Help / Advice needed

[Zenturtle]

Are you sure you pumped your lungs completely full of air?
There are more people with that result who enjoy swimming.
If you can get some coaching that would be a bonus.
Not getting air easy can be a distraction that limits progress.

The difference with normal buyancy is not that great. If you spread the weight of almost half a head over the complete body, you are riding only 1-2 cm lower than average.

[Danny]

The problem with the pencil test is that it tells you how your body floats in a vertical position, when what you really want to know is how your body floats in a horizontal position.

Having short legs can make it easier to keep your legs up while swimming, but the pencil test tells you nothing about that.

All of these tests can only give you a ball park estimate of where you are, and there is a danger in over-reading the results you get. When that happens, you get distracted from the task of learning to swim and pre-occupied with stuff that you can't change and that may not matter.

[Danny]

Originally Posted by a16ksb

Hi guys.
In the last week I have returned to swimming after many many years away from it.
I am from the UK, 57 years old, weight is around (18st / 252lbs, heavy built) and would like some advice on how to be more efficient in the water.

I read the book many years ago and it really taught me alot, especially about the glide section of my style.
I have a Garmin swim and today I was doing 25m in 31-32 seconds, 50m in 103 - 110sec and 100m in 2min :19sec - 2min:30 sec, I don't do a proper turn. My stroke count is between 13 to 14
I do struggle with floating and have been told my legs drag below me.
I am a black man and there is a romour that we do not make good swimmers.
Any advice would be appreciated

Regards
Keith

I'm looking at some of your other statistics, and what leaps out at me is that you can cover 25 m with a stroke count of 13 to 14. That's pretty impressive for a beginner. If you have excessive drag because of balance problems and can still pull yourself over a pool length in 13 strokes, than you are a pretty powerful guy.

Swimming is the art of compromise, and because each of us has a unique body, we all have to make different compromises. The technique you develop over time will play to your strengths and can cover for your disadvantages. If you are riding low in the water, you still have the strength to pull yourself faster and this will bring your body up. Try increasing your stroke rate, so that you are swimming a pool length with 16 or 17 strokes. What does that do to your times? Are you swimming faster? Are you breathing easier? these are the things you can play around with.

[CoachBobM]

Originally Posted by a16ksb

Hi guys.
In the last week I have returned to swimming after many many years away from it.
I am from the UK, 57 years old, weight is around (18st / 252lbs, heavy built) and would like some advice on how to be more efficient in the water.

I read the book many years ago and it really taught me alot, especially about the glide section of my style.
I have a Garmin swim and today I was doing 25m in 31-32 seconds, 50m in 103 - 110sec and 100m in 2min :19sec - 2min:30 sec, I don't do a proper turn. My stroke count is between 13 to 14
I do struggle with floating and have been told my legs drag below me.
I am a black man and there is a romour that we do not make good swimmers.
Any advice would be appreciated

Regards
Keith

Let's start with your last point:

There are some very accomplished freestylers who are black More than a decade ago, for example, a black swimmer named Gary Grant (whom I have met) set new records in sprint freestyle at the YMCA Short Course National Championships. And, of course, another black swimmer named Anthony Ervin tied Gary Hall, Jr. in the 50 meter freestyle event at the 2000 Olympics, sharing the gold medal with him.

If your legs are sinking, I'd suggest that you start with a drill we call Superman Glide, in which you kick off from the bottom of the pool on your stomach with your arms shoulder width apart (like Superman), relaxing your head into the water with your nose pointed at the bottom. Keep in mind that your body is like a teeter-totter that is balanced on the fulcrum of your lungs: Your legs on one side are balanced by your head and arms on the other. The momentum you get from kicking off the bottom should help to keep your legs up, but if you still feel them sinking, try adding a gentle kick.


Bob

Hi All.
The advice here has been brilliant.
After looking at some of the Youtube videos, I've realised my head is probably too far out of the water when I take a breath, (the advice is to have on side of face submerged) and I'm probably looking straight ahead when it is in the water.
Yesterday I adjusted my posture in the water, sucked stomach in and raised my hips, immediately felt a difference, I was able to knock 2 secs off of my 50m time.
My next task will be to change head angle whilst it is in the water

[Zenturtle]

Great to hear. keep on discovering improvements.
Absorb all the info in the videos and its purpuse will become clear after a while. I dont agree with point 3 where you should blow all the air out as soon as your face is in the water. Sinkers have to blow out first slowly and blow the last out right before intake.
Danny and Bob made some good comments. I am also curious how your 13 strokes /25 m looks now.

[WFEGb]

Hello,

... I dont agree with point 3 where you should blow all the air out as soon as your face is in the water. Sinkers have to blow out first slowly and blow the last out right before intake.
Danny and Bob made some good comments. I am also curious how your 13 strokes /25 m looks now.

I'd say, let your face relaxed (looking a little bit mad) and blow out as little air as it does help this relaxation, when your face gets back into the water. And as ZT said, blow out the rest (as a wale) before you start with inhale... Integrate it into your rhythm and don't lose blow-out-time when your face cleared the surface. As Terry says: You can't inhale too early..

Might it be 13SPL is what your swim watch shows? We count every arm-entry, so it might be 25-26SPL in our sense.

Best regards,
Werner

Originally Posted by WFEGb

Hello,


I'd say, let your face relaxed (looking a little bit mad) and blow out as little air as it does help this relaxation, when your face gets back into the water. And as ZT said, blow out the rest (as a wale) before you start with inhale... Integrate it into your rhythm and don't lose blow-out-time when your face cleared the surface. As Terry says: You can't inhale too early..

Might it be 13SPL is what your swim watch shows? We count every arm-entry, so it might be 25-26SPL in our sense.

Best regards,
Werner

I currently inhale on the right hand side, everytime my right hand is behind, face back in the water, hold a little, then exhale.

I experimented with alternate breathing, (right hand behind, inhale, exhale,left hand behind, enhale), in order to equal things and and become more streamline, it feels smoother, but the jury is still out on this as I guess I've not really given it enough for it to become a habit,as I find myself going back to the "old" style.
I think the Garmin swim counts a stroke as everytime the same hand enters the water
With all this new knowledge I am tempted to go to the pool today, if I do I will report back. Otherwise it will be Sunday.
Once aagin thank you all for your help, this has re-ignighted a flame that died out many years ago.

[WFEGb]

Hello a16ksb,

I currently inhale on the right hand side, everytime my right hand is behind, face back in the water, hold a little, then exhale.

Don't understand what you mean, sorry...

If you turn your chin together with the shoulder to your breathing side, you should be ready to inhale as soon as your mouth cleared the surface, and latest to turn your face back to neutral is, when you see your recovery arm. It's like a curtain turning your face back (latest, back to neutral earlier, your stroke will be disturbed less by breathing...)

Neither hold your air nore push your exhale (only in the last hundredth second before inhaling...)

What I think is really important in longer terms: Train your breathing on both sides. Be more aware to train your felt weak side a little bit more. It's not necessary to breath alternating. One lap right side, next lap left side... and sometimes an extra lap on your weak side will be OK.

If you don't imprint breathing on both sides right now, you'll have a much harder time later, if you have to learn your weak side from ground on, while you'd like to focus in other parts in your stroke.

I think the Garmin swim counts a stroke as everytime the same hand enters the water...

Yes it does, so it misses the other hand's entry, what we count as a stroke too. It will help, if you count your strokes by yourself, because the garmin is not as exact and +-one and a half stroke doees matter (sometimes).

Enjoy and best regards,
Werner

[Danny]

Originally Posted by a16ksb

I think the Garmin swim counts a stroke as everytime the same hand enters the water

OK, I count one stroke for each hand entry, so by my convention (and the convention of most people on this forum) your stroke count is 26-28 for one pool length. So disregard my advice to increase your stroke rate, you are already stroking too fast, probably as a crutch to avoid sinking. You will, however, notice that as you gain speed your body will ride higher in the water and this should help your breathing.

From your last post, it sounds like you have made some breakthroughs and now have things to play with. This is where the fun really starts!