The final step of the stroke pyramid is coordination and refinement of the whole stroke. Timing, or synchronizing upper body and lower body movements will help you coordinate all of the working pieces of the stroke. Coordinating the timing of your freestyle will also make a big difference in improving your stroke’s efficiency. Improving your stroke efficiency will result in you being able to travel further and faster with fewer arm movements.
Freestyle or front crawl has three common ways to time a stroke when synchronizing upper body to lower body: two-beat, four-beat, and six-beat kick. These styles are counting how many kicks are completed for every arm rotation. Regardless of your preferred style, as your arm reaches full extension in front of your body, the matching leg should complete a downbeat kick.
Don’t forget, timing and coordination is the final piece of the stroke pyramid. Remember the principle of “first things first”: if you are still experiencing issues with one of the other pieces of the pyramid (Body positioning, kicking, breathing or arms), slow things down a little and focus on those pieces before you try putting it all together. Moving on to the next step too quickly will result in errors and bad habits that will have to be corrected later.
Check out Freestyle Stroke Finish Swim Tip
Developing an efficient freestyle can take months and even years to develop. Don’t be afraid to reach out to others for help as you work on mastering the pieces of the stokes. Joining an adult swim class, Masters group, or coming by the MacEwan pool during our Swim Training classes are all great ways to get that additional support and gain some extra accountability.
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.
