Change the way you develop skills. Positively impact your swimmers’ skills, especially when working with large groups. Build the skills that win races while training hard. Easily incorporate these ideas into the workouts you’re already doing. bit.ly/3tdWmdw

Kick timing changes when swimmers change speed and there is a simple way to understand what’s happening and if swimmers are using effective kicking timing. The kick helps control rotation, so it’s all about timing. Swimmers change their arm timing when they try change speeds, so the kick timing needs to follow as well. Check out these two swimmers. When sprinting, the arms move in opposition, and swimmers tend to kick on the same side when they enter the water. When they swim over longer distances, there is more overlap in the front of the stroke, and swimmers tend to kick on the opposite side when they enter the water. While different swimmers can time their arms differently across different speeds, the leg timing and arm timing should sync up. When they do, swimmers are more likely to create efficient speed. Watch the entries to understand what they’re doing, and help create change as necessary. Follow @andrewksheaff for more on the key skills in swimming, and how to improve them.

Training aids are effective at encouraging swimmers to change their skills. Stroke rates are effective at getting swimmers to change their skills. By combining both strategies, we can get even more changes. The more powerful we can create change, the more swimmers can improve. Using multiple strategies at the same time is a very effective way to make it happen. Having swimmers use a band and a buoy is an effective way to focus on the upper body in freestyle or backstroke. We can promote further change by asking swimmers to perform with fast stroke rates or slow strokes rates. Slow rates will help swimmers learn to use their arms to create a lot of propulsion. Fast rates will encourage swimmers to learn to use their arms to create a lot of propulsion FAST. By adding the stroke rate challenge to the band and buoy, we can make a great tool even better.

The baseline for effective freestyle is swimming level on the surface of the water. If swimmers can’t swim level, they’re going to be creating a lot more drag than they need to, which is going to make swimming a lot slower and harder than it needs to be. To make matters worse, if swimmers aren’t level, they aren’t going to be stable. That means they’re going to be using their limbs to create stability. If the limbs are being used to create stability, they’re not going to be used for creating speed. Help swimmers get level on the surface with zero effort, and they’ll be ready to do everything else that matters.

Too often, coaches are asked to ‘make sure they swim fast’ or ‘get them fit’ or ‘improve their skills’. Obviously, those phrases can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. And they’re going to act on their perceptions. When people are working in isolation, that’s not necessarily a problem. But when coaches are part of a developmental pipeline, it definitely is a problem if coaches are working towards different ends, even if those ends are otherwise appropriate. That’s when the problems start. And those problems can all be avoided by being crystal clear about what needs to happen and how it needs to happen. When coaches know the goals, they’re much more equipped to make them happen. Setting clear goals is the foundation. Click below to learn your team’s 3 biggest skill development opportunities for free and discover simple solutions to solve them. andrewsheaffcoaching.kit.com…

A huge mistake swimmers make is extending the arms all the way down the thigh. It feels strong, and it makes sense, but it’s just not fast. Here’s why. Swimmers use their whole arm to create propulsion. At the end of the pull only the hand can still face backward. And only the relatively weak muscles of the arms can do the work. That means not much propulsion. And by extending the arm, the arm is going to stop. That makes is a whole lot more difficult to recover the arm quickly and effortlessly. This swimmer is nailing it. Squeeze the arm to the side and then let it swing around. Optimize the finish, don’t maximize it. Follow @andrewksheaff for more on the key skills in swimming, and how to improve them.

Just like we plan for training, we should plan for how drills are going to be used as well. Which drills are going to be the focus? Which drills are going to be supportive? Which drills are NOT going to be used? How are drills going to be challenged over time? When there’s a plan, it’s a lot more likely that change is going to occur. Planning for the implementation of drills doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be very simple. But having an idea of where you want to go and how you’re going to get there is critical for facilitating progress. The plan doesn’t have to be perfect, and it won’t be. However, having a goal and a strategy for getting there helps me make decisions along the way. When I’m working toward what I want to accomplish, I’m much more likely to get there.

While the top priority may differ slightly, most clubs have three goals: Provide a great experience Go fast, perform, and win Consistently make enough money to keep the doors open They’re all achieved by providing a consistently awesome product. If swimmers are learning the skills and developing the abilities they need to achieve, each and every day, accomplishing these goals is going to be a whole lot more achievable than not. Follow @andrewksheaff for more on long-term skill development.

The most underrated reason to use stroke counts is to help swimmers learn to maintain their skills when they get tired. It’s also one of the most effective. When swimmers get tired, their skills start to fall apart. And they don’t know it. If they’re counting their strokes, they WILL know it, and they’ll know it right away. If you pay attention during a set, swimmers stroke counts will slowly creep up over the course of a repetition and over the course of a set. That almost always means a progressive loss of skill. Rather than having swimmers ‘think about it’, having them stay consistent with their stroke count requires them to be consistent with their skills. They realize right away that there is an opportunity to improve, and they can do something about it. And if they make effective changes, they’ll know it right away. This is a great way to build skills while training hard.

While the drills that are used matter, HOW they’re used matters just as much. When drills are connected in a sequence, they tend to be more effective at facilitating change during full stroke swimming. And that is what really matters. As an example, we could have swimmers perform breaststroke with dolphin kick to work the pull. Then go right into 2 pulls + 1 kick to build the pull into the stroke. Then go right into breaststroke with a parachute and a stroke count to further emphasize the pull. And finish with regular breaststroke. By designing the set to connect the dots between the drill and full stroke swimming, swimmers are much more likely to make it happen. For more on how to use strategies like drill sequences to improve skill and speed, click below to check out my free mini course on how to build skills while training hard. buildbettersets.com

While the legs get all the love in breaststroke, if swimmers don’t have a strong pull, they’re going to struggle to maximize how fast they can swim. Not only do swimmers have to hold water with their arms, they have to do so within the rhythm of the stroke. Here’s a skill set that helps them learn how to make it happen. Each round transitions from pure pulling to full stroke swimming as swimmers move from 50 to 50. Within each round swimmers will have a different goal to achieve, working to hit different stroke counts and speeds. Not only are swimmers challenged to integrate the pull into their stroke, they have to learn how to use that stroke to perform. The objective numbers guide swimmers’ skills and help push them to build a stroke that’s built for efficiency and speed. Click below if you’re a coach and you want to learn how to use these concepts to build sets for free. buildbettersets.com

The more level butterflyers can be in the water, the faster they will go. Of course, they need to undulate for the stroke to work effectively, but they need to undulate around a level position in the water. The less resistance they’ll create and the more speed they’ll create. If there’s too much up and down motion, or swimmers just stay ‘up’, they’re going to be in trouble. For swimmers that are struggling to stay level in butterfly, substituting flutter kick for dolphin kick during some single or double arm fly work can be a real help. Swimmers can start to underwater what it’s like to stay horizontal. When they add the dolphin kick back in, they can continue to stay horizontal while undulating. By allowing them to feel different skills, they can begin to execute on those skills.

While swimmers still need to pull back in breaststroke to move forward, it differs from the other strokes in that there is a significant inward component as well. The arms end up much wider when setting up the stroke, so swimmers have to bring everything back to the body. Too many swimmers simply sweep the hands in rather than actually pulling the arm into the body. Here’s a simple way to improve this skill. Have swimmers place their arm on the deck and squeeze the whole arm into the deck or gutter. This allows them to feel the position they need to create, and how to apply force through the whole arm, rather than just sculling in. This exercise is a lot more effective when combined with other pulling activities that help swimmers understand how to use the arms to create speed. Feel the skill, apply the skill, go fast. Follow @andrewksheaff for more on the key skills in swimming, and how to improve them.

There are some breaststrokers that are very good at pullouts and others that really struggle. And pullouts determine race outcomes all the time. While the surface swimming and pullouts can seem very different, they’re ultimately the same. In both cases, swimmers have to create a lot of propulsion with as little resistance as possible and do the right thing at the right time. The more swimmers can play with these skills during pullouts, the more they’ll improve. The challenge with improving pullouts is almost always in helping swimmers get enough relevant practice. It’s hard to get a lot of repetitions that are focused and encourage swimmers to improve their skills. I try to put swimmers in positions where they can learn to feel how to create propulsion with their dolphin kick and pullout. I try to put swimmers in positions where they can learn to feel how to create as little resistance as possible throughout each phase of the pullout. I try to put swimmers in positions where they can learn to feel when to perform each part of the pullout. The more relevant practice they get, the faster they’ll improve.

The purpose of planning isn’t to predict the future, it’s to create a general strategy that can and will be adapted. When setting up a developmental system, it can feel overwhelming because it’s impossible to know what will happen, which makes it seem pointless to do anything. The irony is that the only way to find out what will happen is to do something, pay attention, and react accordingly. Any developmental system will have to change based on new information. And by setting up the system, it’s possible to take that new information and integrate it into what needs to be done. Only by taking action can we best understand the best approach going forward. Rather than focusing on what can’t be known, set something up and get started to make the unknown known.

Fast butterfly is impossible without effective body movement. While the arms and legs deliver force to the water, it’s the body that’s driving the show. Watch the rhythm and flow of the body motion here. You can see the wave of undulation that travels down the body twice per stroke cycle. That wave is key for fast swimming. If swimmers can’t get that wave flowing, and they can’t add the arms and legs on top, they’ll really struggle to swim fast. While the arms and legs certainly matter, making sure the body is locked in is key for fast swimming. Create the wave, ride the wave. Follow @andrewksheaff for more on the key skills in swimming, and how to improve them.

A great way for backstrokers to go slow is to rush the setup of the stroke and rip through the pull. Another great way for backstrokers to go slow is to move their arm so patiently that they never apply any pressure. Different problem, same result. No propulsion. Backstrokers have to learn how to be patient with setting up the stroke AND accelerating through the pull. By being patient with the setup, they can get the arm in a position to move a lot of water. By being aggressive once they’re in position, they can apply pressure into the water and actually move a ton of water. The more they can feel what they need to do, and the more aware they are of the consequences of their skills (speed/stroke count), the more effective they will learn to be.

When coaches are starting out, the amount of information coming at them can be overwhelming, especially if they’re actively trying to get better. But in many cases, much of that information isn’t relevant to them. Or worse, it’s contradictory because they don’t fully grasp the context or it’s just wrong. Programs can fast-track their coaches’ development by creating a standard operating procedures document for each group. What needs to get done and how it needs to get done. Rather than leaving coaches guessing, they know exactly what they need to know, and any questions they have are laser focused on solving their current problems. Coaches can become very effective, very fast. Follow @andrewksheaff for more on long-term skill development.

Reducing drag is a never-ending battle that is happening at every instance of the stroke. Freestylers don’t just have to keep their head down and their hips up. While that’s important, it’s just the start point. Swimmers have to learn to maintain those positions while rotating, kicking, and swinging the arms fast. All while breathing. That’s a difference maker between fast swimmers and really fast swimmers. Learning how to keep resistance as low as possible throughout the stroke in freestyle isn’t a single skill. It’s many different skills all performed at once. The underlying skill is the ability to FEEL parts of the stroke that are creating resistance. And then doing something about it. More than anything else, I try to equip swimmers with the ability to be more aware of how they’re creating resistance as they move through the water. Just like with propulsion, the more they can feel how they’re interacting with the water, the more speed they can create.

While difficult for many swimmers to do well, breaststroke timing is ultimately simple. Swimmers have to kick while the arms are still in streamline. Swimmers have to pull while the legs are still in streamline. That allows swimmers to create a lot of propulsion while simultaneously minimizing the amount of drag they create. And they have to alternate between the two at stroke rates that are appropriate for the race distance. Simple, not easy, especially when the stroke rates climb and swimmers have to be very precise with the alternation between the two. Versatile breaststrokers are able to alternate effectively and alter the space between the pull and the kick to meet the demands of the race. Simple, not easy.

There are plenty of swimmers who can move their arms fast, but there are a lot less that can move far with each stroke, especially at speed. What gets better as swimmers mature? Stroke length. What gets better as swimmers become more skilled? Stroke length. If we know it matters, it makes sense to actively track it and actively try to improve it. That’s where stroke count becomes so powerful. While not perfect, stroke counts allow coaches and swimmers to directly work on one of the most important outcomes in swimming training, improving length. It’s important to stay focused on speed. When we’re focused on speed and length, it leads to both short-term and long-term development. For more on how to use strategies like stroke counts to improve skill and speed, click below to check out my free mini course on how to build skills while training hard. buildbettersets.com