Best of Championship Productions: 80 Drills for Freestyle Swimming

featuring:

• Richard Quick, former Head Coach at Texas (W), Auburn (M/W) and Stanford (W) Universities; 3x Olympic Coach; 12 NCAA Team Championships, 5x NCAA Coach of the Year
• David Marsh, Head Coach, SwimMAC Carolina; 2016 USA Women's Olympic Team Head Coach, 12x NCAA Championship and 8x NCAA Coach of the Year (Auburn), 3x USA Men's Olympic Team Assistant
• Frank Busch, USA Swimming National Team Director; 2x U.S. Olympic Swim Coach, former University of Arizona Head Coach; 2x NCAA Championship Coach; 6x National Coach of the Year; member of the American Swim Coaches Association (ASCA) Hall of Fame (2008)
• Ian Pope, Melbourne Vicentre Swimming Club Head Coach, Olympic and National Team Coach for Australia; has coached a Gold Medalist in 6 consecutive World Championships ('98 to '09)
• Bill Dorenkott, Ohio State's Women's Head Swimming Coach; has coached 28 student-athletes to 34 Big Ten individual championships
• Bill Wadley, Head Coach for Ohio State's men's swim team, 2010 Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year
• Coley Stickels, University of Alabama Head Men's & Women's Swimming & Diving Coach; was USA National Team Coach; former Head Coach of Canyons Aquatic Club
• Matt Kredich, University of Tennessee Head Coach; 2x SEC Women's Coach of the Year, 4x Ivy League Coach of the Year
• Eddie Reese, University of Texas Head Men's Swimming Coach; 2018 NCAA Champions; 3x Olympic Head Coach, 14 NCAA Championships, 8x NCAA Coach of the Year; member of the International Swimming Hall of Fame
• Arthur Albiero, University of Louisville Head Men's and Women's Swimming and Diving Coach; 2012 National Coach of the Year; 2014 ACC Coach of the Year (3x Big East Coach of the Year); 2012 Olympic Coach for Portugal
• Jack Bauerle, University of Georgia Head Men's and Women's Swim Coach; 4x NCAA Women's champion, 7x SEC Women's champion, 5x NCAA Coach of the Year, 12xSEC Coach of the Year; 2008 U.S. Olympic Women's Head Coach

Freestyle is the most fundamental stroke in swimming and, therefore, great technique is essential to avoid injury, increase quality practice time, and build a distinct feel for the water. The instructors in this video have thousands of hours of experience instructing their athletes and demonstrate exceptional teaching techniques that increase understanding and critical thinking.

Isolate each component - kick, catch, pull, rotation, breathing, etc. - to diagnose stroke flaws, including flaws that are hidden by other components of the stroke. Make corrections and condition all the building blocks of the stroke, then use progressions to build the stroke from the core out and the kick up for fast, efficient and sustainable freestyle. Coaches of swimmers at all levels will find drills they can add to make workouts more productive and their swimmers more successful.

Body Alignment

You'll see drills that help athletes learn the posture - from head to toe - that will support natural buoyancy in the water and provide greater power of stroke with less drag, using arms to control the balance. Through daily use of these drills, a coach or swimmer can alleviate many problems regarding water flow. These drills will help:

• Develop lateral balance, allowing freestylers to be comfortable traveling on their sides, rather than on their stomachs, for less resistance and more sustainable speed
• Teach swimmers with "heavy legs," particularly sprinters, to create a balanced body line that supports the hips and legs, leaving the kick for propulsion

Training the Kick

A high, tight, and fast kick helps to provide the speed needed to move the body quickly through the water while helping to maintain body line. You'll learn to build strength and stamina so that the kick is still strong at the end of the race. The coaches also teach you to help swimmers build a kick that is powered from the core for more propulsion using less energy.

Catch and Rhythm

Learn drills that teach hand entry and hip rotation timing to eliminate wasted motion in the start of each stroke. You'll see sculling and catch drills to develop water feel and strength to help swimmers set the best anchor to pull past for the best distance per stroke. Rhythm drills coordinate the timing of the arm and leg movements through a strong core to keep the swimmer riding the ideal body line without loss of momentum anywhere in the stroke cycle.

Breathing Mechanics

Learn to look for breathing errors - late breathing, slow breathing, over-rotating to breathe, etc. - and how to correct them.

These coaches understand what makes championship-caliber freestyle strokes at all levels of competition. Add this video to your library and start reaping the benefits today!

153 minutes. 2017.