Triathlon - Is it possible to have a low stroke count and still have bad form?

I know that Total Immersion (my swim bible) makes a very big deal about reducing stroke count in the pool. Specifically, he urges you to get first under 20 strokes per 25m, and then shoot for much lower than that.

For sure, there reaches a point at which there is a tradeoff between a lower stroke count (more gliding) and speed. However, in my random pool observations (I'm a beginner swimmer still), I see that very few people use under 15 strokes per 25m, and if they do, they all appear to have excellent form in the water.

Have you seen folks in the pool with very low stroke counts and sloppy form?

I think it would be difficult to have bad form and a low stroke count because your gliding would be limited. I have OK form (compared to most that I see in the pool) and I'm always between 16 and 19.

I suppose someone could fool themselves by swimming under water for a long way after their turns.

What's it mean when your stroke count with the close fist drill essentially matches your regular swim stoke count?

That's my deal, and I'm sure it means my form sucks. I am in the process of learning to be efficient in the water, so I am sacrificing speed for efficiency, and then can add the speed in. I am finding that gliding more is just as fast as flailing.

I have a stroke count of between 14-16 for short course yards while doing flip turns or good push-off touch turns. My medium interval sets in the pool are usually around 1:50 for 100 short course yards, which is pretty slow.

I consistently swim 2:00 for 100 meters during races, 5-10% faster if it's a wetsuit swim.

So yes, it's possible to have a low stroke count but still be a slow swimmer :) I attribute this to having decent form, but poor swimming strength. This winter, I'm going to spend a *lot* of time working the paddles and getting my swim conditioning better.

As someone who swam for 16 years, yes it's completely possible to have a low count and poor form. You are probably kicking... a lot. But at the same time, I don't feel that 20 strokes per 25m is very realistic. When I was at my fastest I could easily do 16 strokes per 25 yards. That was after 14 years of competitive swimming. You need to count your strokes, then bring it down. Remember to keep those elbows up, and to ROLL.

FYI my fastest practice interval was 25X100y on 1:10, any faster and it popped to 20 strokes per lap.