Need Speed

I feel I need to be faster. My kicking technique needs help, that is my major problem, What can I do?
Thank-you
Trace

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Try going to a swimming coach and getting them to take a look at your technique for a couple of sessions, technique is the key to speed.

Yeah - what Todd said.

Once you get the technique down pat you can be a speedy little demon. Building up enough leg strength to use your fins correctly is also helpful (don't remember what type of fins you have).

Also - don't just do flutter (freestyle) kick, make sure you practice doing butterfly kick as well. Butterfly is the most natural for people as you move faster when doing it but flutter kick enables you with a greater turning ability. (Ie. flutter when in a pack and butterfly when doing runaways)

Ask Belle to look at your technique?
She's your best pick close to home

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... remember that when you dolphin kick you can only really pass with power on the downstroke.

Personally Im not a fan of dolphin. I have had a look at your finning Trace and I think you have to master the flutter kick. I think some help with a swimming coach is a fantastic idea.

Dolphin has its place, it has a slow take off, awsome once it gets going, unstopable at times. I find your skills are limmited with full flight dolphin vs flutter.

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Underwater Hockey Rules!

As with most physical activities of this type there are three main attributes that can be affected when trying to improve this activity.

1. Speed
2. Strength
3. Skill

When trying to improve your overall speed through the water you must improve one or more preferably all three of these things.

1. Speed - Use smaller fins (tiny!) and kick at a very high rate. This will train your legs to move much faster than they do with your normal fins. Think of it as "I didn't know my legs could kick that fast!?"

2. Strength - Along with weight training to improve strength, the use of much bigger/stiffer fins will be 'harder for your legs to push'. You could also two things like a towel or a bucket (tied from your waist) or push a pickboard in front of you vertically. All of these things will make you legs think "boy, that was hard!"

3. Skill - Improving the two things above will help greatly in improving your technique. The most important thing to remember is think streamlined!! Think "long, smooth, straight, slippery" (settle down Belle & Tan!! :roll: ) Think, is my body like a dolphin in the water, or is it like a barge! I you are not aware of how your body is when you are swimming see if you can get someone to video tape it and watch yourself or at the very least get someone to describe it to you.

Don't get too hung up on flutter kick or dolphin kick. They both have their use in the correct situation. Improve these three things and you improve your speed in either style of kicking.

Not sure if you're list was just putting up 3 points with no attention to the order, that's just how it came out, or not. But I would first emphasize skill/technique above all. Then depending on your personal strengths, build first what you have, then work with what you don't, speed or strength.

If you don't have the correct technique the other stuff fails. Some folks are natural swimmers who have quick flutter kicks and have no use for a dolphin kick, others have a natural deep strong kick and a dophin kick just works. First find what you do well. Build on your strength and then refine your weakness. You may never dolphin kick, or it may work for you but don't force it.

I would start with medium pace underwater lengths. Work on feeling the water flow over you. Hard to explain but when you get in right you will know it. Try to stay relaxed, I like Kelly's visualization a lot, FEEL the water. When you are streamlined, and kicking well, the resistance (especially if you WERE doing it wrong) feels like if disapears, and the power from the same effort off the fins should feel like it improves considerably.

They were in no particular order :-)

Nice one Kelly!

I also recommend (as you already know Trace) kicking without fins.
(similar effect to kicking with small fins but even more so)

Trace your technique isn't that bad when you are thinking about it. It is just in a game you tend to be thinking about other things and forget to kick as fast as you should and your kicks become too big and your posture isn't allowing you to move as fast as you want.

You also need to do some real quality, consistent swim sessions.

P.S Speed didn't help me yesterday...got my first black eye in The Netherlands...yippee! Clearly Dutch men don't like being beaten by 5 foot nothing Aussie women!