Guest author: Trent Grimey, English Channel World Record Holder
Body Position in Open Water Swimming
The three biggest areas you need to master if you want to become as efficient as possible in the open water are:
1. body position;
2. sighting; and
3. breathing.
1. Sighting
When sighting during an open water event, race or training session, you should aim to only lift your head slightly. Aim to have the bottom of your goggle sitting on the surface of the water, as though you’re a crocodile sighting your prey. Lifting your head any higher than this (or lifting your whole head out of the water) will make your hips and legs drop, which breaks the rhythm of your stroke and increases drag significantly.
In big swell or chop, the timing of your sighting becomes very important. Always try to time your sighting for when you are on the high of the swell – the highest point. If you try sighting while you are in the low of a swell, all you will see if a wall of water. Once you master this, your navigation will improve out of sight and you’ll conserve a lot of energy.
2. Breathing
In open water – and in swimming in general for that matter – always turn your head to the side to take a breath. As tempting as it is to lift your head a little higher when sighting to get a quick breath in, this will dramatically change your body position and break the rhythm of your stroke. Instead, keep your head low when sighting, then turn to the side to take a breath. As you breathe, aim to keep one goggle below the water surface to ensure you’re not over-rotating.
3. Body Position
For pool swimming, the aim is always to have your body position as high as possible and as flat as possible in the water. The most efficient way to swim is on top of the water, not through the water, and the goal is exactly the same in open water swimming.
Something I have found that really helps swimmers feel more connected through their core is a tool called the Corsuit from Blucore. I see a lot of swimmers slowly slip out of alignment the longer they swim, as it is difficult for them to monitor their own posture, even over relatively short periods of swimming. The Corsuit provides swimmers with tactile feedback on their posture as they swim, which keeps them vigilant and stops their alignment from degrading over time.
This feedback also tends to help swimmers improve their proprioception, as they develop good muscle memory and habits, which means they are able to more easily maintain good posture over long swims.
I recommend the Corsuit for any swimmer wanting to improve their body position, and in particular for open water swimmers looking to increase efficiency. Use my coupon code to get a discount when you purchase one at:
www.blucoreswim.com
Discount code: gas1
Train smart,
Trent Grimsey
English Channel World Record Holder
2012 FINA Grand Prix Open Water Champion
Head Coach, Grimsey’s Adult Swimfit
www.grimseysadultswimfit.com
About Blucore
Blucore is dedicated to producing intelligent products for the intelligent swimmer. An Australian-based company, Blucore’s flagship product is the posture-training Corsuit. Get yours now at www.blucoreswim.com
The Corsuit is the result of over four years of research and development at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, and is designed to help swimmers improve their body position and posture in the water.
Blucore believes that swimming is ripe for innovation, and more importantly, it deserves innovation.
Swimmers are an intelligent breed, and this intelligence is something that should be both appreciated and challenged. Swimming requires not only physical strength, but also a sharp mind and keen proprioceptive skills. Swimmers work hard, so we’re working hard to develop new products to help them grow in speed, strength, endurance and intelligence.
Stay tuned.
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