Swimming help-sinking Hips!

Triathlon Forum
1

Hi

I’m starting back swimming again after a 5ish year lay off, I used to use the Total Immersion way to swim, head down to keep the hips up etc. but although I did improve, I got to a stage where I just couldnt go any faster, and I was too far underwater I believe from some video I saw of myself, so I dont really want to go down that route again.

I would like to know is there any way to keep the hips up towards the surface in swimming without burying the head into the water?
My hips and legs sink very easily, when using flippers it’s much better, the hips are up, and a little forward propulsion from the kick helps the front end.
Should I be aiming to delevop a nice little flutter kick to keep the hips up or are there any other ways?

I seem to remember reading on some forum a long time ago about an exercise called bustle butt, has anyone heard of this? it was an exercise I think that kept the buttock cheeks just at the surface of the water, and the aim was on each rotation to just break the surface with alternate cheeks, does anyone know how to achieve this?

Thanks

2

same problem. i’ll be watching this thread to see what the fish say.

i try to fix this by looking at my body as a see-saw. i try to focus on pressing my chest down, looking at the bottom of the pool, pretend you are holding an orange to your chest with your chin. working on kicking seems to help as well. get friendly with your local kickboard.

the only issue that then pops up is i really do feel like i am swimming ‘downhill’ and i find i’m too low in the water, making me break form to breath b/c i have to lift my head, as opposed to just rolling over.

doing kick drills with your hands at your sides no board gives a good feeling of body position, but that all changes once you get your hands out in front to pull.

3

same problem. i’ll be watching this thread to see what the fish say.

i try to fix this by looking at my body as a see-saw. i try to focus on pressing my chest down, looking at the bottom of the pool, pretend you are holding an orange to your chest with your chin. working on kicking seems to help as well. get friendly with your local kickboard.

the only issue that then pops up is i really do feel like i am swimming ‘downhill’ and i find i’m too low in the water, making me break form to breath b/c i have to lift my head, as opposed to just rolling over.

doing kick drills with your hands at your sides no board gives a good feeling of body position, but that all changes once you get your hands out in front to pull.

That was my issue when using TI, I was just too low in the water!

4

you two are starting with the head, when the body position is far more important.

Here is a great drill progression that could help you both. You shouldn’t have to break your position so much to get some air.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmVfXk18AWY

enjoy

5

How much core work do you do?
I ask, not because I think more core work will make you a better swimmer (I don’t want to get into that fight…too many more knowledgeable people than me saying that is not the case), but because doing core work has helped me develop a feel for body positioning in the water. When I did my first side drill and my coach say to keep my position tight and straight all I had to do was think, “oh, you want me to do a side plank.” And off I went.

I think it is just a matter of being aware of what you are supposed to do (hips up) and what muscles you need to engage to make that happen. A strong core (and a technically good kick) will keep a line from the back through the hips down the legs to the feet.

6

I found that kickboardless kicking helped me a lot with body position. I still do 100-200 m. of it every time I get in the pool, just as a way of solidifying the “legs up” in my muscle memory.

7

Do this drill progression to set you up for success. Start out with fins to help you get proper body position and propulsion.

1-kick on your side. Lower arm forward, ear on arm, top arm on hip

2-10 kicks (on side), 1 stroke, and roll (to other side). Repeat on that side.

3-10 kicks, 3 strokes (w/ good body rotation), and roll (to other side).

Please ask me if you have questions. I would take non-swimmers and convert them into swimmers doing 100’s on anywhere from 1:30 to 2:00 by practicing this dill progression.

8

irontri has a good progression. body position is probably one of the hardest things for non-swimmers or novice swimmers to get good at in order to go faster.

doing more kicking is always a good idea, but try doing all your kicking on your back in streamline position - this will not only work on your body positioning, but also will help you get some core work especially if you try it with a dolphin kick (or buterfly kcik). doing more core work is also a great idea.

to make you feel any better, i have been a competitive swimmer for almost 2 decades and my feet and legs sink a little too especially the longer and harder i swim so keep your head up (or down in this case) and keep working at it.

9

How much core work do you do?
I ask, not because I think more core work will make you a better swimmer (I don’t want to get into that fight…too many more knowledgeable people than me saying that is not the case), but because doing core work has helped me develop a feel for body positioning in the water. When I did my first side drill and my coach say to keep my position tight and straight all I had to do was think, “oh, you want me to do a side plank.” And off I went.

I think it is just a matter of being aware of what you are supposed to do (hips up) and what muscles you need to engage to make that happen. A strong core (and a technically good kick) will keep a line from the back through the hips down the legs to the feet.

Hi

Thanks for reply.

I do some core work, probably not enough…who does?! I have started to do some planks, leg raise etc. so will add side planks, any others you’d recommend?

Cheers

10

you two are starting with the head, when the body position is far more important.

Here is a great drill progression that could help you both. You shouldn’t have to break your position so much to get some air.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmVfXk18AWY

enjoy

Thanks for the link, will try some of the drills in my swim tonight.

Cheers

11

doing more kicking is always a good idea, but try doing all your kicking on your back in streamline position

If one of the problems with the OP is that he can’t swim in a streamlined position, how is he supposed to kick on his back in a streamlined position?

To the OP: think about keeping your abdominal muscles as “long” as possible. Imagine trying to put as much distance between the bottom of your rib cage and your hips. I find that looking forward (instead of down at the bottom of the pool) while keeping my abs “long” acts to curve my back a bit/rotate my hips forward and keep my hips and legs at the surface, even though I have minimal kick.

12

Do this drill progression to set you up for success. Start out with fins to help you get proper body position and propulsion.

1-kick on your side. Lower arm forward, ear on arm, top arm on hip

2-10 kicks (on side), 1 stroke, and roll (to other side). Repeat on that side.

3-10 kicks, 3 strokes (w/ good body rotation), and roll (to other side).

Please ask me if you have questions. I would take non-swimmers and convert them into swimmers doing 100’s on anywhere from 1:30 to 2:00 by practicing this dill progression.

That looks good, I’ll give a go tonight,

Quick question, in step 1, with ear on arm, is the face looking to the side?

Also I seem to remember trying this years ago, but always had trouble getting my ear on my arm, any tips for that?

Thanks

13

There was a good blog post just today on this over at Swim Smooth…

You can find it Here

Cheers,

14

doing more kicking is always a good idea, but try doing all your kicking on your back in streamline position

If one of the problems with the OP is that he can’t swim in a streamlined position, how is he supposed to kick on his back in a streamlined position?

To the OP: think about keeping your abdominal muscles as “long” as possible. Imagine trying to put as much distance between the bottom of your rib cage and your hips. I find that looking forward (instead of down at the bottom of the pool) while keeping my abs “long” acts to curve my back a bit/rotate my hips forward and keep my hips and legs at the surface, even though I have minimal kick.

That sounds like great advice, I read that somewhere recently, especially the bit about the core and stretching the gap between rib cage and hips.

I tried it the other night, but once I start swimming I find it very hard to keep, practice, practice…and practice some more I guess!

This may sound really silly, but what I find hard with swimming, is that unlike in running and biking,where it’s easy to go slow and work on technique, or just have an easy workout, swimming I find so hard work, and I find it hard to have an ‘easy’ swim, and work on technique, if I go real slow I sink! Does this make sense?

Thanks

15

This may sound really silly, but what I find hard with swimming, is that unlike in running and biking,where it’s easy to go slow and work on technique, or just have an easy workout, swimming I find so hard work, and I find it hard to have an ‘easy’ swim, and work on technique, if I go real slow I sink! Does this make sense?

Thanks

Not at all silly, because unlike biking and running, swimming is all about technique. If you don’t have good technique in the water, then you aren’t swimming, you are fighting the water. And the water will win every time.

16

thanks for the video. i also have similar problems

17

Do this drill progression to set you up for success. Start out with fins to help you get proper body position and propulsion.

1-kick on your side. Lower arm forward, ear on arm, top arm on hip

2-10 kicks (on side), 1 stroke, and roll (to other side). Repeat on that side.

3-10 kicks, 3 strokes (w/ good body rotation), and roll (to other side).

Please ask me if you have questions. I would take non-swimmers and convert them into swimmers doing 100’s on anywhere from 1:30 to 2:00 by practicing this dill progression.

That looks good, I’ll give a go tonight,

Quick question, in step 1, with ear on arm, is the face looking to the side?

Also I seem to remember trying this years ago, but always had trouble getting my ear on my arm, any tips for that?

Thanks

Kicking on your side is a great drill. For your question, yes, you would be looking to the side with your ear on your arm. It will feel off balance at first to have your ear on your arm, but it is the correct position. To breathe, simply roll your head and keep your body facing sideways.

Another good drill you can do is to just float. Once you can float on your stomach (legs up of course), then you won’t be using leg energy to keep them afloat, but to propel you forward.

Float on your stomach, arms stretched out in front of you, shoulder distance apart. This way you will be able to play around with head position, the feeling of pressing with your chest, and how much you need to engage your core in order to keep your legs up.

It helps to have someone watch you until you get a better feel for what is happening with your legs and core.

It is very challenging, so don’t get frustrated. Elite swimmers consistently practice this and are always finding ways to improve their body position this way.

18

some good core work i often do is any yoga, leg lifts (slow and past horizontal), flutter kicks legs barely off the ground, supermans (on belly in streamline position w/ shoulders and hips off the ground and hold), iron cross (legs straight at about 45 degrees from parallel w/ ground, same for upper body, hands out to the side and hold…this one hurts if done right).

those are just a few extra. you can also get more bang for your buck if you try these with some small, light medicine balls. the one thing i would say about core is to be very deiliberate in your motions, do them slowly, and really feel the work…this helps me get the most out of each movement.

hope some of these help.

19

If your hips are sinking, you are most likely not kicking properly. You really need to work on your kick. Remember your kick should come from your hips, and your legs should be straight with pointed feet. Whenever I hear of someone having a problem with hips or kicking, it is usually because they are bending their knees.

20

There was a good blog post just today on this over at Swim Smooth…

You can find it Here

Cheers,

Great article(s), thanks for posting.

I like the exhaling underwater suggestion, I think(know!) I dont exhale nearly enough underwater.

Cheers