Categories: >Swimming

Swimming with Paddles

Another swimming post!

I use swim paddles during the off season to maintain the muscle mass in my upper body. I have to confess that this is mostly for reasons of vanity, as I like having nicely toned arms and shoulders.

My swim workout today included a pyramid: 3×400, 3×300, 3×200 yards, negative split, every 3rd set pull. Whenever my workout says pull, I use paddles instead of pulling. I don’t like using a pull buoy, as I feel it is a crutch for balance.

Whenever my swim workout says negative split, I aim for 60 seconds per 50 yard lap on the easy half of the set, and then pick up the pace for the second half to see how many seconds per 50 I can knock off.

I have never before timed myself when using paddles, but I had to today because of the negative split. I was really shocked to see that my time was exactly the same with paddles as without. That just doesn’t make any sense to me. Having a paddle on your hand is like having webbed feet like a sea lion, right? So I should be alot faster! I guess what this tells me is that I am not grabbing hold of the water correctly during my pull.

Two things I recommend for swimming…

Do flip turns every time. I think this helps with endurance because you can’t cheat and take an extra long breath at each wall. I started doing this a year ago, and it was hard to stick with it at first. It feels natural now, even tho I am still not elegant at flip turns.
Breathe every third stroke. I have a left / right imbalance with my swimming. Something to do with stiffness in my right shoulder. Breathing to my left side is difficult and feels wrong. A few months ago, I started forcing myself to breathe every 3 instead of every time on the right. Sometimes I even do a set where I only breathe to the left. It gets easier after a while, as the newly recruited muscles build endurance.

BTW, I was using the TYR Catalyst paddles, small yellow size.

carolyahoo

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Mark V. McDonnell says:

December 31, 2007 at 2:15 pm

Also, Carol (I'm catching up on your blog so just finished reading your last 6 or 8 entries): there are myriad ways to get "unstuck" on your swimming; don't resign yourself to plodding through that leg of training and racing.

Here's an excerpt from USA Triathlon's Q&A with Jerrod Shoemaker: "What surprised you most about racing pro? I was most amazed (and still am) by how fast people are swimming. To be a great pro you have to be an extremely fast swimmer and for me that is the thing that I work the hardest on."

True, we don't race ITU format; we're midpackers; and the swim is the shortest leg. Still, to shave a minute off our Oly time or to improve our swimming economy so we can hammer the bike like never before transforms our self-concept as competitors.

So I encourage you to bring all this up with Gareth!
Carol says:

December 31, 2007 at 1:33 pm

Mark,

Thanks for the tips! I have never heard the "roll your pinky" thing before - will try that next time! I'm glad I decided to talk about swimming.

Carol
Mark V. McDonnell says:

December 31, 2007 at 1:04 pm

Nice post, Carol. IMO paddles are best used in training to perfect two subtle details of form:

1) a full reach, without dropping the wrist--if you do, the paddles' increased surface area causes you to instantly, dramatically decelerate. Imagine the effect of putting your hand out in the classic "Stop" gesture; and

2) a proper initiation of the pull. I use the metaphor "roll your pinky over the far outside corner of the ball." Paddles penalize you for failing to do this.

Regards, and happy new year!
Dave Miller says:

December 31, 2007 at 7:52 am

Re: paddles. Believe it or not, most technique folks discourage paddle use or recommend limiting their use due to the fact that they can place undue stress on the shoulder. However, a few sites/folks now recommend the Finis Streamliner paddles as they have been found to assist you with your entry and pull. As to why your speed was the same, your analysis is probably correct. Perhaps maybe your cadence (stroke rate) slowed? Count your strokes next time per 25 or 50 with and without paddles to see what happens there. Cheers!