e current World Record (in the 50m freestyle) is 5.37mph by Duje Draganja (2.4m/sec, 50 meters in 20. 81 seconds). No matter how strong a swimmer’s muscles and how aerobically fit they are, it is theoretically impossible for a human to power-swim at speeds beyond this. I highly doubt any human will ever be able to swim faster than a mere 6mph. We just don’t posses the wattage required to overcome the drag. Nature just didn't design us to go fast in the water like say, dolphins that can do it at more than five times faster than us...good hydrodynamic shape to them!So rather than focusing on power and endurance, the first step is to minimize that drag. This is the most crucial part in learning how to swim! So let’s get to those ten tips:
When you go to the pool and see other swimmers seemingly doing effortless lap after lap, do not get caught up the idea that you need to be doing the same. You have to do your exercises and not care about what anyone else may be thinking when they see you. Everyone practices drills, even the pro’s! So if you’re just going to be doing balance drills, so be it. In order to do flip turns, you have to practice the steps in turn and in order. If you ever see someone in the pool just doing forward somersaults from a standing position, they’re not weird – they’re practicing their flip turns! So just do your thing and don’t worry about what other people think. More than likely, the truly experienced swimmers will recognize what you’re doing and respect you for the drills you're doing.
If you do, practice those balance drills. Practice! Practice! Practice! I've been swimming for years and I still do them all the time! I practice my balance before every swim session. IN ORDER TO SWIM, YOU MUST BE BALANCED AND COMFORTABLE!These are the basic balance principles:Master the side-balance drill. When you do it, do it with your hands in FISTS! This will take away a 'feeling' of support. You'll only have your core to balance on. Stretch long, bottom arm stretched out, nose in your armpit (YES!), top arm on your hip and your legs as straight as they can be. Point your toes! Close your eyes and RELAX! Gently exhale and let the water support you. You should feel your top hand on your hip out of the water. If you want to, you may kick a little, but keep your toes pointed and DON'T BEND YOUR KNEES! Kick very lightly from your butt. If you move backwards, that's OK. Forward or backwards motion isn't the goal here. Also, if your legs start to sink, that's only natural. Drive your head down and put your ear against your armpit. This will bring your legs up a bit. Let's not kid ourselves here - having strong abs, obliques and back (a strong core) is paramount here! Strong core muscles will help to keep you straight. The off-season is the perfect time to get into Pilates. It is without a doubt, the best "strength training" you can do for your swimming!So how do you breathe? It's easy, and yet, rather hard. SLOWLY rotate your head up (AND ONLY YOUR HEAD), by the neck alone, and take a breath of air. Then SLOWLY rotate back down again. NOTHING ELSE SHOULD MOVE! Keep your hands in fists (FistGlove trainers really help). The temptation will be to use your hands to press down to support you as you rotate your head up. But this is exactly the thing we are trying to avoid and correct here! And what happens if you don't get the balance right? You'll probably sink. SO SINK! It's better to go under in the shallow end of the pool while maintaining the side-balance position than to lose it and use your hands to breathe. If you have to drown, THEN DROWN! You won't actually drown; you'll just stand up, breathe, and try again. Proper balance form under water is far better than poor form above it. Keep practicing (on each side) until you can maintain the side-balance position with NO BODY MOVEMENT for about two minutes. This is the foundation for all swimming.
This means that the longer you make your body (tips of your fingers all the way to your toes) the less drag your body will create. Long skinny sailboats are faster than shorter