More than any other stroke, the secret to great breaststroke is to maximize propulsion and minimize drag. Coaches need to analyze every aspect of each swimmer's stroke to look for ways to achieve these goals.
Ohio State Swim Coaches Bill Wadley and Bill Dorenkott take high-level, high-performing breaststrokers through a series of drills designed to build a championship breaststroke. They address the three critical means of maximizing propulsion and reducing resistance:
- Reduce drag with great body position by lining up the four Hs (hands, head, hips, heels).
- Maximize acceleration by shortening the time spent outside the streamline position.
- Use a strong kick and excellent body position to stay in the power zone during the pull
The Kick
Starting with the kick, Coaches Wadley and Dorenkott present 14 drills that create a narrow, fast kick that reduces resistance. The progression begins with the technical aspects of the kick and continues through breaststroke-specific body positioning with an efficient kick.
These drills assist with:
- Developing hip flexibility, which is essential for a great kick
- Creating an explosive finish kick
- Maintaining a high center of gravity with a flat back, long neck and weightless arms out front
- Timing the kick to master the rhythm of the stroke: pull, breathe and then kick
- Developing foot speed in the kick and feet-together recovery
Included in this section are advanced skills for the finish of the kick that allow the feet to drop into an ideal glide position following the accelerated finish of the kick.
The Pull
Discover 13 drills -designed to strengthen the pull phase of the stroke. Included are sculling drills to enhance the feel for each phase of the pull, small pull drills that train the catch, and out-sweep, and full pull drills that train swimmers to properly wrap the corner and accelerate into an ideal glide position. Also included are pulling drills for teaching the timing of the stroke including underwater drills that teach a swimmer to decrease resistance in all phases of the stroke.
The Pullout
Coach Wadley presents a five-phase pullout sequence that begins with how to attain the most efficient push-off, and then adds the arm movement, the dolphin kick phase, arm recovery, and kick into breakout. Putting the sequence together ends with a fast, powerful, and effective pullout and breakout. Demonstrations of the full stroke include tempo for the 200, 100, and 50-meter distances.
The more than 35 skills and drills presented here offer invaluable insights into successful breaststroke swimming from two highly successful coaches. Underwater footage and expert demonstrations greatly enhance the instruction. Order now!
68 minutes. 2013.
