How to Better pull on Swim?

I was wondering the same thing and pulled this off of a website this week. I can't remember which site it was. There weren't any graphics but the descriptions were good IMHO.

The Catch – Where Power Begins

- When your hand enters the water, palm is down towards the bottom of the pool.

- If you start pulling now, without doing anything else, you will be directing force downward and lifting your body, rather than moving your body forward.

- This continues until the natural sweep of your arm stroke eventually directs forces rearward.

- The correct idea is to get your palm from "down" to "facing rearward" (and thus pushing you forward) as quickly as possible.

- The proper way to do this is by bending the elbow, or "catching" the water as soon as possible. For cycling, this would be analogous to "rolling the barrel" at the top of your pedal stroke and beginning to apply power at noon, rather waiting until 2:00 or 3:00.

Illustration of Proper Catch

1. Stick your left arm out directly in front of you, arm parallel to the table, palm down.

2. Now bend your left elbow (without moving your upper arm), and touch your left finger tips to the desk in front of you. Your forearm is probably at a 45 degree angle from your upper arm.

3. Notice three things:
- Your elbow is high and has not moved significantly.
- Your elbow is directly above or on top of your hand (sort of, you get the idea).
- Your "paddle" essentially includes your hand AND your forearm. This is very important.

4. With your fingers still on the desk and elbow up high, now just let your elbow drop. This is referred to as a poor catch, dropping the elbow, slipping the front of your stroke, etc.

5. Two things to notice here:
- Your elbow is leading your hand, as you pull.
- You have lost your forearm as a paddle.

Combining the Catch with your Pull

1. Now put your arm out directly to the left, parallel to the ground, palm down.

2. Turn your head left, so that you are looking at you hand.

3. Without moving your elbow or upper arm, bend your elbow/forearm as before.

4. This position combines the elements of:
-An aggressive shoulder roll: shoulder is pointing down at the bottom of the pool, belly facing the side wall.
- Proper head position: looking down.
- Aggressive catch.

How to Get It: Fist Drill and Other Ideas

Fist Drill: Swim with a closed fist, normal to fast arm speed, no fins. Visualize two things:

1. There is a barrel on top of the water and you are trying to reach over and around it, to carry it in your arm. This will help you get the high elbow I talked about above.

2. Imagine that your forearm is a paddle. Swim with your forearm, not your hand.

3. Perform this drill for 2-3 lengths, then open your hand in the middle of the pool. You should feel the increase in power.

After you have done this drill a few times and go back to normal swimming, these two ideas will help you maintain your high elbow, aggressive catch:
1."Over the Barrel:" maintain this feeling of reaching over a barrel when you swim.
2. "Fingers Down:" put your left arm out in front of you, palm down. Now point your hand downward, bending at the wrist while the rest of your arm remains in place. Duplicate this in the pool by pointing your fingers to the bottom as soon as possible. The rest of your catch will fall into place.

Pertinent to your question, two things I got out of a class I took this spring:

1. To initiate the catch, move the lead hand (thumb side down) outward just a few inches.  Your body should begin to rotate and your hand will pull down the center line of your body.  This way your forearm and hand will always be in "clean" water, creating lift, like an airplane's wing.  I could feel the extra force immediately when I tried this.  The visual behind this is literally like you're catching (or coralling) the water and pushing it down the length of your body.

2. Your recovering arm should be lead by your wrist (bent).  This promotes a high elbow and less muscle tension. If you try to lead with your finger tips, you can't help but drop your elbow.

Now I don't swim as fast as 1:40/100, but I have seen improvements in my swimming this summer.

I have always described the proper catch as like the action of reaching over a barrel that is right in front of your nose.  For your stroke you try to pull your body over the top of the barrel and past your hip with your forearm.  Use your whole forearm and hand like a paddle.

TW

I believe this came from our good friend Coach Strauss.  www.cruciblefitness.com