY
Most seasoned swimmers want to swim fast and efficiently, even if they
don’t have the training or physical capabilities to perform like the elite
swimmers, and the secret might be in figuring out how much and when
to kick.
• Second 50: Add a two-beat kick, which is usually one kick per
arm stroke, and is opposing (when the right arm is stroking, the
left leg is kicking).
• Third 50: Add two more kicks to your stroke cycle, so you’re
swimming with a four-beat kick. This usually means one kick
when your hand enters and one during the propulsive phase
(when you are pulling back) but see what feels best for you.
• Fourth 50: Swim with a full six-beat kick, three kicks per
arm stroke.
Complete the drill several times, making sure to get adequate rest so
you can properly evaluate your kick without worrying about excess
fatigue. Which kick causes you not to wiggle, twist against yourself, or
feel unbalanced? Which kick, a two-, four-, or six-beat kick feels the
most natural to you?
1 CONNECTING YOUR STROKE
TO THE REST OF YOUR BODY
• Keep your legs close together and loose. Wide kicking slows you
down, even if it feels like you’re moving a lot of water.
Whichever kick is right for you, finding it will make you more connected
and efficient in the water, which will result in faster swimming.
About the Author: Scott Bay is a USMS-certified Masters coach and an ASCA Level 5 coach and
has been actively coaching and teaching swimming since 1986 to swimmers of all ages. The Masters
swimmers he currently coaches include national champions, All Americans, and world record holders,
who have swum to more than 300 Top 10 swims and 30 world records in just the past 5 years.
1 CONNECTING YOUR STROKE
TO THE REST OF YOUR BODY
S = FR – D
PROPERTIES OF PROPULSION
You apply propulsive force with movements of your arms and legs.
Your hands and forearms work together as paddle assemblies that push
backward through the water to generate thrust.
TURNOVER TRADEOFFS
At first glance, our speed equation implies that the fastest possible
stroke cadence would always result in the quickest swim. If force and
drag remained constant at all turnover rates, this would be true – but
the fact is that speeding up your arm stroke can cause a reduction in
force and an increase in drag. Pitfalls of overclocking the cadence
include:
You want to find that optimal cadence where you can achieve the
highest stroke rate while maintaining your best form and force
production.
About the Author: Terry Heggy has been swimming for more than 50 years. He won his age group
in the 10K Open Water Championship in 2006, competed in the National Championship Olympic
Distance Triathlon in 2014, and qualified again for USAT Nationals in 2015. The 2019 Jack
Buchannan Service Award winner is the head coach of Team Sopris Masters in Glenwood Springs,
Colo., a USMS-certified Level 3 Masters coach, and an NASM Certified Personal Trainer.
2 FOCUS ON THE
KICK! KICK! KICK!
• Six-beat kick: You can think of this common kick pattern as being
similar to the timing of a waltz: Count “One-two-three—one-two-
three” or “Right-two-three—left-two-three” and so on. In short, your
swimmer should complete six kicks per stroke cycle or three kicks
per single arm stroke. The first kick is down, timed with the opposite
recovery arm spearing to forward extension.
So, in this pattern, the right leg kicks down (one) and rotates the
torso to the left skating edge, which is followed by a downward kick
on the left side (two). The third beat comes with the right leg kicking
down (three), then the left leg kicks down (one).
Next, the torso rotates to the right skating edge, which is followed
by another downward right kick (two) and finally a downward left
kick (three). That’s one complete six-beat kick cycle.
• Four-beat kick: The four-beat kick pattern has the same timing
as the six-beat kick but uses two fewer kicks. But unlike its six-beat
counterpart, the four-beat kick is asymmetrical, with three kicks on
one side and one kick on the other side making a total of four kicks
per stroke cycle.
• Two-beat kick: The two-beat kick also mimics the timing of the six-
beat kick pattern, just with four fewer kicks. As with the six-beat
kick pattern, the two-beat kick is symmetrical, but the swimmer takes
only a single kick per arm stroke or two kicks per stroke cycle. This
is the most economical kick and it’s most similar to walking or
running on land. However, this kick pattern requires the most
balance of the three patterns since there are no stabilizing kicks
between rotational kicks.
The two-beat kick is often used for long distance events. The four- and
six-beat kick can be used for virtually any distance.
The choice of which kick to use is personal and swimmers may stick with
one pattern or prefer come combination. The key is finding what works
best for each individual swimmer and what is sustainable for whatever
distance they’re swimming.
Most importantly, the kick is timed with the opposite arm, which aids
body rotation and engages the large muscle groups of the core. If you
want to swim from your core and get the most power, start by refining
your kick timing first.
About the Author: Stuart McDougal: A USMS Level 3 coach and Total Immersion Master coach,
Stuart McDougal is the head swim coach of SoCal Tri Masters and LA Tri Club in Los Angeles and co-
founder of Mind Body and Swim Inc. in San Francisco.
2 FOCUS ON THE
KICK! KICK! KICK!
• Keep the legs long and loose, almost as if the power comes from the
core and the leg finishes it.
• Comes from the hip and uses the core. If you’re working on
this and feel your hips rock a little, that’s a good thing! Drive or
initiate the kick with the hips and let the legs finish it. Try it slowly
at first!
• Keep the legs long and loose. Many of us were told to point
our toes as kids. This makes the leg very stiff and mechanical and
is not very efficient. Instead, think of curling your toes as if trying to
pick up a penny off the deck with your toes. This will put your foot
in the proper position without making the leg rigid and allowing the
knee and ankle joints to remain loose.
• Keep your kick symmetrical. You can do this very well while
kicking under water. When you kick under water or even on your
back, you have to put pressure on the bottom of your feet as well
as the tops. Focus on feeling pressure on the bottom and the top
of the feet.
2 FOCUS ON THE
KICK! KICK! KICK!
You’ll need to be mindful of where you feel the effort. Being a good
kicker alone is not the key to faster swimming, but it’s an important
component alongside catching, pulling, and body position. Keep
working at it and you’ll likely see some improvement, at the very least
during those kicking sets you used to hate to do.
About the Author: Scott Bay is a USMS-certified Masters coach and an ASCA Level 5 coach and
has been actively coaching and teaching swimming since 1986 to swimmers of all ages. The Masters
swimmers he currently coaches include national champions, All Americans, and world record holders,
who have swum to more than 300 Top 10 swims and 30 world records in just the past 5 years.
3 DRILL. REPEAT.
DRILL. REPEAT.
FIVE DRILLS TO IMPROVE YOUR FEEL FOR THE WATER AND BODY BALANCED
Here are five drills you can do to train your body to better feel the
water. Most of them will feel extremely awkward, which is exactly the
point. With feel comes another important element of swimming fast:
balance. You want your right side moving in the exact same manner as
your left (as long as the technique is correct). Experienced swimmers
can feel when they’re not balanced in the water.
OK DRILL
Make an “OK” sign with your thumb and pointer finger around a plastic
golf ball with holes (golf training ball). When you initiate your pull with
your other three fingers, be certain that they’re pointing toward the
bottom of the pool. Start with the ball in your non-dominant hand and
then switch after a few 25s. Focus on how the water feels on those three
fingers. If you’re pulling correctly, you should feel a connectivity from
your fingers to the tendons in your forearms to the muscles around your
shoulder blades.
3 DRILL. REPEAT.
DRILL. REPEAT.
Start with one paddle and both fins. When you improve your ability to
feel the water, take off the fin that’s on the same side of your body that
you have a paddle on (swim with a left paddle and right fin or right
paddle and left fin). The propulsion from the downward phase of the
kick with your finned foot (especially if it’s your dominant leg) will help
you gain awareness of how your hand is entering with the paddle on
your non-dominant side. Alternate which hand you have a paddle on
and perform this drill again.
FINAL THOUGHT
When doing these drills, try to feel the imbalance in your body, make
mental notes, and do your best to correct. Whenever possible, have
someone film you. This will always make analysis much easier. If a
picture says a thousand words, then a video says much more.
About the Author: Matt Donovan started his coaching career at a summer league pool in Connecticut
in 1995. Since that time, he has coached on every level and is currently the head coach of Long
Island University in Brooklyn, a Division I women’s team in the Northeast Conference. He also is
a Masters coach at Asphalt Green in Manhattan, N.Y. and a Level 4 coach with American Swim
Coaches Association.
BONUS FLIP
TURNS
That’s not good if you want fast flip turns. Swimming fast means making sure
you don’t waste any energy on movements that don’t help you swim faster.
Extra movements are just a waste of energy. And after all that twisting,
waggling, and waving, you must spend more time and energy getting your
body and all its parts back in line for a good streamline off the wall. That’s a
double whammy: wasted energy and wasted time.
But have no fear; the four fundamentals of a great flip turn are here.
Your hands stay in about the same place in the water and should be over your
head once your feet land on the wall. You shouldn’t move them to the side or
make any circles or other time or energy wasting movements. Remember: use
your more powerful core muscles to flip around, not your arms.
BONUS FLIP
TURNS
With the basics of a proper flip turn in mind, here are two drills to help you do
perfect, fast flip turns without any twisting, waggling, or waving.
Variations of this are using the lane line in the same way, though many pool
operators and lifeguards may cringe at this, or the water aerobics dumbbells
in place of the noodle. When you are comfortable, ditch the equipment and
try it for real at the wall.
Hold the wall or gutter with one hand and put your feet on the wall, making
sure your toes and knees are pointed toward the surface. Your head is up as
well and facing the wall with your other hand in the water. Let go of the wall
and bring the wall hand over your head to meet the other under the water as
you sink. Once you are underwater, you will be facing the surface with your
head up, knees up, and toes up, just as you would be in the middle of a flip
turn. Push off in a streamline. If you do this at every send-off, you get used to
the position and develop a great ability to rotate onto your stomach off the
wall rather than while on it.
About the Author: Scott Bay is a USMS-certified Masters coach and an ASCA Level 5 coach and has been
actively coaching and teaching swimming since 1986 to swimmers of all ages. The Masters swimmers he
currently coaches include national champions, All Americans, and world record holders, who have swum to
more than 300 Top 10 swims and 30 world records in just the past 5 years.
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