LEARN TO SWIM USING POSE TECHNIQUE - Beginner Level
We've already written a few articles about
Pose Method® of Swimming and
how it differs from most of what's traditionally accepted in swimming today.
Today, we'd like to offer you some guidance in
learning to swim better with the help of the Pose Method®. Since the
Pose Method® of Swimming is new to most of our readers, we'll start from the very beginning and assume that you're starting from ground zero. This approach can be effectively used with complete non swimmers and swimmers looking to improve their technique.
At the beginning you shouldn't think about speed or
force or anything else like that. What you should focus on is understanding how movement happens in water and then practice it. Once you master the way of moving in water efficiently, feel free to take your training to a more advanced level.
1. UNDERSTAND MOVEMENT. Contrary to traditional approaches to teaching swimming, in Pose Swimming it is not our goal to teach you to swim like fish. We're not built like fish nor can we develop speeds or maneuverability equal to fish. But if we take a moment to understand how human body moves in a
gravity controlled environment, we will see what we need to do to swim. Once that happens, we will swim faster and better by default.
Movement is change of support. Without change of support there is NO movement. Even in water. Call it a pull or a push, what your hands are really trying to do is find support in water no matter how fleeting that support is. Good example of this is
Synchronized Swimming. Notice the precision and freedom of movement: up or down, left or right, back or forward changing direction and speed at will.
In water, we operate with 2 types of support
- Floating Support - Whole body
- Moving Support - Hands
When we master support - we master swimming.
Tip: When you can pull yourself out of water down to your waistline while floating vertically (without touching the bottom with your feet) - you have mastered support in water. Hey, you can feel accomplished the minute you can pull yourself out down to your chest level.
2. DO DRILLS. We know this is your favorite! You know you love it! No matter how much you might actually hate the drills, you better change your perspective and get on with the program. They are not a boring routine, (and if they are then you're not doing them right) - drills are your ticket to success. Many well performed drills at the mindful training session translate into one superior technique at the race. Do you still think drills are a nuisance? Get your
book out, find those drills and get busy. (First chapters on swimming include all needed "support" drills, floating, moving and floating-moving drills, both in water and on land.)
3. DO SHORT DISTANCE PRACTICE. So you don't tire or hurt yourself with incorrectly performed swimming, stick to very short practice swims. After all what's the point of carrying on with technique that's not quite happening yet, you don't want that ingrained. What you want is a short swim to test it out and then drills again. One pool length is plenty at the beginning.
Take your time to learn how your body moves in water, it will help you to become a skillful and a confident swimmer.
Article by Dr. Nicholas Romanov
Composed by L. Romanov
