Review of Freestyle Technique

This is a simple clip, but at least enough to give me something to think about. This may not be how I always swim, as I did this rather hurriedly after a fairly hard 2,100 meters. Still, the camera is a very good way in which we can see what we are doing.

In spite of swimming a lot of meters much of last year, my swimming slackened in December and January as I grappled with water temperatures sometimes in the low 60s together with the fact that I was very busy with work - the recession has not hit me yet.

I was swimming at my best around early October last year, and for distances around 100m and 200m I appeared to set my best times perhaps ever. However, I switched pools in late October (from an indoor 25m pool to an outdoor lane-divider-less 50m pool) and I started studying the freestyle swimming technique taught by Karlyn Pipes-Neilsen of Aquatic Edge.

Everything felt strange at first, and I balked at the idea of doing a flip turn where I would have to lie on my back underwater - a sure recipe for a lot of water up your nose or, worse, a crash into the bottom of the shallow pool! However, I persevered and things started to look good, although I became a lot slower.

Then the cold weather came followed by a cold a little before Christmas that decimated me. I literally lost about 10 percent of whatever muscle mass I had built up in the space of a few days. I still have not got it back.

Anyway, hopefully the winter is over now and I can increase the yardage and not feel all weakish from the effects of the cold for most of the morning after the swim. I will also pay attention to doing a little weightbearing exercise at home, and use the Stretchcordz, etc. Hopefully, I will get my times down somewhat over the next few months. Never give up, it is never to late to learn!