Dryland - Medball Chest Pass

Working on the power necessary to increase your quickness in the recovery of breaststroke, as well as increasing your overall strength, can be accomplished through a fun dryland exercise.  

Remember:  Whenever using medicine balls, use extreme care and focus to make sure nobody gets hurt.  Establish how many throws you will do before you start.  Or, during a competition, make sure all eyes remain on the ball until a winner is established.  These exercises should also be done under the supervision of a coach.

Why Do It:
Throwing a weighted ball helps to incease the explosive power that sometimes gets overlooked or under developed in swimming.

How to Do It:
1.  Grab a medball of a weight that's correct for the athletes you'll be working with.  Six to eight pounds was good for these two athletes.
2.  The athletes will be seated, with feet raised off the floor.  Initially, position the feet about 12-18 inches apart whlie raised.  Practice tossing the ball back and forth.
3.  Move the athletes closer so that their feet are nearly touching.  This is to make sure the passes can be more accurate.
4.  Aim the all at the other athlete's chest, trying to hit them squarely centered.  Make sure the throw comes from both hands equally, and not shifting to one side.
5.  Do sets of 10 throws various times, increasing the intensity of the throws.

How to Do It Really Well (the Fine Points):
To make this a great exercise, incorporate a competition.  Who can stay balanced the longest while trying to knock your competitor off balance.  Throwing the ball back with greater force, throwing it back quickly before the competition can regain their balance, or sheer endurance will determine the winner.  You'll find that when done correctly, this exercise increases arm power as well as power in the abs and hip flexors.  

Enjoy, and be safe.