By MHM Coach Allen Gilchrest

Back in 2003 I lived on Maryland’s eastern shore. One of my favorite workouts was to swim in the Sassafras River, which is a contributory of the Chesapeake Bay. One morning my sister accompanied me on the swim. The particular workout for this day was 10 out and backs to a river buoy on 1 min. rest between each (each swim took about 4 min.). Before starting we discussed the workout and agreed we would be close enough together and close enough to shore that we did not need to be side by side (safety first).

So we entered the water and started our first swim to the buoy. We both knew that I was the faster swimmer and would soon pull away. After I rounded the buoy I headed back to shore passing my sister along the way. After completing my first out and back and resting 1 min. I headed back out for my second out and back. I passed my sister, rounded the buoy, and headed back into shore. By round 4 I realized my sister had still not reached the buoy for the first time! On my next swim out to the buoy I stopped and asked how she was doing? She said fine…but that the buoy was getting farther away! We agreed that she would continue to swim until I completed my 10 rounds. So I did. She still did not reach the buoy! The remedy….I swam in front of her and told her to draft off of me by staying right on my feet. Within a few minutes we rounded the buoy and headed back for shore. She was exhausted but happy to have made it to the buoy at least once.

I learned a very important lesson that day! Pool swimming is much different from open water swimming! In an open water swim, especially if there are currents, waves, wind… if you are not “pulling water” forward progress can be tough. In the case of our training session on the Sassafras River, we were swimming against the current to get to the buoy and then came back with the current. As a strong swimmer, I did not even notice the current existed. For my sister, the current stopped her forward progress, even though she was giving a good effort!

The point of this article is to get you to find out if you are “pulling water”! First let me start by explaining why I have quotes around pulling water. Simply put, you don’t want to just pull hard with your arms in swimming. You want to use your entire body, including your torso, hips, legs, and feet, to make forward progress. Here are three tips to evaluate if you are making forward progress in the water. I’m talking about enough forward progress to get you through currents, waves, and wind in open water, not to the other end of the pool, where there is no current.

Tip #1: Fist Drill

Fist drill forces you to use the rest of your body to get though the water, not just pull hard with your hands. Swim freestyle with a closed fist. Keep your fists closed, even on the turns! At first you may feel like you are going nowhere and you will be slower, but you will develop a better feel for the water. Practice set for warm-up…start out every workout with a 200 choice swim with fists. During practice example set…8×50 on 1:00 as 25 fists, 25 build into a sprint (open up your hands on the 2^nd 25). Finally, incorporate fist drills into practice. For ex….10×100 free on 1:30 as 75 free at 70%, 25 sprint with fists at 100% effort.

Tip #2: Thumb-to-thigh You want to get used to pulling water all the way through. This means finishing your stroke. You may notice your triceps burn on this drill…that is good! Simply stick your thumb out so that your thumb can brush your thigh as is passes under water and you roll to that side. Practice ex. set…10×25 free on :40 breathing every 6 strokes, working on thumb-to-thigh (i.e. finishing your stroke). During long swims, do a thumb-to-thigh check to make sure you are finishing your stroke. For ex. 3×500 free on 7:00 (every 4^th lap thumb-to-thigh).

Tip #3: (Catch-up drill)

This drill will help you determine if you are “pulling water” when you swim. With either arm, begin a free stroke while keep the opposite arm extended out in front of you. Complete the free stroke with the initial arm and touch the extended arm out in front at the end of the recovery. Keep the opposite arm extended until the recovery arm touches the hand out in front. Then complete the drill with the opposite arm. The important part of this drill is that you feel your entire body “surge forward” after each underwater pull.

This drill is tough and should not be done for long periods of time. Practice set ex. 8×75 on 1:30 as…25 catch-up at 95% effort, 25 thumb-to-thigh, 25 sprint free.

Many of you have heard of these drills before. Many of you have even done these drills! What I am suggesting to you is to do them with the focus of determining if you are making “forward progress” when you pull water in relation to open water swimming (not pool swimming). I am also suggesting that these drills, done in the correct manner, will improve your swimming. The correct manner is the suggested sets and specific times during practice that I list for you in the drills.

In 2004, I met a guy who had attempted the “Chesapeake Bay swim” 4 times. This is a 4.4 mile open water swim race in cold, rough current water. All four times he did not make it! In training, he had done 4-mile straight swims in the pool, so he knew he could cover the distance. However in the race, all 4 times he was pulled from the water because he did not make enough forward progress to make the cut-off time. In 2005, I spent 30 min. showing him these three drills. He practiced them for the 6 weeks leading up to the Chesapeake Bay 4.4 mile swim…his 5^th attempt…and finished ! ! !

Happy Training! – Coach Allen

Allen Gilchrest is a former collegiate swimmer who has coached swimmers from youth to the collegiate level.  You can contact Allen at Allen@milehighmultisport.com .