Next two weeks

I will be around for part of the first session this week and away next week.

It is the Great East Swim this week for many of you so it may well be a bit quieter in the pool.  I will coach the first half of the 7am session before I have to leave and we will be continuing the theme of last week with some more work on stroke rate with some fist drills before going into a ratchet main set.  The fist drill this week is a mix of tight fists and half fists.  Tightly clenched fists are good to help you focus on really good vertical forearms and will naturally increase your stroke rate.  For half fists only loosely clench your fists to get a bit more surface area for your pull and a bit more power.

Next week the session will be the Will Clarke set consisting of a mix and fast and steady-paced 50s.  To get the most from this set really focus on the fast 50s, even when the turnaround times are tight at the start of the set.  The sessions will be in the box at the pool so whoever is there first please get them out and distribute to the different lanes.

See you Saturday (briefly)!

Rob

Feet and Fists

Well done for all of your efforts on your feet over the last two weeks with the work we have been doing on your leg kick.  This week we will be doing some work on a drill we haven’t used for quite a while – front crawl with fists.  This is an excellent drill – recommended by Vicky Holland as one of her favourite drills – to help you focus on the high-elbow catch by using your forearms rather than your hands to generate the most power on your pull. Also we be doing some golf stroke 50s to help you experiment with your stroke efficiency by varying your stroke rate and distance per stroke.  The fists drill is a great preparation for your work on this.

We will finish the session this week with some pursuit 200s where I would like to encourage all of you to experiment with different tactics and changes of pace.  Using the stronger leg kick you have recently been practising is a great way to change pace quickly!

See you Saturday,

Rob

Photo by Oladimeji Odunsi on Unsplash