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Written by Jeff Orr
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Wednesday, 21 March 2007 |
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Decades before I became a hack swimmer, I was an equally accomplished hack golfer. Although obvious differences exist between the two sports, there are also some common threads. In particular, they are very similar in that they are almost completely technique-driven, especially compared to running and cycling. With runners and cyclists, brute Force and good genetics will overcome many shortcomings in technique for athletes below the elite level. Not so for swimming and golf. If you’ve ever been dismantled on a golf course by a well-overweight guy with a beer in one hand and a putter in the other, you know what I’m talking about. |
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Written by Jeff Orr
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Wednesday, 21 March 2007 |
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The first thing you need to know about swimming with a large group of people in Open Water is that it is only peripherally related to the endless laps you swam in the pool in order to get ready for it. That is, the mechanics of rolling, pulling, kicking, and breathing are more or less the same, but everything else is going to be quite a shock if you haven’t prepared yourself by practicing some open water-specific skills in the pool. There are plenty of things to work on including sighting, Drafting and bilateral breathing (breathing on both sides) among many others, but the skill that may very well help you the most is being able to seed yourself correctly before the gun even goes off. |
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Written by Brian Grasky
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Friday, 02 March 2007 |
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Swim training is very different than bike and run training. OK, for one it’s in a pool. But with cycling and running, you go hard to be able to go hard, right? In swimming, it’s not about going hard, it’s about going easy. Come again? Yes, it’s about going easy, being efficient, and being smooth. In a nutshell, the more you swim easy and correctly, the more efficient you get, and the faster you get in being efficient. If you’re a new swimmer, you should first get comfortable in the water. Do that by spending time in the pool. Get to where you can do a few laps of easy swimming without stopping. Once there, drills are key. Our Mach3 DVD series will go into drills more in depth. The most important thing to know in doing drills is that they must be done correctly. Review the drills frequently to make sure you didn’t incorporate any bad habits into them. Drills will teach you efficiency and will allow you to minimize large movements that increase drag. |
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Written by Jeff Orr
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Friday, 05 January 2007 |
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Having flown military airplanes for the last 13 years, I’ve seen my share of techniques and procedures. Techniques differ among pilots. Some techniques are more useful or more likely to produce positive results than others, but none of them are written in stone. You can pick and choose which techniques to use as long as none of them violate written procedure. Procedures are written in stone. They are disseminated in written form by the Air Force, and all pilots will adhere to them or face the consequences, period. |
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Swimming 
