Triathlon - Video of me swimming

Today at the gym I decided to do some swimming and also video myself for other more experienced swimmers to see and critique. I really just started learning the proper (or better than before) way to swim about a week ago. I actually had a friend of mine who is on the UGA Triathlon team work with me. So I went from swimming with my legs kicking like I was on a bicycle to a better flutter kick. I still have a lot of places I feel I need to improve but I am feeling much better about my swimming now. But would love some opinions on places you feel I need to work on the most. Other than after swimming 50Ms I want to go to bed cause I'm tired and out of breath.

Anyways here is the video. Just ignore the white manatee if you can.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i5-1wb7YV8

Its kinda hard to tell what's going on in that video since we can only watch your stroke for a couple yards then you can't see through the water. But two things that I saw were: it looked like your legs were pretty low in the water, which tells me that your chin is most likely high. You want to keep you chin touching your chest, that's a bit of an exageration, but keeping your head down will keep your legs up. Also it looked like you were trying to rotate your body too much. Its good to rotate as you swim, but it looked kinda figitty and awkward. Think of a pole running down your body and you rotate along that axis. It helped me to practice my body rotation with a buoy between my legs.

One thing that just dawned on me that I didn't notice till just now, and it might be the cause of the problems I mentioned: when you're breathing it looks like you are raising your head and jerking it to the side, causing the rest of your body to go out of whack. When you breath think of moving your chin from your chest to your shoulder, keeping everything else in line.

Those things can be fixed really easily with more time in the pool

Previous poster was right, legs are too low. Your stroke is too much like a windmill. The stroke should be much more under your body. More bend in the arms.

And what are you wearing? Get a real competition pair of swim trunks. No need for a costly bodysuit, but a real pair of speedos.

I've posted this video before, but I really think that this guy does a good job of teaching the basics of swimming, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYuSMumlUk4

Thanks guys. I showed the vid to my friend and she said the same stuff you guys did.

The trunks are basic swimming trunks that you'd wear to the beach or a waterpark (American beach or waterpark not European). This weekend I plan to get some Pearl Izumi tri shorts so I'll just use those. I haven't gotten them yet because cost is an issue to me. Low paying job, plus schooling, bills, etc leaves other stuff towards the bottom.

Appreciate the advice guys

I also did the vid so that later on down the road I can compare a before and after. I really wish I got a video of myself before my friend gave me the basics.

just a word of advise - if you do buy trishorts i wouldn't wear them in the pool, the chemicals will more than likely break down the shorts quickly. invest in some jammers if you would rather not wear a speedo

just a word of advise - if you do buy trishorts i wouldn't wear them in the pool, the chemicals will more than likely break down the shorts quickly. invest in some jammers if you would rather not wear a speedo

Will do. Children go to this pool and I don't want to scare them.

It looks to me like you are crossing in front of your face. Make your stroke longer by stretching out forward and then pull straight down or out to the side. If there was a line in the middle of your body, your hands should never cross this. This leads to less efficient swimming and shoulder issues This will make you slower for a while then you will begin to speed up. Also keep your breath more shallow. My head does not break about parallel to the ground. Also, be a man and wear a speedo (well that's the water polo player in me talking).

It looks like you're not breathing out when your head's under the water and this is probably why your breathing/rolling is so exaggerated. Agree with what the others say about legs too low and wearing proper speedos

Agree with above, you are pulling up and back to breath, and arms are def. crossing center. When you place your hand in the water think about pushing it towards the far end of the pool and fully extending. One of the best drills I like for free is simply start by extending either arm and keeping the other to your side keeping your head in a nuetral position kick for a count of 8. Slide the other hand up and pull with your extended hand and roll to the other side in the process this will both lengthen and smooth out your stroke as well as work on your breathing. This is a drill not a race so doing it correctly is the important thing. Remember Practice doesnt make perfect, perfect practice does.

Thanks guys. I showed the vid to my friend and she said the same stuff you guys did.

The trunks are basic swimming trunks that you'd wear to the beach or a waterpark (American beach or waterpark not European). This weekend I plan to get some Pearl Izumi tri shorts so I'll just use those. I haven't gotten them yet because cost is an issue to me. Low paying job, plus schooling, bills, etc leaves other stuff towards the bottom.

Appreciate the advice guys

I was sort of just messing with you about the trunks,

BUT

It does make a difference and it is almost like wearing a sea anchor. They also make things even worse if there is any imperfection in breathing technique.

I was sort of just messing with you about the trunks,

BUT

It does make a difference and it is almost like wearing a sea anchor. They also make things even worse if there is any imperfection in breathing technique.

I figured it'd make a difference. Just budget issues for me.

I also don't know what part of the world you are from. I think in Italy or Greece my swim trunks double as parachutes. America they are normal. Luckily for me at my gym it's a lot of foreign people in there (I think English is a 5th language) so speedos are a common sight.

Those trunks are a PITA when trying a breast stroke (which I know I need to work on badly).

Again thanks for the advice guys.

I don't see this above, but the best advice I think any swimmer (who hasn't seen this before) is to read Terry Laughlin's Total Immersion (http://www.amazon.com/Total-Immersion-Revolutionary-Better-Faster/dp/0743253434/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1239896088&sr=8-6)book front to back. I had a good bit of experience swimming before reading it and I still took a lot away.

I echo kcgolf's comment above about the drill, and would add two in particular :
1. Catchup - start in a streamline position, pull one arm all the way around and back to streamline, then do the other arm (sorry my description is horrible, try searching google). This helps with "crossing the midline"
2. Pull three, kick 6 - pull three strokes, finish on your side, kick six times, repeat for 50yd. It helps to stretch your stroke out.

I agree with what others have said about the crossover and head position. Here are my few pointers:

- Hands: A couple strokes I saw your fingers spread apart, while you can do this a little bit (swirls water and acts as webbing, only a few mm's) it is very important to keep your fingers together while you pull, you will give up a lot of power if you let them seperate

- Head position: this is caused your legs to sink out of line, the way to fix this is to keep your eyes looking straight down at the bottom. If you can't seem to continually say to yourself 'eyes down' there are special goggles that only let you look down (top of goggle lense is angled and an opaque plastic, bottom is flat and clear).

- Rotation: You were actually getting onto your hips pretty nicely, but you want to keep that motion fluid and not jerky. Picture your hand as an arrow, and you want the rest of your body to follow it. Reach out with arm as far as possible, and your hips will follow.

- Breathing: This is where I saw the area for most improvement. Whenever you took a breath you stopped your stroke, and the strokes following it were very quick and choppy and you picked up your head. Breaths need to be in stroke and without lifting your head. To take a breath you do not need to life your head (as this will also cause your legs to drop) you just need to simply roll your head to the side, and then roll it back down, while maintaining your stroke.

- Crossover: Concentrate on pulling straight back and to the side that the arm is on. Imagine a brick will between your two arms, the other cannot cross into the other side. (There are two camps on pulling, pulling straight back and making a small S shape when you pull, both ways work, both ways are accepted, but the S is under the water and under you, not where your hands first enter the water)

Here are a few drills you can do to work on these:

For head position:
- 1 count aka nose-up nose-down: Take a stroke, arm fully extended and on your side, face is pointing straight up out of the water, eyes are looking at the ceiling, hold this for 6 kicks, and then switch and do it again

Rotation:
- Zipper switch: normal swimming, pretend you have a zipper on your side that you are zipping up. Pull all the way back to your hips, and then let your hand drag along your side (like a zipper) and then enter the water again pinky first, full arm extension (always enter and exit pinky first) (You can also do this as single/triple zipper, take one stroke, pause, do again, triple being take 3 and pause)

For breathing, when I teach little kids or when I coach on my towns local age group team, the easiest way to teach bi-lateral breathing is to have the kids hold a kick board out in front of them and then as the kick have them turn their heads to each side when they need a breath. The kick board helps to keep them inline and it also works on their kick.

Also for keeping those legs up see if you can find a pull bouy, it goes between your thighs and it will keep your legs up no matter what.

Main things are: focus on eyes down, keep body in a line, extended fully and exit hands at hips to make use of your whole stroke

Just keep in mind, swimmers spend years working on their strokes and none of this is an over night thing. You have to stick with it and remind yourself of all of these little things. Don't get discouraged. I've been swimming competitively for 9 years and I still work on my strokes.