Swim kick, how to.....

[SwissVan]

...improve your swim kick?

 

My crawl swim kick really sucks, normally I kick just enough to keep (try) my legs up enough not to drop low under water and cause drag.

 

Last night I pulled out my kickboard, joh!! I don't think I could do more then 3 lengths of a 25m (with 75 crawl between each 25 kick) before they turned the lights off and went home.

 

Did not time how long it took to kick 25m but I guestimate it must be at least 60s....

 

Other than doing 1000's of meters kicking what other tricks are there to LEGALY improve your kick...at least enough so that I can almost keep up with the little swim school girls and boys in the next lane when they kick?

[flat29]

the only way is to get behind the board and kick away.

 

No quick fix sorry

 

We used to do 10 laps a day when I was still swimming

Edited February 6, 2014 by flat29

[mon-goose]

there's a bit of a discussion around kicking on one of the other threads. But basically you don't need to stress about doing loads of kicking training. You basically just need to keep your legs up as you're doing.

 

I find those kick boards are difficult to use. So I kick with my arms stretched out in front without a board. And then I do about 4 freestyle strokes in every 25m. I can't kick for the whole length at the moment. Over time I might get better but for now this is enough

[eddy]

I don't know if it will help, but a week or two ago i went to see someone about by swimming technique.

 

One thing i was told about the kick, is to not only kick downwards, but also upwards. I have kept this as a thought when swimming,,and it works for me.

[dracs]

Also not much of a kicker... This may seem like a stupid question (and been meaning to google but never got there...) should you kick from the hip (ie entire leg up and down) or more from the knee (lower leg).

 

I hate kicking drills, so pretty much don't do them, but when I do I am aware my entire leg is moving up and down and can't help but wonder if this is correct / necesary or am I wasting energy...

[MAVERICK 13]

Also not much of a kicker... This may seem like a stupid question (and been meaning to google but never got there...) should you kick from the hip (ie entire leg up and down) or more from the knee (lower leg).

 

I hate kicking drills, so pretty much don't do them, but when I do I am aware my entire leg is moving up and down and can't help but wonder if this is correct / necesary or am I wasting energy...

 

Correct! Kick from the hip & keep your ankles loose!

[tankisbyon]

I do a lot of kicking drills with fins. I know its cheating a little, but I have still noticed an improvement in my kick when doing freestyle.

[Thor Buttox]

If you have access to deep pool, and some flippers, get into the deep section, and kick freestyle vertically in 10 X 30s sets. (ie against gravity, with your arms just floating on the surface) . Make sure you keep your body straight and don't bend at the hips. Reason it works is that a) you are kicking in much deeper water is harder and b) as you get stronger you can raise your arms above your head, or take a weight above you. It's a fantastic drill and you'll get a big core workout at the same time when you can do it easily no flips, you you are a strong kicker!

[kennyg]

Chuck out the kick board.... you wasting your effort.

 

1. easy way, lie on your back arms above your head and kick try get 8 to 12 cycles per breath. Make sure you don't splash too much. Theory here, gets your body into an ideal position

 

2. mid way - freestyle kick on your stomach, keep your hips high and your arms stretched out in front of you. head down, between your arms and side breath. 8 to 12 kick cycles.

 

3. Tough way- Freestyle kick on your stomach, hips high, arms stretched in front of you. Head up, front breath. Imagine you had a kick board under your arms.

 

If you do 10 x 25 per session, starting easy and moving to the tougher sets, 3 -5 weeks will see a huge improvement in kicking. You cant go slower or learn too many bad habits with this method.

[Red Zone]

What works for me it to time your kicks with your stroke, I kick three times per stroke which puts me in a good rhythm, the last kick you do is a big upward kick to rotate your body to breath.

 

Here are some good tips, which I just found which tells me in 2 minutes what it took me six months to figure out, the rhythm section is the key for me.

 

http://breakwatersportstraining.com/dry/kicking_practice.html