An important measure of your swimming efficiency is your distance per stroke or DPS. You can improve your DPS by taking a longer stroke, holding a streamlined and level body position, and by improving your underwater pull.  Since water provides so much resistance, holding a streamlined and level body position will greatly improve your efficiency.  You can improve your body position by performing balance drills.  Start by kicking on your back with your hands at your side.  Your goal here is to have the waterline encircle your face from your forehead to your chin.

Your hips should be up near the surface, and you should kick gently from the hips, with your toes pointed.  kicking too hard will rob you of learning anything from this drill.  Also, be sure you are engaging your abs, so that you are not over-arching in your lower back.  From here, you can progress to kicking on your side, with your bottom arm reaching forward and your top arm resting on your hip.  Start with your nose up, but do not lift your head up to breathe.  Keep your head, shoulders and hips in line, by pressing your ribcage into the water.

The next step is to look down at the bottom of the pool  for a few seconds while you kick.  When you need air, start blowing  bubbles out through your nose, and then gently roll your head back up to breathe, without lifting your head up out of alignment.  So, when you are looking down you should be completely on your side.  When you need to breathe, it is okay to rotate 5-10 degrees towards your back so that you are more comfortable.  Do this drill a few times in your warm-up so that you can start to feel your hips riding high in the water.

Now you are ready to do a DPS set.  Perform a set of 8-10 x 50 yards at an easy pace, leaving on a time standard that allows for 15-20 seconds rest. Count the total number of strokes it takes you to get across the pool.  Try to take long strokes, with lots of body rotation and a gentle kick from the hips.  If you are a tall, efficient swimmer shoot for 11-13 strokes/25 yards.  Short or intermediate level swimmers should shoot for 13-17 strokes/25 yards, while beginners should try for 17 to 20 strokes.  If you do not hit the wall by 20 strokes, then just kick it in on your side and give yourself more recovery time.

A good age-group triathlete should be able to do this set leaving on the minute, taking 15-17 strokes and arriving in the 40-45 second range.  Do not over-kick this set. Many triathletes just create more drag by kicking harder, so kick smoothly with your toes pointed. Focus on pressing your chest in the water, looking at the lane line and rotating your body with each stroke.  Do this set once per week for 6 weeks and you will be sure to notice an improvement in your open water swimming.

Enjoy your swimming!

Coach Jim Passaro
www.swimgr8.com