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Kicking is hard to teach. Many triathletes struggle with kicking so much that they actually move backwards with a kick board! How can a movement as simple as moving your legs up and down in the water be so difficult? Contrary to what you may think, you can learn to kick well. I refuse to believe that some people can kick, and others can’t. This article is the first in a series to understand the mechanics of flutter kicking.
As I have been teaching kicking, one thing I realized was that I knew very little about how far and fast my feet and knees were traveling in the water. I have always kicked well, but couldn’t fully describe why. I have been teaching on experience instead of numbers and data. So I set up an experiment using myself as the guinea pig in order to quantify what the legs are really doing during sprint kicking.
Q: I was doing the swim at Ironman Wisconsin 2008, and had to take an emergency whiz in the middle of the race, but couldn’t go. Any suggestions?
A: Well, I figured sooner or later I’d have to answer a bodily function question! Before I respond, I must say that I don’t endorse a pee break in the swimming pool or during an open water swimming race. Yes, you can make the disgusting argument that pee is sterile. It just doesn’t make it okay to others, no matter how you can justify it. That said, a long open-water swimming race like an Ironman can create an emergency. You are swimming for over an hour, and are really nervous, which is a recipe for urinary disaster. So, here’s what to do when you are absolutely stuck.
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Coach Dobko will pick one of your questions each week and give you some insight into swimming. E-mail your questions to duanesworlddobko@worldnet.att.net.
Ever been in a position where you go to a new pool and that pace clock just keeps saying that you are slower than you think? Before you get depressed in self pity, consider this. If you are reading your time off an analog dial clock, your perspective has a huge impact on the time you read. The reason is that typical analog/dial clocks have the rotating hands about a centimeter above the clock surface. Thus, the time you read is somewhat dependent on the angle you are to the clock face.