Before describing exercises that, in my opinion, are useful for improving the crawl, I want to emphasize the importance of progression in mastering the crawl technique. I believe that the basic elements of technique are balance and coordination. What's the point of special developmental tasks if your body is standing almost vertically in the water? Without correct body position, it is almost impossible to perform other technical elements accurately. The key to horizontal balance is a rhythmic kick. Take the time to master it and in the future a lot of typical errors will pass you by. This does not mean that at the beginning of your journey you should only do kick exercises, do other exercises as well, but use fins until your kick is back to normal.

The next point is coordination, only with proper coordination can you swim on the “big muscles” of the back, connect the body to the stroke, etc.

That is why I tried to focus on balance and coordination in this article. If you master this base, I think how to add power will already be clear without outside help.

If there are questions, clarifications, suggestions for topics for future articles in the text, or if you notice errors or inaccuracies, please unsubscribe.

In all sections, exercises are given in increasing order of difficulty. If possible, I will try to add video material on the exercises.

1. Balance

1.1. Slip

Target: body position control in water

Tasks:

1. Develop muscle tone of the body to maintain horizontal balance
2. Learn to understand when the body loses balance - deviates from the horizon, leans to the right, to the left.

Description:

• pushing off the side with our feet
• hands in an arrow direction (if you can, move your shoulders forward),
• head between hands
• toes pulled up, heels close but not apart
• back straight

What to look for:

• the body should be like a stretched string, but the “tension” should not be excessive (one of the key sensations (skills?) of a swimmer is the feeling of being stretched, elongated in the water);
• we try to swim underwater as long as possible, depending on height it should be from 10 to 15 meters;
• We don’t get up until we come to a complete stop;
• the whole body must float up at the same time; if something floats up earlier, it means the balance is broken (this is a marker).

Can be done at the beginning of a workout or at the end of 5-10 repetitions. If you do well, you can add sliding after turning in the exercise, of course we don’t stop.

1.2. Kik

Target: Learn the rhythmic balancing kick.

Tasks:

1. Develop the correct rhythmic kick.
2. Learn to “catch” balance with a kick.

In the beginning, you can and even need to use fins. The smaller the board, the more difficult it is.

Exercise 1

Initial position

• arms extended forward holding the board by the far edge, hands on the board.
• face in water

Description

• We do 6 rhythmic kicks, head in the water, exhale smoothly into the water for 6 kicks.
• we raise our heads to inhale, pay attention to the sinking legs while raising our heads, with a rhythmic kick we try to maintain balance while we inhale.
• repeat from the beginning.

Exercise 2

Same as ex. 1 board only for the near edge.

Exercise 3

Same as ex. 1, but always keep our head above water.

Exercise 4

Same as ex. 2, but always keep our head above water.

What to look for:

• the body should be parallel to the bottom;
• the rhythm of the kick is smooth;
• we catch balance with our feet, increasing the rhythm; if you “stomp” the board to maintain balance, this is a mistake, “we look for support in the legs”;
• hip kick, imagine a gymnastics ribbon and its wave, the hip sets the wave
• the kick should be narrow and dense, “fit in a bucket”;
• emphasis on body position rather than speed of movement;
• correct muscle tone of the body; if the body is in a stretched position, it is much easier to achieve balance.

In all exercises, the heel, but not the foot, should be shown on the surface during the kick. If you can’t do the exercise correctly. 1 at least one pool length - wear fins. During training, it is advisable to combine complex and simple exercises, i.e. use easy ones as a rest. If it’s easy (?!) with a board, do the same exercises without a board with your hands using the arrow.

2. Kick with body connection

Target: coordination of kick with body rotation

Tasks:

1. Develop the correct synchronization of the kick with the rotation of the body.
2. Learn to transfer impulse from the leg to the body.
3. Lay the foundation for inserting the body into the stroke.

In the beginning, you can and should use a snorkel and fins.

Initial position:

• head as if crawling, looking down and forward;
• arms along the body;
• the body is turned and lies on the right side, the angle of rotation is such that it is possible to perform a balancing kick.

Description

We do 6 kicks, starting with the left foot, left - right.... left - right. During the sixth kick (right leg), you need to lean your foot on the water and turn your body to the left side. The turn occurs during the time when the leg goes down. Next we repeat the same on the other side.

What to look for:

• there should not be scissors in the legs;
• the kick should mostly go down and not to the side;
• horizontal balance;
• the body should rotate as if on a spit;
• the head is fixed (does not rotate) and looks down and forward 3-4 meters.
• rotation to the pelvis should be transferred slightly or not at all.

If it’s difficult to catch the rhythm on the 6th kick, do it on the 8th, 10th, ... kick, if it turns out well, reduce the number of kicks between turns 6, 4, for each kick. Power and aggression are not needed - rhythm, coordination and balance are needed.

3. Stroke Coordination

Target: coordination of stroke phases with the body

Tasks:

1. Develop coordination of legs, body and rowing arm.
2. Understand and practice the “hip stroke.”
3. Develop coordination of the end of the stroke with the stroke of the opposite hand.

In the beginning, you can and should use fins, a snorkel and large paddles.

Exercise 1

• Initial position*:

• swelling on the right side;
• the left arm is pressed to the body.

Influx position:

• the arm is extended forward (even the right one) parallel to the bottom and in line with the shoulder;
• palm facing down;
• the elbow looks up and to the right (if there is a mistake in looking down) (if there is not enough flexibility, then to the side, but not down) - this is very important;
• body on the right side (angle no more than 60 degrees);
• there are no “scissors” in the legs;
• the armpit looks down;
• The shoulder is leaned forward so that the tension of the lat is felt.

Description

We do 6 kicks starting with the left leg, left - right.... left - right. During the time of 5 kicks to the 6th kick, the right hand must perform a grab (for a description of the grab, see the article). During the 6th kick (the right leg goes down), with a practiced movement we turn the body to the left side. During a turn, it is necessary, leaning on the support with your hand, to push your body forward, while your palm and forearm should remain perpendicular to the bottom (see the last video in the article). During the 7th kick with the left leg, when the right leg goes up, we straighten the arm at the elbow, while the palm should maintain its position perpendicular to the bottom.

We return to the original state, move our hand under the lead and start again.

What to look for:

• the active part of the stroke must be performed in two kicks (the leg goes down, pulling, the leg goes up, the other down, pushing);
• horizontal balance;
• minimum transmission of rotation to the pelvis;
• the head is fixed, looking down and forward;
• control of the position of the rowing part of the hand in the active-power part of the stroke;
• during capture, the speed of the rowing part of the hand must be constant;
• with the beginning of the active-power part, the speed of the rowing part of the hand should gradually accelerate with a peak at the end of the push.

If it’s difficult to start with 6 kicks, do 8, 10, …. . Power and aggression are not needed - rhythm, coordination and balance are needed. Try to feel the support being held in the active-power part. In one direction of the bass we do the right hand, in the opposite direction the left hand.

Exercise 2

Description

The first part of the exercise is performed in the same way as in exercise. 1. The second part begins when:

• the body is on the left side;
• the right arm straight at the hip completed the push-off;
• the palm of the right hand is perpendicular to the bottom;
• the right leg is raised for a kick;
• left leg down after the 7th kick. We take our hand out of the water and begin to carry it, with our legs we continue to kick six kicks from the right leg, right-left... right, left. By the sixth kick you need to almost complete the carry, the brush is near the water but has not yet entered the water. With the sixth kick of the left leg, using a practiced movement, we turn the body onto the right side, at the same time the arm enters the water and straightens to take the position of the influx. In one direction of the bass we do the right hand, in the opposite direction the left hand.

What to look for:

• the same as in ex. 1;
• We hold the position of the palm until it comes out of the water;
• while carrying, try to relax the muscles of your arm, carry your arm with your shoulder;
• when the hand enters the water, the fingers enter first, it is better if the palm looks clearly at the bottom;
• the hand after entering should be in line with the shoulder, there should be no movements towards the center or outwards;
• Be sure to check that the correct influx position is in place before starting the next exercise cycle.

If it’s difficult to control everything with 6 kicks, do it with 8, 10, …. Power and aggression are not needed - rhythm, coordination and balance are needed.

4. Inhale

Target: learn how to breathe correctly

Tasks:

1. Learn inhalation techniques
2. Coordination of inhalation with the body
3. Coordination of inhalation with stroke and carry

Be sure to use large fins first.

Exercise 1.

Take exercise 1 from section 3 and add inhalation. We exhale evenly into the water, exhale until we begin to inhale. We inhale as follows: while turning the body, we turn the head along with it (the movement is as if the head is rigidly attached to the body). After the body has been turned, we continue to turn the head using the neck so that the lower ear looks clearly at the bottom, take a quick breath and return the head to a fixed position in the water.

What to pay attention to:

• the same as in the basic exercise;
• the neck should not bend, lift up, only turn and only after completing the rotation of the body;
• we begin exhalation almost immediately after inhalation;
• exhale evenly into the water;
• exhalation should end before inhalation;
• avoid holding your breath;
• try to inhale quickly.

Perhaps first take a couple of breaths without actually inhaling. If the body position is strictly horizontal, the kick is rhythmic, the head is fixed (looking down and forward), then a wave created by the head will appear in front of you. This wave gives enough space to take a breath without bending or lifting your head. If there is no wave, then either there is no horizontal position, or the head is too recessed - you need to look down, but three meters ahead.

Exercise 2

We take exercise 2 from section 3 and add an inhalation; the inhalation is carried out in the same way as in exercise 1, simultaneously with the beginning of the body rotation. The inhalation itself should begin when the hand leaves the water. The inhalation should end when the carrying hand approaches the temple. The head turns into the water when the hand moves from the temple to the water.

What we pay attention to:

• all the points as in the basic exercise
• all points as in exercise 1
• inhalation begins only after the power part of the stroke has ended

5. Coordination of technical elements

Target: consolidate and develop coordination of basic technologies. elements

1. Develop proper hand coordination
2. Practice leg-body-arm coordination
3. Practice hand-breath coordination

Exercise 1

Performed with a large bun sandwiched between the thighs. First, you can and should use a tube and large spatulas.

Starting position – pumping with the right hand, left hand extended forward. We make a stroke with our right hand, while carrying our right hand past our temple, we begin to select a grip with our left hand. The moment the right hand enters the water, the grip should be completed. Next is a left stroke with a body rotation. We continue with the left hand.

What to look for:

• focus on proper hand coordination;
• try to perform the stroke correctly, with rotation of the body (see section 2) only without kick;
• control the position of the hand during the stroke (see section 2);
• horizontal balance (?!) – the kolobaska should hold it tightly;
• fixed head position;
• rotation should not be transferred to the pelvis.

Exercise 2 Crawl in coordination

First, you can and should use a tube and large spatulas.

The task is to swim a 6-beat freestyle in full coordination without inhaling. If you have worked through the exercises in the previous sections, then the crawl in coordination should not be very good for you. difficult exercise.

The control point is a kick that rotates the body. Perhaps at first it will be easier to coordinate if you count kicks. T/e “One” - first kick (albeit with the right one), turn the body to the left, pull up with the right hand, enter the left hand into the water “Two” - kick with the left foot, push off with the right hand, left hand in a surge “Three” - kick with the right foot , the right hand is close to completing the sweep. We continue to count in the same way for the left hand.

• What we pay attention to*:

• main focus on proper coordination;

If it's difficult to swim 6 strokes, swim 8.10.

Exercise 3 Crawl in coordination with inhalation.

We do everything exactly the same as in the previous exercise, just add a breath. Inhalation coordination is the same as in section 4.

What we pay attention to:

• while inhaling, focus on the correct coordination of the hands and head;
• We try to perform all technical elements correctly.

Try different breathing patterns, for example 2-2 (2 strokes inhale 2 strokes), 5-5. Ideally, you should be able to swim 1-1 comfortably without affecting your technique. 6. General conclusions

1. Balance and coordination are primary.
2. Kick - the basis of horizontal balance
3. Gor. We always look for balance with our feet, not our hands.
4. Nothing should be loose; all movements should be clear.
5. Belly time should be kept to a minimum

The purpose of the exercise is to practice one or more technical elements or a combination of them. Try to select exercises so that you work on specific mistakes. Before including any exercise in your workout, think (ask) what you need to focus your attention on. If any element fails, practice only that element. On land, you can and should also practice those elements and their combinations; it is useful to control your movements in front of a mirror.

If the purpose of the exercise is to practice technical skills. element associated with the stroke, be sure to wear large shoulder blades, preferably flat, and not shell-shaped. This way even small shoals will come out.

A very good set of exercises with explanations on A.E. Yudin’s channel

Here's another good set

8. General physical training

The flexibility of joints and ligaments is of great importance for technique. I recommend adding one or two flexibility exercises from the “Kifut set of exercises for rabbits” into your morning exercises.

Loss of swimming muscle tone occurs very quickly, 4 to 7 days. Therefore, if the interval between swimming workouts is longer, be sure to do exercises with rubber for gripping, pushing and pulling. 5 minutes a day is enough to prevent a sudden loss of shape.

Exercises that can be performed by crawlers on land can be divided into two groups: exercises for (1) simulating swimming technique and (2) for developing strength.

Let's take a closer look at both of these groups.

It should be noted that no work on land from the point of view of swimming technique can replace work in water.

In this regard, imitation of motor movements on land is mainly done at the very beginning of learning to swim- in order to understand, imagine and feel how all the limbs move, and then move on to exercises in the water.

Understanding this, we now move on to consider individual elements - the work of the legs and arms.

Legs

Imitation of blows

You should sit on the floor or on a bench, stretch your legs in front of you and slightly raise them.

The feet should be extended away from you and slightly turned inward, the legs should be straightened as much as possible. In this position we begin to alternately work with them, simulating swimming in water, as shown in this illustration:

Working on land

Although when swimming the legs are slightly bent due to wave-like movements, it is highly desirable here keep them straight all the time- to feel the tension and work of the hips - to get used to the fact that the work is done by the thigh muscles, and not by bending the knees.

Sometimes this task is done while sitting on the edge of the pool - in this case, the legs work above the water.

On the side

Lie on your side and swing your legs straight, as shown in this video:

Lying on your chest

To complete this task, we lie on our chest and also imitate striking movements. It is also important here that they are straight, did not bend.

What it looks like is shown here:

In this case, the position of the hands can be changed - first both of them are in front, then one, then both are pressed, and in each of these positions we work with our legs.

Hands

Imitation of a stroke with support on one leg

You need to stand with one foot forward and lean on it, as shown in Fig. “a” and “b”.

After that all phases of the stroke are simulated: putting a hand into the water, a stroke, the hand coming out of the water and its subsequent carrying for a new insertion (see Fig. “c” and “d”).

Imitation of a stroke

After completing this task several times, you can also try doing it with breathing to the side.

Lying on a bench

We lie down on the bench so that our arms hang on both sides. It is advisable that the head is also outside the bench.

In this position, we begin to make strokes:

Rowing on a bench

If we talk about teaching children, this is also clearly shown in the second minute of this video:

Mill

While standing, we imitate rowing movements with both hands - they seem to resemble a mill.

This exercise is shown at the beginning of the previous video.

For strength development and stretching

From the point of view of strength training, for the freestyle it is first of all important to be able to do strong stroke and strong kicks. Also important is stretching the shoulder girdle for the range of strokes, strong core muscles (abs, lower back) for body balance and body rotation, and well-stretched ankles for effective foot function.

Accordingly, the corresponding exercises discussed below are devoted to these aspects.

Complex A.I. Guard

Russian coach A.I. Postovoy was developed a set of exercises specifically for bunny rabbits– it includes 30 different tasks.

Pull the expander by hand

Algorithm of actions:

• Attach the expander to a wall bars or at home near the door.
• Get down on one knee, extend your other leg.
• Take the expander in your hand (on the side where the supporting knee is) and pull it - make movements simulating a stroke.

Here is a video showing this method:

You can also do deadlifts and with both hands simultaneously!

Pull the expander with legs alternately

Algorithm of actions:

• Attach two expanders to the wall bars (or in another place so that the expander hangs vertically), attach the second end of each expander to each of the limbs, respectively.
• Pull the expanders with both legs - make alternating movements that imitate swimming.

If the task is easy, take a tighter expander or two expanders for each leg.

What this looks like is shown in the second minute of the following video. At the beginning there is also a rather interesting and non-standard exercise for rabbit climbers - running with your back on a treadmill.

Blackburn exercise

Develops the muscles of the shoulder girdle.

Procedure:

• lie down on your stomach;
• raise our shoulders;
• We spread our arms and make upward oscillatory movements with them for 30 seconds, then we move them slightly forward (diagonally) and do the same movements, then similar movements, moving them back diagonally.

This is what it looks like:

If the task is easy, you can take additional weight in each of your palms.

Kifut exercises

Finally, in addition to all of the above, if there is a set of exercises for crawl developed by Robert Kifuta, an American swimming specialist who worked in the first half of the 20th century.

Here is the complex he developed:

Freestyle exercises by Robert Kifut

If you have ever thought about how to make crawl swimming clearer, easier, more beautiful and faster, then we invite you to work with us to understand what the freestyle swimming technique consists of, what stages and phases it consists of. It is necessary to know the theoretical part in order to understand what you are doing correctly and what you should pay more attention to. Next, you will learn how to swim the front crawl correctly, what elements the front crawl consists of, what mistakes can be made and how to correct them.

1. Do not skip a single phase of hand movement. Each one is important.
2. Don't turn your head for . Look ahead only for orientation.
3. Perform core rotation. This lengthens the stroke and allows you to inhale without turning your head.
4. For long swims, use a two-beat crawl.
5. Improve ankle flexibility. Flexible ankles improve streamlining.

To learn how to swim freestyle correctly, you need to let your brain understand how and why to perform certain movements. Analyzing the recommendations made, we will then go through the basics of the technique of this style of swimming.

The front crawl technique consists of

• Hand work
• Head position
• Footwork
• Rotation of the trunk and pelvis

Note for newbie

1. The most first and an important element of technology is. Don’t rush to move far without learning how to breathe correctly.
2. Footwork costs In second place. The reason for this is that if your legs sink, trainers often use the term “heavy legs,” then the effectiveness of all other stages is reduced to almost zero. Learn to keep your body afloat and only then move on to the next stage.
3. Hand work.
4. Head position.
5. Corps Rotation.

Breath

Breathing training while swimming with a plank

When practicing breathing while swimming with a board, you must follow the following rules:

• breathing rhythm: “inhale for one count, exhale for three counts.”
  Acting according to this rule will at first be more difficult than breathing while standing in place. Since when swimming, the human body requires more oxygen than when you are just standing, and at first you will want to breathe more often. With training, you will learn to inhale as much oxygen while swimming as you need to complete two, three or five strokes.
• independence of head movement. Try to relax your shoulders while practicing plank breathing. Save energy and lift your heads out of the water by flexing your neck.

We told you what kind of equipment and luggage you need, including.

If you are a beginner, practicing your technique is first where you need to start training.

Hand work

Correct hand technique when swimming freestyle consists of the following phases:

• Capture or support phase;
• Pull-ups;
• Repulsions;
• Exit;
• Carrying;
• Influx.

Let's take a closer look at each of the phases of hand work.

Capture phase or support phase

First of all, let's define the term “capture”. The grip is the moment of movement in which you cling to the water with your brush.

The capture phase is very short. It lasts from the moment the stroke begins until approximately the moment indicated in the photo below:

The hand in the grasping phase travels approximately 25-30 centimeters. Let's look at the sequence of movements and points to pay attention to:

1. Starting position – the rowing hand lies on the water, representing a straight line of continuation of the body
2. The beginning of the capture. The arm begins to bend at the elbow while grasping
3. The hand remains level throughout the entire grip phase and does not bend in relation to the forearm.
4. The elbow during the grip, when the forearm is already gripping, is kept as high as possible to the surface of the water
5. When gripping, the hand passes close to the line of the middle of your body

During the grip phase, control of a straight hand is important. To strengthen your wrist, you can do the following exercise:

Pull-up phase

This phase of the stroke begins immediately after a few centimeters of arm movement in the catch phase.

It looks like this: imagine a swimmer lying horizontally in the water with his arms extended forward. Now this athlete begins to bend his arm at the elbow, but without bending his hand (the hand remains an even continuation of the forearm) and, very IMPORTANT, without lowering the elbow down and without pressing it to the body.

A small movement of the hand and forearm along the line of the middle of the body, turning into a bend of the arm with the shoulder.
Let's look at the sequence of movements and the points that you need to pay attention to in the pull-up phase:

1. Starting position - the rowing arm is bent 25-30 centimeters after the capture phase and is located on the line of the middle of the body
2. The hand and forearm move along the line of the middle of the body towards the pelvis. The elbow remains higher than the hand
3. The angle between the forearm and shoulder is 90 degrees.

Watch the video of the exercise for practicing the grip and pull-up phase with an expander and it will be easier for you to understand what exactly the points above are about (from the beginning to 36 seconds):

A couple of exercises to develop the technique of the pull-up phase.

Exercise with a rubber band expander (as in the video above)

• Attach the expander in front of you to a wall bars, or to a door handle, or to a tree. For anything in general.
• Pull back until you feel a moderate stretch.
• Lean forward so that your body is horizontal, as if you were swimming.
• Stretch your arm forward that holds the expander and imitate the grip phase. The expander creates additional resistance which helps the muscles remember the movement better.
  Video exercises:

Wall exercise

• Stand with your back to the wall
• Raise up the hand whose technique you will practice
• Press the elbow of this hand against the wall
• Perform the rowing motion without lifting your elbow from the wall

Repulsion phase

After pulling up, the hand continues its movement and strives for an even and parallel position relative to the body. What you should pay attention to when practicing:

• The hand is still level relative to the forearm
• The hand continues its movement along the line of the middle of the body
• In the final push-off phase, the arm is aligned at the elbow

A common mistake is to enter the swing phase early without completing the push-off phase. Only after the arm is fully straightened, when it is parallel to the body, can the push-off phase be considered complete.

In the Soviet Union, swimmers were specially smeared with brilliant green on their thighs. Those who correctly performed the push-off phase ran their hand along the thigh to emphasize the end of the movement. By the end of the training, proof of correct movement was the absence of green on the athletes’ thighs.

Video exercise for practicing the push-off phase with an expander:

Exit phase

The phase begins from the moment the hand appears above the water after the repulsion phase. The task of the exit phase is to prepare the hand for the carry.

The hand rises above the water from the elbow. First the elbow rises, and then the hand. At this time, the opposite arm lies extended and stretches forward in front of the body, which in turn creates a slight rotation of the body towards the outstretched arm. So, what to pay attention to:

• First the elbow comes out of the water, and then the hand
• At the moment the elbow comes out, the opposite hand is already reaching forward
• The body rotates towards the arm extended forward

Carrying

The sweep is performed at the same time as the other hand performs the stroke. This is a synchronized movement where the hand that carries out the sweep increases its speed from slow when the hand exits the water to fast at the moment of entry. The hand can be relaxed during the swing phase and does not need to be kept level with the forearm.

Key points of the carryover phase:

• Performed while the other hand is rowing
• The hand speed at the beginning of the stroke is lower than the hand speed at the end of the stroke
• The hand is relaxed until the hand enters the water

Rush phase

The influx occurs after the carry and before the capture begins. In this phase, the swimmer plunges the hand that completed the sweep into the water. First the hand goes in, then the elbow goes in. At the moment of immersion, the arm straightens, reaches forward, the hand tenses and becomes an extension of the forearm, preparing to begin the capture phase. At the same time, the opposite hand ends the push-off phase and the swimmer’s body performs a slight rotation towards the front hand.

Key points of the influx phase:

• First the hand enters the water, and then the elbow
• The hand reaches forward as far as possible after being completely immersed in water
• The hand tenses, becomes even in relation to the forearm
• The body makes a slight roll towards the front hand

A beginner who has mastered breathing and footwork techniques can begin to master hand techniques.
If you are a beginner swimmer read also:

Head position

Breathing technique when swimming crawl is as important as during any cyclic physical activity. It is necessary to maintain an even pace of breathing. Try not to hold your breath when swimming crawl, inhale quickly and exhale consistently. In the pool, you may have heard the phrases “breathing on 3” or “breathing on 5.” This means that you inhale every third or fifth stroke. We talk more about breathing in the article “How to breathe correctly when swimming,” but here we would like to draw attention to how you need to hold your head when swimming crawl, since the speed and comfort when inhaling depends on this.

The position of the head in all phases of the stroke should be natural. The natural position of the head is when you stand or sit straight, and your head is also level. In other words, the cervical vertebrae are not curved in relation to the thoracic ones. This situation can be simulated as follows.

1. Stand with your back to the wall.
2. Press your pelvis, lower back, shoulders and back of your head against the wall so that you look straight ahead
3. Raise one arm straight up to ear level

This should be your position during the end of the surge phase and before the capture phase.

If you want to inhale, you need to lean a little more to the side and lean more on the opposite hand during the catch phase. Try not to turn your head in your neck at the moment of inhalation, but inhale by rotating your body.

In all other stages of swimming, try to keep your head straight without bending your neck. Lifting your head forward can sometimes be done when you need to look at potential obstacles that may lie ahead. Swimmers, even in open water, when they need to look around and orient themselves in space, lift their heads out of the water using their body, and not by bending their neck.

Footwork

Footwork when swimming front crawl helps maintain the body in a horizontal position (the legs do not sink) and contributes to a significant increase in speed. If you watch the starts of professional athletes in the crawl style, you will see how after the start the pros swim like a dolphin underwater. This is because the movement of the legs is powerful and significantly increases swimming speed.

In freestyle swimming there are two strokes, four strokes, and six strokes crawl. What does two-beat or four-beat mean? This means that for a full cycle of arm work, two or four kicks are made, one or two kicks with each leg, respectively. If you learn to swim and try to work technically correctly, and at the same time you make oscillatory movements with your legs to keep them afloat without paying attention to the number of strokes - most likely you will swim six stroke crawl without even realizing it.

Frequent footwork, such as during the six-strike freestyle, is more important for sprint distances. When you need to give your best in a short period of distance or time. The legs have large muscles that require a lot of energy. Therefore, at long distances (from one kilometer or more), athletes more often use the two-impact crawl. Two kicks during a full cycle of arm movement helps keep your legs afloat in a horizontal position and helps save the strength and energy that you need to spread over hours of covering the distance.

Three facts about footwork when swimming freestyle:

1. For professional athletes, footwork provides 10-15% efficiency. The remaining 85-90% of speed is developed by hand strength and technique.
2. Elite athletes also have greater joint flexibility in their ankles, knees and hips. Due to this flexibility, athletes are able to achieve an angle of attack of the water with their foot, which, when the foot strikes, incredibly effectively propels the athlete’s body forward. Most adult athletes will not be able to achieve such flexibility, since it is necessary to work on joint flexibility for such results from early childhood. By the way, it is still worth working on ankle flexibility, as this will allow you to reduce the likelihood of injury in the ankle area. Especially if you do triathlons and run a lot.
3. Amateur athletes manage to achieve approximately 5% efficiency in moving forward through footwork. Distance swimmers and triathletes prioritize increasing the number of arm strokes rather than expending energy through frequent leg work.

Let's look at the main points that need to be emphasized in footwork:

1. Hip kick.
   The impact of the foot on the water should not be due to flexion and extension of the leg at the knee, but through the movement of an almost straight leg at the hip. In this case, the knee should not be tense, but relaxed and slightly bent during the impact.
   A common mistake triathletes make when working their legs is bending the knee. Perhaps this is due to the work of the legs while running and occurs on an intuitive level. But with this technique, a lot of energy is spent on the unnecessary movement of flexion and extension of the knee joint with the quadriceps femoris muscle, and it also increases resistance with water due to a decrease in the streamlining of the legs.
2. Fingers inward
   For accentuated, sharp and effective leg movements, you need to turn your feet slightly inward. A common mistake is the reverse position, when a novice athlete turns his feet outward. You just need to remember this moment, and over time, the accustomed body will do this automatically. Remember that when you are tired and continue to swim, this is when your technique deteriorates. Don’t “turn off your brain” when you’re tired, but rather try to perform every movement consciously.
3. Ankle flexibility
   Even if you have accepted the fact that you cannot achieve a significant increase in speed through footwork, this does not mean that you can give up on them. The reason is simple. If you score, the incorrect foot technique will even begin to reduce your speed! An unretracted foot in the water creates resistance. Incorporate a simple mat exercise into every workout:

• Sit on a soft mat
• Put your feet under your butt
• Place your feet so that you sit on them with your body weight

Perform the exercise for one minute for 3-4 sets before each workout.

Rotation of the trunk and pelvis

Rotation of the body is achieved by extending the front arm forward, which has just completed the swell phase, and by striking the opposite leg into the water. The right foot hits the water at the moment when the right hand performs the pull-up phase.

And so step by step:

1. The left hand has just finished the flow phase and is preparing for the capture phase.
2. Body roll to the left
3. The right hand has completed the push-off phase
4. Legs are straight
5. The left hand begins the grip phase
6. The right hand begins the exit phase
7. The left arm begins the pull-up phase
8. The left foot hits the water
9. Body roll to the right
10. The right hand begins the swell phase
11. The left hand ends the push-off phase

The sequence seems difficult for an untrained swimmer, but if you try to read and imitate each stage, you will succeed.

Also watch the video, where from the front view you can observe the same stages that we described:

If you are new to swimming, then you need to move on to working on body rotation in the water after mastering the technique, footwork, arm work and head position.

If you are a beginner swimmer, read also:

When starting or continuing to swim, athletes tirelessly work on strength, endurance and technique. Freestyle or crawl is the most popular among all swimming styles. The crawl swimming technique is a cyclic sequence of movements that allows you to achieve minimal water resistance and maximum efficiency of each movement.

Crawl is the fastest swimming style. But also a highly technical style. You need to develop your technique every day. Only movements brought to automaticity will allow you to think less while performing them.

Swimmer training on land with a “rubber for arms” simulator to develop stroke strength.

All swimmers sooner or later have to develop their stroke strength on land.

On what machines can a swimmer imitate a stroke?

Biokinetics (this includes exercise machines that use magnetic couplings in their design), minijump, Huettel-Martens machine, trolley and rubber.

In this article we will look at: the selection of rubber for training on land, the place of rubber in the training process, exercises with rubber and errors in working with the simulator.

Which tires to choose?

The first step we need to take is to choose tires.

There is rubber in a fabric braid and rubber in the form of a tube made of pure latex (photos 1, 2 and 3). Rubber based on a latex tube is better than rubber braided with fabric; in a word, it is more vibrant: the elongation coefficient is significantly higher, it is soft, it distributes power better, it is more durable and more compact.

Photo 1. Latex tube and rubber in a fabric braid.

Photo 2. Latex tube and rubber in a fabric braid.

Photo 3. Swimming trainers based on a latex tube and rubber in a fabric braid.

Video 1.“Comparison of land swimming machines. Tensile coefficient of latex tube and fabric-braided rubber.”

According to the tensile strength of rubber, there are usually 3 levels of gradation: heavy, medium and light rubber. It is advisable to have all three tires in your collection because... Different exercises require different rubber. For each goal in the lesson, we choose the appropriate rubber, for example, for training to develop maximum strength, we take a heavy one, and for strength, we take a medium one. If this is not possible, then we choose one, where the magnitude of the resistance force will be regulated by distance.

Photo 4. Swimmer's kit for training with rubber on land. Light, medium and heavy rubber - Dry Swim for dry swimming. Tourniquets – for rehabilitation exercises.

Photo 5. Mounting the Dry Swim simulator.

Photo 6. Bracket for the exercise machine.

The ideal option is to try all the tires and choose the one that meets the following conditions:

First condition. Selection of tires based on resistance. An important guideline here is rubber tension. The exercises use two tension modes - moderate (up to 12 high-quality repetitions, maximum 20) and strong (up to 6 high-quality strokes, maximum 8).

a) on a bend, imitating a dolphin stroke (photos 7 and 8), with moderate rubber tension, you need to make 10-12 strokes. If you feel that, starting from the 6th stroke, the movements are performed with difficulty, the quality of the rowing decreases (clumsy execution at the beginning, along the entire length or at the end), then the rubber is suitable;

b) the same starting position, but the stretching of the rubber should be strong (according to your own feeling). Try to make 6 dolphin strokes and feel that already the third movement is difficult to perform, it is impossible to make a high-quality stroke. In this case, rubber is also suitable.

Photo 7. Exercise for swimming on land “Dolphin Hands” - the initial phase of the stroke.

Photo 8. Exercise for swimming on land “Dolphin Hands”.

In cases where these two exercises are performed easily or are already unbearable from the first movements, then rubber is not suitable.

If such testing is not available, then tires should be selected according to body weight (although this slightly generalizes the selection approach): light up to 45 kg (9-13 years), medium 45-70 kg (13-16 years) and heavy above 70 kg (16 years and older).

Second condition - this is what holder we will pull the rubber on. A prerequisite is that the holder must be in the form of blades (photos 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13). In this case, the imitation of the stroke will be of high quality with a high elbow. If the holder is in the form of handles, then the swimmer will not row, but pull the handles, like a “locomotive” with a dropped elbow, simulating not swimming, but rope climbing.

Photo 9. Holder in the form of blades.

Photo 10. Fixing the hand.

Photo 11. Position of the hands.

Photo 12.

Photo 13.

Photos 12 and 13. The holder of the exercise machine is a spatula.

The place of rubber in the training process.

In the annual preparation cycle, rubber can be used continuously. This applies to the preparatory period, pre-competition, competitive and recovery periods.

For example, in the preparatory period we use the rubber to the fullest, using impact training, in the pre-competition period we place emphasis in the exercises, in the competitive period we use the rubber in a “stretch” manner, as if to maintain muscle tone at the peak of shape. During the recovery period, you can use rubber to avoid going into the detraining zone.

Let’s take a closer look at planning a weekly training cycle with rubber.

In a weekly cycle, it is advisable to use rubber twice, with the condition of adjacent classes - 1 time in 3 days, in this case, we achieve high-quality muscle recovery and avoid all kinds of injuries.

Also, the proximity of classes once every 3 days is a very important point in the weekly planning of a combination of classes in the gym. Let's give an example of such a combination. For example, Monday-Thursday we devote to general physical training classes (general physical training), Tuesday-Friday – rubber training, Wednesday-Saturday – weight room. Be sure to “scatter” the load on the muscles over the days, i.e. if, for example: a rubber class is planned on Tuesday, then on Monday in the gym do general physical training on the torso muscles; on Wednesday – weight room with an emphasis on legs; on Thursday, general physical training for mobility (medicine ball, reaction, uneven bars, etc.); on Friday - tires; on Saturday - exercises in the weight room on block apparatus, barbell, but, of course, excluding the “rowing” muscles.

For example, planning a weekly lesson with rubber: 1st lesson on Tuesday, we devote to working on developing stroke strength by working on rubber up to 12 (with stress training a maximum of 20) movements per approach. The number of approaches is 8-12 (maximum 15). Rest between sets for at least 3 minutes. Rest is active. The tension of the rubber is moderate, calculate the load so as to efficiently perform 12 movements in the approach, keeping the elbow high at the beginning and controlling the end of the stroke. The return of the rubber should be soft, muscle-controlled, and should not allow the arms to fly in the opposite direction like a whip.

We conduct the 2nd classes taking into account the neighborhood once every 3 days, i.e. on Friday. We devote this lesson to developing the explosive power of the rowing muscles. The number of movements per approach is 6-8. The number of approaches is 3-5. Rest time between approaches is at least 5 minutes. Rest should be active; you cannot sit or lie down. The rubber tension is strong. The sensations should be such that you feel that the last movements in the approach have to be done with very great difficulty.

It is especially worth noting that planning the next lesson after a stressful load (working until the muscles “failure” as much as possible) on rubber should be done no earlier than 14 days later. With stressful work on rubber, the proximity of classes once every 3 days will be incorrect. Example, stress load when working on rubber: work until the muscles “failure”, heavy rubber, number of strokes per approach 8, number of approaches 12-14, active rest between approaches for at least 5 minutes.

Before exercising on rubber, you should do a good warm-up. It is good to warm up the muscles and joints of the upper shoulder girdle. Warm-up should be at least 20 minutes. It is recommended to include tonic exercises from general physical training in the warm-up, 2-3 sets, for example, push-ups, abs and pull-ups.

After exercising on the rubber, you should do a short set of static exercises on the upper shoulder girdle. These exercises are needed to compensate for the serious dynamic load on the shoulders and upper spine, especially the spine between the shoulder blades. For example, take a yoga exercise - a classic plank (photo 14) 3-5 approaches, 4-6 seconds of fixation in the rack per approach.

Photo 14. Recovery exercise “plank”.

Main exercise 1 – “Dolphin arms”.

Standing bent over, we imitate a dolphin stroke, see photos 15 and 16. Correct execution: stand confidently on the entire foot; bend your legs slightly at the knees; the body should be almost parallel to the floor; hands make a high-elbow stroke gently without jerking, slowly; The return of the hands is soft, controlled along the entire length. The following mistakes should be avoided when performing the exercise: rocking the body up and down, thereby trying to give the initial impulse to the stroke; jerking movements with hands; relaxation of the hands while returning to the starting position; too fast rowing movements; pull rubber like a “locomotive” i.e. making a stroke with a dropped elbow.

Photo 15.

Photo 16.

Photos 15 and 16. “Dolphin arms” - an exercise on a rubber simulator to develop stroke strength.

Video 2.“Exercise to develop stroke strength “Dolphin Arms”.”

Main exercise 2 – “Arms crawl”.

Standing in a stance as in photos 17, 18 and 19, we imitate a stroke in turn with the right and left hands. Correct execution: confidently hold a static pose for both sides, see photo. The leg should be parallel to the floor. The principle of hand operation and execution errors are the same as in exercise 1.

Photo 17.

Photo 18.

Photo 19.

Photos 17, 18 and 19. Exercise “Arms crawl”.

Video 3.“Development of stroke strength on land, exercise with rubber “Arms crawl”.

Additional exercise 3 – “Initial phase of the stroke.”

Standing with your back to the rubber, arms extended above your head, we imitate the initial phase of a dolphin stroke. This exercise is additional to the main ones. Its main essence is to pump up (awaken) the “elusive” muscles that work at the very beginning of the stroke.

Restorative set of exercises.

Recovery exercises are recommended to be performed after basic exercises with rubber and not only, for example, in combination with biokinetics, barbells and other training on land. The purpose of these exercises is to keep the swimmer's shoulders healthy and strong. General rules for all recovery exercises below: the rubber should be light, since we are using small muscles; number of repetitions per approach 8-12, 3-4 series.

Recovery exercise 1 – “Plank”

Photo 20. Recovery exercise “Plank”.

Recovery exercise 2 – “Move the forearm to the center”

Video 4.“Recovery exercise for swimmer’s shoulders – “Move the forearm to the center.”

Recovery exercise 3 – “Stretching the rubber with your forearms”

Video 5.“Recovery exercise “Stretching the rubber with the forearms”.”

Recovery exercise 4 – “Raising the forearm up”

Video 6.“Recovery exercise “Raising the forearm up.”

Mistakes when working with rubber.

The main disadvantage of the rubber simulator is the process of returning the hands to the starting position. In the biokinetic simulator, which uses magnetic couplings, the return is made by a special roller mechanism, which makes it smoothly without jerking. In the Huettel-Martens simulator, the return is controlled by a machine shock absorber, this process is also soft and smooth.

The most important mistake when working with rubber isuncontrolled return of hands to the starting position. When working with rubber, you need to force yourself to make a soft, smooth return of your hands, carefully controlling this process throughout the entire length of the return. In practice, it often happens that a swimmer, having made a powerful stroke, releases his arms relaxed, the rubber seems to pull his arms forward. A relaxed, uncontrolled return leads to 100% injuries to the shoulders and back between the shoulder blades. If at first you do not feel any discomfort, then you should know that this is a deceptive thing. After long-term work (2-3 years) on rubber, injuries are sure to appear.

The second mistake is to “pull” the tires 50-150 or more per set – you can “kill” your shoulders and back. The strength of the stroke is unlikely to increase, and endurance is also in question. With such large repetitions, the quality of the stroke suffers greatly, it is impossible to control the soft return, the arms fly back and forth like whips. Leave endless rowing movements for swimming in the pool.

The third mistake is to exercise on rubber bands more than once every 3 days.

The fourth mistake is to do the exercise while lying on a trestle bed. Lying on the trestle bed, the swimmer relaxes too much; at the moment of starting the stroke and when returning the arms, there is a high probability of injury to the shoulders and back. That's right - stand firmly on your feet, the body should be in static-dynamic tonic tension throughout the stroke and return the arms to the starting position.

About the advantages of rubber.

The rubber is compact and can be carried in a backpack to training, training camps and competitions.

Affordable.

The way the rubber reacts to stretching, the feeling of its “aliveness” in the rowing muscles, gives it its biggest advantage compared to other exercise equipment. Neither the Huettel-Martens simulator, nor the cart, etc. can provide such high-quality muscle training. The Huettel-Martens simulator has always been “tractor-like” due to the built-in machine shock absorber; the trolley is a completely unnecessary simulator for a swimmer. Biokinetic is a good thing, but it is not available to everyone, and yet it feels a little different from rubber. A good option is to use both rubber and biokinetics in the training process.

Alexander Volynets
finalist of the Olympic Games at 50s in 2000 and 2004
World and European Championship medalist

Backstroke

Backstroke is often the second stroke taught to a new swimmer. Like freestyle, backstroke is based on alternating stroke movements. The backstroke (also called the backstroke and the backstroke windmill) is essentially the same as the backstroke, just on your back. When you float on your back, you breathe unimpeded because your face is above the water, and you make a "fluttering" motion with your legs (the same kick as a normal crawl/freestyle).

Body position

We take a horizontal position on the back, the body is extended. We keep our chin close to our chest and look at our feet. The back is slightly arched in the thoracic region, the chest is raised. (Try to squeeze your shoulder blades together). With your arms extended behind your head, the water level should be located in line with your ears.

If you have trouble keeping your chin tucked into your chest, take a tennis ball and hold it between your chest and chin. Once you get the hang of it, do the same thing with a tennis ball while swimming.

Hand movement

The cycle of arm movements when swimming on the back consists of three phases: “catching”, “pulling” and “returning”. To perform a “catch,” you should plunge your outstretched arm into the water; palm facing outward, little finger immersed first. To “pull up,” move this arm underwater toward your hip.
Lightly stroke your thigh with your thumb during the final pull-up phase. “Return” begins with the hand coming out of the water with the little finger forward and ending with returning to the position for grabbing. When one arm is in the middle of the recovery phase, the other performs a pull-up. Continue alternately making rowing movements with your arms so that they are constantly in opposite phases.

Leg movement

When swimming on the back, the leg movements are similar to freestyle. Perform counter movements up and down, the main load falls on the thigh muscles.
During each movement, the distance between the legs should be approximately 15-30 cm. The cycle consists of six beats (three beats) for each leg. The leg is mobile and relaxed at the knee joint, the feet and knees only lightly touch the surface of the water. As in the case of freestyle, forward movement is achieved to a greater extent through the work of the arms, rather than through the movements of the legs.

Coordination of movements when swimming on the back

First, take a horizontal position, arms extended along the body, thumbs “looking” down. Begin the recovery phase by lifting one hand out of the water with your little finger forward. Raise your arm above your head so that your hand is shoulder-width apart at all times.
To grab, push yourself another 6 inches underwater and then push your hand diagonally down until your thumb touches your thigh. To ensure that your hands are in antiphase, start moving your second hand only when the first is at the pull-up stage. Add continuous kicks and breathe deeply, keeping your head so that the surface of the water is at your hairline.

Backstroke swimming: subtleties

The S-curve of the arm makes the crawl more efficient. A similar bending of the arm and rotation of the body along the axis increases efficiency when swimming on the back. The torso usually rotates towards the rowing arm.
Let's master this S-curve, starting with the left arm. Stretch it above your head to grip at approximately the one o'clock position. After grabbing, pull and push your arm down towards your legs.
The movement will entail a rotation of the body along the axis to the left. Bend your elbow towards your lower back and continue moving. Then rotate your forearm inward. Concentrate on pushing the still water down, as if you were throwing a ball at your feet. We simultaneously take the second hand, which is located at the hip, out of the water. We bring our right hand over the water with the little finger forward and place it in the gripping position at “eleven o’clock.” We pull and push, initiating rotation of the torso to the right side.

Backstroke: spin and kick

Practice rotating your body by swimming using only kicks with your arms extended along your body. Alternately rotate your body in both directions, allowing your shoulders to rise above the surface of the water. Concentrate on keeping your head facing up at all times.
Backstroke swimming: typical problems and solutions

Problem	Possible reason	Solution
You do not slide along the surface, but “walk along the bottom”, like a trawl	Your legs are bent at the hip joints, and therefore the lumbar and pelvic area falls down	Assume an elongated, streamlined position, keeping your head straight as you lift your hips
Rowing kicks do not provide adequate support	Your ankle joints are too tight and your toes point outward, reducing the effectiveness of your kicks	Turn your feet inward so your big toes touch each other. Use fins to increase ankle flexibility
Hand strokes do not clear the surface of the water	Your arms are bent during the recovery phase, which is why they splash your face with water.	When bringing your hand over the water, fully extend it at the elbow joint, remember that the little finger goes first
In one stroke you cover a small distance and feel like you are running on empty	Shoulders and body are in a horizontal position at all times	Add shoulder rotation to your arm strokes, which will allow you to pull up and glide more efficiently.