Myth #2: Aside from shaving, wearing a cap and a high tech suit or wetsuit, the only way to reduce drag is by streamlining off the start and turns.
Of the 3 fundamental laws that govern swimming technique, drag, motion and inertia, drag is by far the most important. Drag is the number one enemy of the swimmer…something we learned 250 world records after changing suit fabric from lycra to polyurethane. What most swimmers fail to realize is that there are three common mistakes made by far too many swimmers that add significant drag to their swim (more than the suits reduced) and they make them through every stroke cycle…over and over again. The first is head position. Most swimmers hold their head position way too high, looking forward. I call it defensive swimming, because after running into some feet in a triathlon or getting smacked in the head by someone veering over into your side of the lane, you will start to swim like Tarzan. Problem is lifting the head causes the hips to sink and the surface (wave) drag on your head to increase. Swimming through the water like a hammock, or if you have no legs, at an angle of 5 to 10 degrees from head to toe, creates a huge increase in drag.
If you have your head in alignment with your body, you should be looking down and you haven’t a clue where you are going. So don’t swim for 200 strokes out in the lake or ocean without looking up (briefly) and charting your course…or you may be swimming faster, but out to sea. Second is the underwater arm position. Keep your elbows high (also called early vertical forearm) as this position of the arm as you pull through the water reduces the drag coefficient significantly over pulling with the arm deep with a dropped elbow. Holding this high elbow position, particularly during a breath or with good body rotation, is challenging and requires good external rotation of the shoulder. Finally, if you insist on kicking hard, do so with tight narrow kicks. The act of bending the knee too much to get that big forceful kick increases the drag way more than the benefit of the extra power.
Gary Sr.
In assuming a proper body position relative to head position, would you agree that a bit of water should be passing up over your head as opposed to having the top of your head/forehead, above the water line?
Do you agree with the “newish” “windmill-ish” arm for the recovery? I have heard a few folks talk about keeping your elbow high - and your hand higher (to me that would push down the hips but what do I know). This is supposedly in an effort to not flex your arms against the sleeves of the wetsuit (presuming that you have sleeves on your suit).
Obviously, in races that are not wetsuit legal there is no question in this matter.
(or, just do Lake Placid and follow the lane line!)
your first one was good, but now you’re creating your own myths.
Addendum- don’t rely solely on head position to keep your hips up in the water. If you don’t understand how core strength and core flexibility play into body position in that regard, you’ll end up dropping your hips big time on every sighting stroke.
Problem is lifting the head causes the hips to sink
Why?
You have any idea how heavy the head is? Something gotta give…
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You mean the same stroke that Janet Evans made popular in the late 80’s?
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Would wearing a fancy robe prior to swimming help me with body position?
(Just kidding - Loved watching this on TV)
http://i41.tinypic.com/vnfqpw.jpg
http://i43.tinypic.com/9gh3ja.jpg
your first one was good, but now you’re creating your own myths.
I have heard LOTS of coaches pushing the head forward looking “ahead” position. honestly, it is no wonder people get so confused with the varying opinions of how to do things “correctly” out there.
M~
Dont make me bring up Terry Laughlin 
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Dont make me bring up Terry Laughlin
I’m shoked T.I. hasn’t come up in any of these threads!
Never hurts!
This might be a bad example as in the next scene, Apollo gets punched to death.
Terry’s like Beetlejuice. Say his name one more time and he’ll show up here like he has in the past 
your first one was good, but now you’re creating your own myths.
agreed, ive never ever heard any swim coach (as horrible as some might be) say anything of the sort.
I’ve heard multiple coaches of mind talk about looking forward and the waterline should be on your forehead etc. Its only been the last 2 years that I’ve been told to keep my head down and the crown is the only part out of the water.
Other than Janet Evans, very few swimmers use a straight arm recovery in distance freestyle (some do). Most swimmers who are adopting that technique are sprinters. I agree with Doug Stern ( video below…he came to the Race Club before he passed away) that whether straight arm or bent elbow the recovery motion needs to be over the top. All fast swimmers attack the water from above, not the side.
Gary
Can’t you be looking forward and not tilt your head up out of alignment with your spine?
… again still waiting on that study.