You don’t need to be ‘Elite’ to move the way Elite swimmers move.

Elite swimmers training plans, engines and biomechanics are of course another thing entirely.   We can though emulate and understand the shapes they make as they move through the water.  Elite swimmers can certainly inspire us to look more closely at our own strokes and how well we move.

All efficient swimmers – which means nearly all the fastest ones, are not on podiums because of how powerfully they stroke, but because of how long their bodies shapes are actively streamlined for during a stroke cycle.  How they use their arms and legs as levers and pivots that connect and time to the core and weight shift and how well they hold form and tempo over their given distance.

Kinesiologists estimate at least 70 per cent of our swimming performance is determined by how well we streamline our body and only 30 percent by how fit or powerful we are.

Physics and laws of motion apply to us all.

Improvement minded swimmers and coaches will always question and constantly strive to improve and problem solve,  engaging both body and mind.

Key areas to focus on are:

• Balance and body position.  The essential foundation of efficient swimming.
• Integrate body movements to swim with the core and use the whole body to propel.  Rather than using arms legs separately, use them as pivots and levers connected to the core and weight shift.
• Breathe more efficiently.  We more often than not over breath, causing a loss in buoyancy and creating breathlessness.
• Move more efficiently – align the body and connect rhythmical streamlines to the power of the core weight shift
• Minimise Water Resistance and Maximise Efficiency – water is 800 times thicker than air and only get thicker as you try to go faster.
• Create challenging and mindful sessions, that create repetition to create strong neural pathways to develop a hardwired effective and efficient stroke – swimming is a skill to learn and improve requires mindful practice.

Whatever your swimming goals here are five reasons why working on your stroke efficiency is invaluable: