It’s Not All About Speed
Most people swim because swimming feels good. Not all are focused on swimming to go fast. But a swimmer focused on form can get faster simply because they are reducing drag while practicing good technique.
Relaxed strokes for the joy of swimming.
Over the years since I began working for Total Immersion Swimming, around 2003, my swims gradually shifted from trying to get faster for triathlon to swimming with better form.
I got faster by focusing on my form, my swim technique.
Paying attention to stroke mechanics (form or shape of the object moving through the water-me), how my body relates to the water (buoyancy and friction of the vessel-me), and wave drag (turbulence of the water either created by wind in open water, another swimmer nearby, water bouncing off of pool walls or me) with every swim allowed me to be faster without actually trying to be faster. Of course there can be a time to focus on speed, swimming fast, but sort of silly to try to go faster without first addressing the physics of moving an object-the body- through a very dense, moving/unstable substance first.
Focusing on how to swim well can be very pleasurable. Tuning into the body, the water and the relationship of the two. There is a level of “problem” solving. Not really a problem but figuring out how to move through a liquid environment while horizontal and breathing somewhere in there.
It can also be rather challenging to put those pieces together. Some humans figure it out rather quickly while most of us take more hours of deliberate, focused practice. There are swim drills and skills I teach that help take certain aspects of the whole stroke that address one or all of the 3 drag issues. Seperating out the parts then putting it back togheterh is key. Understanidn the why, the waht and the how.
Swimming has a similar vibe to yoga asanas. Just when you think you have a specific yoga pose dialed in the instructor has you make a subtle tweak, boom, an all new sensation in the body. The same with swimming. I can offer a slight adjustment to a swimmers form, it often feels huge to them, and they have an aha moment.
It’s lovely because it feels so good to swim well. There is a level of comfort in the water, effortlessness in the movements, synchronicity of the movements, connection with the water, and confidence with mastering a skill. there is pleasure in feeling, and knowing you are doing your best.
But swimming well is just plain fun.