Good method/drills to teach someone proper breathing for freestyle

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2013-04-20 9:15 AM

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Subject: Good method/drills to teach someone proper breathing for freestyle

Hey Folks,

A friend of mine wants to do a Tri but doesn't know how to do the stroke properly. I'm trying to help her learn and feel comfortable in the water. I know some drills for proper shoulder/arm/elbow/wrist/catch/pull movements during the stroke, but I really don't know how to explain the breathing. I did year around swim team as a youth for 8 years so its one of those things that I learned early and just know how to do without any problems.

In thinking about it I'm thinking it is best to have her start with a snorkle so she won't have anxiety over breathing. One of the important aspects to swimming is staying calm in the water. This will allow her to concentrate on learning proper arm mechanics/rotation. Breathing will come naturally once the above two criteria are met.

 Is my approach reasonable? Any of you swim gurus have suggestions? 

I've been looking around the web for good information about drills/breathing with some mixed results. What are your favorite uTube videos and websites that have good info?

THanks!



Edited by LPJmom 2013-04-20 9:20 AM

2013-04-20 9:44 AM
in reply to: #4708154

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Subject: RE: Good method/drills to teach someone proper breathing for freestyle

I have found the Swim Smooth site to be really helpful.  I like their animated "Mr. Smooth".  I often go back to him and check out different parts of his stroke when I have new questions.

They have lots of different drills for breathing (and everything else) and they break their drills and explanations down based on swimming ability.  It's a great site.

2013-04-21 7:44 AM
in reply to: #4708154

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Subject: RE: Good method/drills to teach someone proper breathing for freestyle

I've seen tons of people flounder at this in my local pool, either a teacher who can swim but not teach or a person trying to learn themselves and they have no idea. 

Total Immersion has a freestyle made easy dvd and a "revolutionary way to swim farther fast" book that you can buy used for like $5.  They both go into tons of detail about balance and breathing, lots of drills that start in a good place for someone who isn't remotely a fish.

TI isn't fast, but it's a great way to learn some important freestyle concepts.  The problem with going to a lot of other websites such as swimsmooth, is watching someone else swim well is easy, actually understanding what you are doing wrong is hard.  You can't just say "watch me swim,,, now you try" and expect it to work.

2013-04-21 8:46 AM
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Subject: RE: Good method/drills to teach someone proper breathing for freestyle
I am a new swimmer and although a ton of people will probably tell you not to have your friend use a snorkel as it can become a cruch.............. that is exactly the way I learned.  I just could not get the hang of breathing and felt very anxious in the water.  I bought a Finis Snorkel and immediately saw results.  I was able to take breathing out of the equation and could focus solely on my technique.  Once I got me technique down (it was by no means pretty) but I knew that I could propel myself thru the water and not have to stop and take breaks.  This took me about a month's time going at about 3 to 4 times a week.  After that time I went without the snorkel and my anxiety was gone.  It probably took me another few weeks to get the complete hang of breathing, but I felt so much better knowing that I didn't have to worry about technique AND breathing any longer.  I could just swim and ONLY have to think about breathing.  I'm not saying its the right way to learn, but it worked for me.  Hope my 2 cents helps
2013-04-21 8:55 AM
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Subject: RE: Good method/drills to teach someone proper breathing for freestyle
chris948 - 2013-04-21 7:44 AM

I've seen tons of people flounder at this in my local pool, either a teacher who can swim but not teach or a person trying to learn themselves and they have no idea. 

Total Immersion has a freestyle made easy dvd and a "revolutionary way to swim farther fast" book that you can buy used for like $5.  They both go into tons of detail about balance and breathing, lots of drills that start in a good place for someone who isn't remotely a fish.

TI isn't fast, but it's a great way to learn some important freestyle concepts.  The problem with going to a lot of other websites such as swimsmooth, is watching someone else swim well is easy, actually understanding what you are doing wrong is hard.  You can't just say "watch me swim,,, now you try" and expect it to work.

The TI videos have some great drills and do a good job of building you up from zero, but so does Swimsmooth; to say their approach is "watch me swim...now you try" is not an accurate summary of their website.  They have lots of drills and lots of videos that break down every step of the stroke.  They do teach a different style of swimming than TI, for sure. 

I think it can be helpful to be open to different sites, styles, etc. when you're learning as something that works and "clicks" for one person may not be the same for another. 

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