Triathlon - More efficient crawl stroke

I learnt swimming as an adult and since then have got quite fast, but something never twigged with me until I read it as a specific piece of advice in a newspaper article on improving front crawl. I always had in my head that the arms in crawl work opposite each other, that one was pulling through the water as the other one was coming over in the recovery. Not so! One arm shouldn't even start the pull until the other is practically back in the water, almost a "catch-up" stroke. I've tried this in my last couple of pool sessions and though it feels a bit weird at first, it really feels more efficient, less tiring, more travel per stroke. I notice the guy in the youtube video in the sticky does this too, but I might not have noticed it unless I'd already been made conscious of the difference.

Not sure yet if max speed is as great, but in a triathlon I'd be looking more at efficiency anyway.

Just shows, you think you know how to swim well, but you can still learn. :)

Do you have a link for the article? It would be interesting to see how the two "types" of crawl look next to each other. From what I remember, one way to think about it is to really reach with each stroke. In the time it takes to reach--to stretch your arm fully in front of you--you're bringing the other arm all the way through recovery and into the reaching stage so that one begins the pull phase as the other is close to entering the water.

Here's the article:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2008/jul/29/healthandwellbeing.fitness

The "reaching long" thing you mentioned is there, which must help with streamlining during the glide as well as timing. I also find that concentrating on getting the hand and forearm ready to catch as much water as possible during the pull helps to delay the pull, as well as making it more powerful when it comes. This also helps maintain speed as I tire, as otherwise the first thing to go when i fatigue is the quality of the catch.

BTW, I read today that the crawl as we know it has only been around about a hundred years, and that when it was first introduced to Britain the British refused to use it in competition as all the splashing wasn't gentlemanly!

I think at one time it was called the "American Crawl." Johnny Weismuller (Tarzan) was a wonder at the Olympics in the 1920's winning 5 gold medals for the U.S. It was partly because not everyone was yet convinced that the front crawl was the way to swim. The event was the "freestyle," meaning you could swim any stroke you wanted. Some European proponents of the breast-stroke were not convinced early on. After a very short time, however, the only stroke that could win the freestyle was the front crawl.

The Australian crawl is an overhand stroke with a "trudgeon" (sp?) kick instead of a flutterkick.

That was a nice picture of an efficient looking swimmer on the attached PDF.

Thanks,

Tyson
Cushing, Oklahoma

Great article--thanks for posting it.
I swam competitively when I was a kid and it's great getting back into it and finding out how much there is to work on and learn. I'll be able to use this during my next workout!
Now if I can just get as good a pdf file for the bike leg, I'll be on my way...

Btw, I found this interesting article when I was looking for info. on the "Australian Crawl." :
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3883/is_200001/ai_n8889905 --Some compelling stuff that goes towards stroke efficiency.

That's very true...enabling the arms to "Catch up" adds to the glide of the swim making it longer, and smoother. And yes, the stroke is more effective by enabling you to move farther...

I have read these articles with great interest- however when I am viewing the Olympics, I note all types of subtle differences in stroke. Conclusion, there really isn't a correct stroke- only a fast and slow stroke. Some swimmers have alot of twist to their bodies, others lift their heads slightly, some swimmers switch breathing sides, etc. The "correct" stroke is the coaches determination of what works for an individual swimmer.

Don't miss the exciting races like the awesome 4 x 100 relay last night. You can see it at www.nbcolympics.com (http://www.nbcolympics.com)