Swimming tips

Tips to be a better swimmer.    FOCUS ON FORM!!

1. Swimming is science, you are looking for "lift".  If you were to do a push up, where would you place your hands?  Right under your shoulders.....correct?     Try doing a push up with your arms stretched out as far as they will go. you only have your fingers to lift you.  Doesn't work. Now do one where your arms are in as far as they will go.  That is a triceps push up, using your little muscles to do big work. Same with swimming, you want your hands shoulder width apart.  No more, no less.  Getting lift for your body.
2. It's all about balance.
3. Think about your chin, YEP chin.  The higher up your chin, the more your legs and butt sink. Keep your chin down. Play with this, float on your stomach, now lift your chin...just a little.  What happened? Your legs sank a little.  Now lift it a lot, your legs went down to the bottom.  Same with swimming.  Keep your chin level.  
4. Legs should be a 6 beat count, what does that mean.  For every arm pull, your legs kick 6 times.
5. Kick from the HIPS, don't bend your legs. Legs are long, ankles are floppy. 
6. Arms go slow, legs fast.
7. When you "catch" the water, slide your hand forward more....stretch...... UNLESS you are swimming short distances.  Then you want FAST turn over w/the arms.  Meaning your hand goes in, the catch, and you start the pull right away. 
8. The two fast spots are the dive in, start, and the turns at the wall. Don't slow down, swim faster into the walls.  The wall are HOT, touch and GO.  Don't hang out at a wall.   OR better yet, do a flip turn.  
9. Flip turn, stretch, THEN roll onto your stomach.  Don't try to flip turn and roll all at once.  Practice by first flipping and coming off on your back doing back stroke. Then practice rolling onto your stomach. 
10. Arms:  Pretend that you havea zipper right up the side of your body.  Stick your thumb out and drag it up your side, from hip to arm pit.....zippering.......up all the way up.  Then swing your hand forward to the catch portion of the stroke. Taking your hand all the way to your hip for the finish. Long and strong.  Keeping your hands lower than your elbow and under your body.  
11. Turn your head to breath!!   Make sure your chin is down, turn your head BACK to breath. You should almost be looking behind you.  
12. Your breath should be, blowing bubbles under water, turn and get a bite of air.   Bubbles, bubbles, bubbles turn and breath.  Get a bite of air every 3 strokes.  UNLESS, you are swimming competition....  breathing is over rated.  :D  You get a breath after the 4th stroke after you dive in off the bocks and at the red marker before the wall, after the wall and 4 strokes, breath, next red marker, then no more until you hit the wall.  And that is giving you a lot of air.  :D   4 for each 50 yards. Again that is for competition for short swims. 

Typical mistakes.

1. Legs bending at the knees.
2. Legs doing a little or NO kick.   DO this if you are swimming long distance, or triathlons!! 
3. Arms not coming up out of the water, dragging through the water. 
4. Arms swinging wide around the body.  DO this if you are swimming in an ocean!!  
5. Arms crossing over....either at the catch or under the body. 
6. Resting at the walls. 
7. Lifting the head to breath. 
8. Hands not catching the water.  Slicing, fingers up "stopping" you, and or letting the hand slide up and dropping the elbow.