Transcript Steve HauflerCoachingtheDetails

Coaching the Details:
Turns, Underwaters, and Breakouts
STEVE HAUFLER
Orinda Country Club
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General Comments
Areas of Emphasis
Freestyle Turns
Backstroke Turns
Fly-to-Back, Breast-to-Free,
Fly-to-Fly, Breast-to-Breast
• Back-to-Breast
• Underwater Swimming
• Breakout Tips
Areas of Emphasis
1. What to watch for
2. What to teach
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Approach
Change of Direction – Turn Efficiency/Speed
Foot Plant
Streamline
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5.
6.
Breakouts
Common Mistakes
Magic Words
Teaching Progression for Beginners
TURNS
General Comments
• Turns are gymnastics in the water with a wall
• Think of coaching turns like coaching a stroke (progressions,
drills, discipline)
• Think of the turn as the transition from the approach stroke
into the wall to the breakout stroke, rather than just the turn
on the wall (from flags to flags)
• Teach technique - be willing to make the trade off of
technique now for speed later
• Teach world-class technique to swimmers at every level
• Start teaching proper turn technique with 8 year olds
• Emphasize legality for all turns during workout (two hand
touches, backstroke turns, pull downs)
• Slow, good turns are O.K. in practice (until technique is
perfected!)
• Assess which part of a turn is weak: technique, turn speed,
underwater speed or breakout?
• Engrained bad habits are hard to fix for turns (likewise with
any stroke)
• Proper technique turns will ALWAYS be better (in the long
run) than a fast, bad turn
• For fast short course swimming, turn efficiency is critical
• Teach the backstroke turn before freestyle
• Teach the Fly-to-Back turn before the other open turns
FLIP TURNS
(Includes Back & Free)
WHAT TO WATCH FOR:
No breathing last two strokes
Head submerges on approach
Roll begins during the final stroke
Lean on your chest to lift your legs
Get your heel to your butt and then spring
your heels at the target
Nose stays close to the legs
• Hands are used for leverage elbows
remain narrow
• Hands in streamline before the feet hit the
wall
• Hit the wall with the balls of your feet
• Spring off the wall
• Rotate to front during streamline
• Break the surface before finish of first arm
stroke
WHAT TO TEACH:
• Approach
Maintain speed and avoid deceleration into the wall
Hold breath inside flags on approach
Use “submarine or blind” approaches to avoid looking up or
dolphin motion into turn
Know pool markings so you can turn without looking for the
wall or use bottom edge of pool
• Change of Direction
Use momentum to help spin speed
Get heels to butt and then spring heels at the target
Feet should travel shortest distance possible to wall
Tight ball fast rotation
• Foot Plant
Always use a “ready position” when pushing off the
wall in practice
Feet should be planted on target when in ready position
Plant balls of feet on the wall at shoulder width
Toes pointed up
• Streamline
Hands are used for leverage during turn, elbows
remain narrow while palms come to head
Hands in streamline before the feet hit the wall
Rotate to front during streamline, start rotation at the
shoulders
Two squeezes - your thumb on your hand and your
biceps on your ears
Keep the head in the neutral position
Streamline your feet
Maintain a straight body line off the wall
FREESTYLE
Common Mistakes
• Breathing into the turn. The swimmer loses
speed and loses sight of the
wall/edge/bottom
• Lifting the head into the turn, creating a
slow spin (wider arc.)
• Getting too close to the wall. The hands
usually flair/scull out causing a pause on
the wall.
• Turning the body on the wall to push off on
the stomach.
BREAKOUT
Freestyle
Start with dolphin kicks (2 to ?) followed by
flutter kicks, then a breakout stroke.
Dolphin kicking and going into a breakout
pull, without flutter kicking, usually causes
a loss of speed during the breakout.
Magic Words:
“Feel your back come out of the water,
the pencil stays in.”
Breakout Steps for Freestyle
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Blow bubbles out nose
Straight over flip
Mid-pool 4 strokes and head lead position
Repeat above adding submersion
Submersion with straight over flip
Straight over flip with “noodle” (mid-pool)
Straight over flip with noodle and let go, and make a
streamline (still on back)
8. Towards wall, with noodle, let go, make streamline and
push off
9. Approach wall swimming, head lead approach, submerge,
flip straight over, arms to streamline, and push off on back
10. Repeat above adding roll to side after push off
11. Build on #9 & #10 by adding a roll to stomach
12. Finally, add pull from streamline position without breathing
Backstroke Breakout
Start with dolphin kick (3 to ?), then flutter kicks, then
2 breakout strokes.
The first breakout stroke should start when the head
is one foot below the surface.
The second breakout stroke should start before the
head breaks the surface and should bring the first
stroke out of the water aggressively.
Magic Words:
“Go kick, pull, breathe” (Not kick, breathe, pull)
“Think of the cup right before your face comes out of
the water.”
OPEN OR TWO HAND TURNS
(Includes Fly, Breast, Fly to Back, Breast to Free)
WHAT TO WATCH FOR:
Acceleration to the wall
Approach the wall on stroke
Eyes looking at bottom of pool
Knees fast to head (a small ball spins faster)
Head stays neutral/some may tuck
Elbow the robber and call the police
Feet pointed to the side corner gutter (ready position)
Late breath or none at all
Back of the head in first
Find streamline immediately
WHAT TO TEACH:
• Approach
There is no right way to do a bad approach
Adjust approach stroke both at the start and finish of a lap
Practice different breakout points so your stroke count fits
the pool
Know when to use 2 long vs. 3 short strokes
• Change of Direction
Use momentum to help spin speed
Head to knee pulls
Head to knee back spins
Move feet to target on the wall
Move hands to streamline
• Foot Plant
Always use a “ready position” when pushing off the
wall in practice
Feet should be planted on target when in ready position
Plant balls of feet on the wall at shoulder width
Toes pointed at side wall
• Streamline (teach this in parts and then as a
fluid motion)
Elbow the robber and call the police
Elbow fast to side as arm brushes stomach
Hand to ear with head in line with shoulder
Hands meet in streamline position
Two squeezes - your thumb on your hand and your
biceps on your ears
Keep the head in the neutral position
Streamline your feet
Maintain a straight body line off the wall
OPEN or TWO HAND TURNS
Common Mistakes
• Tucking the chin as the knees are pulled up
• Taking a short stroke into the wall
• Pulling into the wall (let the arm absorb the wall
like a shock absorber)
• Lifting the head up
• Turning head around to side or front
• Spinning feet to a “toes down” position
• Big arm over the top
• Circle swimming turn, leg flairs out
BREASTSTROKE BREAKOUT
The pull part of the pull-down should angle the
body slightly to the surface. The approach
should start with the hands recovering tight
(against the body.) The kick should be fast
and late – as the hands are shooting into the
streamline. Bringing the heels up early
causes the body to slow down.
Magic Words:
“Keep looking in the mirrors through all 3
ZOOMS. The kick gives the 3rd Zoom.”
“Stay in the water when you press out.”
BUTTERFLY BREAKOUT
Build the kick speed to the surface. Kids often
slow the kick rate down as they approach the
surface. Try to get them to build their kick
speed into an aggressive kick on the
breakout stroke.
Magic Words:
“Keep looking in the mirror when you start to swim.”
“Feel like your face is on a skateboard
when you start to swim.”
“Start first pull before your back comes out of the
water. Keep holding your breath.”
Breakout Steps for
Open or Two Hand Turns
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Learn “Ready Position”
Learn correct push-off from ready position
Approaching the wall, touch with two hands while
keeping eyes down
From extended position, bring knees up with one arm
back and assume ready position
Freeze in ready position (100% correct)
Wait for coach clearance of “GO”
Practice
Encourage swimmer to keep going through the
motions without freezing, “don’t stop for each step”
Workout Tips for Breast/Fly Turns
TIMED TURNS
(from when the hands touch to when the toes leave the wall)
• 1.4
• 1.2
• 1.1
• 1.0
• < 1.0
slow
ok
good
very good
excellent
BACK TO BREAST TURNS
(Includes open, spin and drop and …)
WHAT TO WATCH FOR:
Swimmer maintains speed on approach
No peaking for the wall on approach
Legs stay on surface during the approach
Approach the wall on a full stroke
Fast small ball rotation
Ball of feet plant on the wall shoulder width apart in ready
position
Trailing hand “scoops” to bring body under water
Wall hand leaves from ready position “calls police” and
returns to streamline
Hands are in streamline when feet plant on the wall
WHAT TO TEACH:
• Approach
Stroke count and flag angles
Use the “now” game to see if they now where the wall is
Treat the approach as a backstroke finish, except turn
palms down for hand touch
• Change of Direction
Use momentum to help spin speed
Keep head position still and use “spot points” for turn
(shoulder-to-shoulder)
Bring knees to chest and keep legs shallow
Scoop trailing hand up to submerge body
When in a tight ball pivot feet into ready position
• Foot Plant
Always use a “ready position” when pushing off the
wall in practice
Feet should be planted on target when in ready position
Plant balls of feet on the wall at shoulder width
Toes pointed at side wall
• Streamline
Hands in streamline before the feet hit the wall
Rotate to front during streamline, start rotation at the
shoulders
Two squeezes - your thumb on your hand and your
biceps on your ears
Keep the head in the neutral position
Streamline your feet
Maintain a straight line off wall
Breakout Steps for
Back-to-Breast Turns
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Begin in ready position
Approach wall, then grab with palm down
Chin from shoulder-to-shoulder
Reassume ready position and FREEZE
Wait for coach clearance to “GO”
Encourage continuous movement
throughout the turn ( i.e. without stopping)