The fourth step of the stroke pyramid is working on arm movements. For a freestyle or front crawl stroke the arm movements can be broken down into four sections: recovery, catch, power, and finish.
The recovery phase is the portion of the pull where your arm is out of the water. You want a relaxed forearm and wrist, and the hand should be close to the water surface with the elbow high. Once the hand is beyond your shoulder, you may put your hand in the water and reach forward.
It can be useful to practice your arm movements independently so that you can concentrate on the each of the four sections. You may find it useful to use a pull buoy to help support your legs closer to the surface of the water to help minimize drag.
Check out Freestyle Breathing Swim Tip
By Jason Britton and Victoria Mitchell
Jason is a full-time Lifeguard/Instructor here at MacEwan University Sport and Wellness. He has over 19 years of aquatic and coaching experience and is one of the main organizers of SwimRun Edmonton.
Victoria is a Lifesaving Society Swim Trainer and Red Cross Water Safety Instructor Trainer. She is also MacEwan University’s full-time Aquatic Programmer.
