WARMUP: 400 (or 10 minutes) on your own
WARMUP SET: 200
8 X 25 dolphin kick on your back with fins
Odds: Arms in “Position 11” — kick from sternum, not from knees
Evens: Arms in tight streamline — kick from sternum!
MAIN SET: 1200-1800
Before you swim or coach this set, it’s helpful to watch a GoSwim.tv drill called “Butterfly — 2nd Kick Focus.”
Three rounds of all the following:
8 X 25 on generous sendoff to allow time for coach/swimmer feedback
#1&2:
* Start by pushing off on top of the water — no kicking!
* When you start to slow down, initiate a butterfly pull by pressing in deeply at the chest, then take a powerful dolphin kick as the hands exit. Kick from sternum, not from knees.
* As the hands land forward, try NOT to do a dolphin kick. Simply let the body settle into a horizontal position and glide for a bit. As you start to slow down, repeat the chest press and pull, with a powerful dolphin kick as the hands exit the water.
* Repeat until you finish the 25. You might complete only 3 or 4 stroke cycles.
#3&4:
* Start as before but, this time, spend just a little bit less time in the horizontal glide phase. You might add 1 or 2 stroke cycles per length.
#5&6:
* Start as before, but spend less time in the glide phase. It’s OK if a second kick starts to appear — as the hands land forward.
#7&8:
* Regular butterfly (2 kicks per armstroke) — kick from the sternum.
4 X 50 or 4 X 75 or 4 X 100 (depending on age/ability)
Each swim starts with 1 x 25 of butterfly, focusing on 2 kicks per armstroke and kicking from the sternum rather than from the knees. Finish each swim with freestyle.
The fine points:
Round 1: Wear fins
Round 2: Try no fins (or repeat with fins)
Round 3: Try it with a pull buoy
WARMDOWN: 100-200
Include some vertical butterfly, incorporating a single dolphin kick at the apex of the jump — to propel the arms and torso above the water.
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