Stroke Timing – the Transmission of Swimming
Stroke Timing.
There’s a lot to learn about swimming efficiently including:
- Keep relaxed – TENSION is the enemy of performance. The faster you want to swim, the more relaxed you have to be;
- Keep your hands “soft” so you can feel the water;
- Try to keep your feet loose and floppy and relaxed – particularly as you increase swimming speed;
- Breathe deeply and completely – ensuring you fully exhale with every out-breathe so you’re never actually holding your breath;
- Always be aware of the relationship between your head and your hips! Head comes up – hips drop down and you’re not swimming efficiently.
However, as you progress and as your technique develops past the early basic stages of moving through water, you’ll become increasingly aware of the importance of stroke timing.
Why is Stroke Timing Important?
Think about it a little like this.
Two of the main components of a car are its engine – i.e. where the power is generated, and its gearbox – i.e. the component responsible for how that power is applied to the wheels to make the car speed up or slow down.
With swimmers, your “engine” is your heart and lungs and muscles and nerves – all the parts of your body which generate power.
Your “gearbox” – your transmission – is your technique and skills and how you vary your stroke timing through changes in how, when and where you apply power to the water.
