As some of you know I spent a few days down in Saint Petersburg at a coaches clinic, yes even coaches go to school. I did get 3 days to swim in the pool that those of you who will be racing in in a couple of weeks and I can tell you the temperature is perfect, the water crystal clear and it feels really fast so it will be ready for you all.
The hardest part over the 4 days was getting out of the pool and forcing myself back inside for more talks, the sacrifices we all make. There were many take aways from a coaches view ranging from what propels a body through the water, women in sports, games and gimmicks, training methods (yardage versus aerobic work with quick sprints), drylands, shoulder issues, emotional and mental training and Underwater Kicking.
Over the next few days we will dive into some of these topics and how they directly relate to your swimming. The first one is something we talk about all the time in our workouts and that is our 
underwater kicking. We headed to the pool on Sunday morning with swimmers demonstrating underwater kicking with timed 25's and 50's and then allowing the computer to analyze the results. If we are completely honest with ourselves the following is true most of us are very weak in this area and don't work that hard at it. Why? Because it's hard and uncomfortable and we don't like being uncomfortable, do we? Here is one common theme and conclusion stated bey the swimmers and coaches, "The underwater kicking is as essential as having a good dive, solid flip turn, and good swimming technique. If you are weak in this one area the flaw will quickly be noticeable in short course yards and meters." This is where 99.9% if not 100% of your races take place. Another takeaway is that if you start working on your underwater kicking TODAY it can off set some other weakness that you have because you can cover so much of your distance underwater.
underwater kicking. We headed to the pool on Sunday morning with swimmers demonstrating underwater kicking with timed 25's and 50's and then allowing the computer to analyze the results. If we are completely honest with ourselves the following is true most of us are very weak in this area and don't work that hard at it. Why? Because it's hard and uncomfortable and we don't like being uncomfortable, do we? Here is one common theme and conclusion stated bey the swimmers and coaches, "The underwater kicking is as essential as having a good dive, solid flip turn, and good swimming technique. If you are weak in this one area the flaw will quickly be noticeable in short course yards and meters." This is where 99.9% if not 100% of your races take place. Another takeaway is that if you start working on your underwater kicking TODAY it can off set some other weakness that you have because you can cover so much of your distance underwater.
How do swimmers move so fast underwater kicking? It starts with having a Great Streamline. Yes that's right, if your not in a tight hand over hand tight streamline the underwater kicking becomes less efficient and it takes more energy to move your body through the water. Big Dolphin/ Small Dolphin kick? If the kick is to big and outside your body frame you start creating to much resistance. On the other hand if it's to small you may not be able to grab enough water. YOU have to find the correct balance that allows you to maintain your speed off the walls and through the water.
So what can you do outside the pool to improve your UNDERWATER KICK? The two biggest things you can work on are ankle flexibility and leg strength. Here is a short video to help with your ankle flexibility.
As for strengthening your legs, why do it? first off your need the leg power for your push off the wall so you can get into that streamline and into your underwater kick. Some simple exercises are
wall sits
body weight squats
lunges (each leg)
bridges
squat jumps
calf raises
box jumps.
body weight squats
lunges (each leg)
bridges
squat jumps
calf raises
box jumps.
Let's all sit down after spring break and set up a program that is easy for yo to follow and that you can continue through the summer. If your swimming in Florida at the meet, please do not add anything new to your routines, it takes time to adjust to new things which is not good for upcoming competition.
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