January 12, 2022
We have our first round of technique clinics occurring this weekend in Galway, Limerick, Cork and Dublin. These clinics are led by former International Swimmers: Niamh OSullivan and Bethany Carson, the girls represented Ireland for many years, racing at European Championships, World Cups, World University Games and World Championships. They are also experienced coaches, who are looking forward to putting our lucky SFAM’ers through their paces in these technical sessions on Friday, Saturday & Sunday! Watch out for next weeks Newsletter, with top tips from Niamh and Bethany!
This week in your training, we are working on body position, a common problem area for people trying to progress their swimming. As we have mentioned over the last two weeks, body position is key, as it affects your whole stroke! There are many ways in which you can test your body position, to see if you are floating or sinking! This can be done through simple float drills such as starfish, mushroom and pencil float, take a look at our floating demonstrations here! You will notice that any elevation of your upper body, will automatically cause your lower body to sink in the water. Play around with these drills at the start of your sessions this week, getting into the habit of holding the correct body position, before heading into full swim!
TOP TIP: To Obtain the Correct Body Position:
– Keep your head and neck in a neutral position, so that your face is pointing towards the bottom of the pool – not looking forwards or tucking your chin into your chest, but rather in a middle, neutral position.
– Keep a straight line down the back of your body, that runs from your head, right to your ankles. Remember to squeeze your stomach, bottom and legs! This will ensure that you keep on top of the water surface instead of sinking!
– Apply light but constant pressure with your chest into the water, to keep your hips high in the water.
If you missed this first round of clinics, look out for our February round, these will be open for booking on February 16th at 7am, but be quick as they fill up fast! Clinics are free, but only open to those fully registered, you can complete registration via your dashboard by selecting your event pool and filling in your details. For more information, check out our signup and registration guide and short demo video!
If you have been experiencing difficulties with sign up/login/training programmes please try our trouble shooting steps under our guide linked above!
Don’t forget to send us a picture with #SFAMSelfie on Twitter this week for a chance to win a sparkly new pair of goggles for the big day!