Technique Progression the Primary Focus for Age Groupers Beginning Short Course Season

As Alto begins the Short Course season, there’s a period without swim meets where the coaches and swimmers can zero in on technique development. To fast track that development, we use drill progressions for each stroke. Drill progressions break the stroke down into bite-sized pieces that are easily digestible for young swimmers. Each step on the progression builds off of the skills of the last drill, leading into full stroke swimming.

For instance, while teaching freestyle, we teach the following progression:

(1) Head Lead Freestyle Kick: The swimmer kicks with the hands down at their side. The focus of this drill is two-fold. First, it helps the swimmer establish the correct, “nose down” head position, needed to balance easily on the surface of the water. Second, it allows the swimmer to focus on the low breath, rotating head, shoulder, and hip in unison, while avoiding tilting the chin forward.

(2) 6 Kick Switch: Next, 6 Kick Switch adds the freestyle stroke into the mix. While performing this drill, the swimmer will take a stroke, extending the leading hand out in front for a 6 kick pause, while also rotating shoulder and hip together. This drill reaffirms the skills learned in Head Lead Kick, while also teaching the importance of the extension of the leading hand, the coupled rotation, and the correct body line.

(3) Six, Three, Six: Third, Six, Three, Six maintains the 6 kick pause; however, it also adds in three strokes in between each pause. The drill progression begins to inch closer to full freestyle, while also maintaining the extension of the leading hand at the end of each recovery.

(4): Freestyle, Put it Together: Finally, the swimmers will bring all of the skills learned in the previous three steps, putting the entire stroke together.