DRILL 7: DOUBLE UNDERSWITCH

Why We Do It: Switch drills teach powerful, coordinated, effortless movement of the core body. Multiswitch (two or more switches) drills introduce swimming rhythms (steady, rhythmic core-body rotation) to these movements but retain pauses in Sweet Spot, to allow time to regroup, evaluate your practice, and make fine adjustments.

Follow This Sequence

1. Start as in Drill 6 but you’ll do two switches before pausing in Sweet Spot again.

2. After you roll to the Skating Position, pause to check your balance. Lean in to feel the support of the water, then sneak your hand forward.

3. Wait to see your hand before both switches. Keep your head “hidden” and look directly at the bottom through both switches.

4. Finish in Sweet Spot and breathe three times before rolling to nose-down again.

5. Start the next length on your other side: Look down … see your hand … Switch … glide a moment … see your hand … Switch … Breathe in your Sweet Spot.

6. Practice on both right and left sides until you feel yourself gliding effortlessly in balance … and until your Switch timing is consistent.

DRILL 6: UNDERSWITCH

Why We Do It: This is the first drill to tap the power of the kinetic chain by teaching you how to link an armstroke to core-body rotation for effortless propulsion. It also simplifies the learning process for learning the front-quadrant stroke timing that keeps your body line long, by giving you a visual cue for when to make the switch.

Follow This Sequence

1. After the movements of UnderSkate seem natural (almost a “nobrainer”), move to the full drill. Start as in Drill 5, but when you see your hand under your nose, keep moving it forward to full extension as you roll (switch) past Sweet Spot on the other side.

2. Take at least three yoga breaths (relax, normalize your breathing, and get your bearings) as you check your balance and make sure that you are in Sweet Spot again. Then, swivel to the Skating Position (nose down and shoulders stacked) … pause … and repeat in the other direction.

3. The basic movements are simple, but the opportunities for refinement are many. Practice these focal points, one at a time:

• Be patient. Don’t switch until you see your hand under your nose.

• Switch by using the extended hand to “hold on to your place in the water,” as you roll past it.

• Finish the switch by rolling past your Sweet Spot.

• Another way to reinforce this is to switch as if you were planning to breathe with your belly button. After you see your hand, take your belly button to the air; your head just goes along for the ride.

• Stay connected as you switch: When you see your hand, move arm, head, and torso as a unit.

• Stay slippery: Switch through the smallest possible hole in the water.

• Focus on doing the drill as quietly as possible. This will help you do any drill more fluently and economically.

• Final step: Pause your kick at the moment you see your hand and switch. Resume gentle kicking once you’re back in Sweet Spot.

DRILL 5: UNDERSKATE

Why We Do It: You learned the most valuable form of balance in the Skating Position. That position becomes the basis for other ways of practicing balance that bring a different dynamic to your balance practice. This drill is also a rehearsal for Drill 6: UnderSwitch. Finally, it reinforces the key skills of staying on your side as you swim and of breathing by rolling a balanced, aligned, slippery body to the air.

Follow This Sequence

1. Begin as in Drill 4, moving patiently through all four positions or movements practiced previously, kicking silently and gently as you do: Balance on your back; then rotate slightly to Sweet Spot, showing an arm, then sneak your other arm to full extension; and finally arrive in the Skating Position.

2. After you look down, pause and check: Are you looking down with your head hidden and aligned? Is your extended hand below your head? Do you feel great balance—even a downhill gliding sensation?

3. If so, then sneak the trailing hand forward under water (wipe it across your belly and past your jaw) until you see the hand right under your nose. Check that you’re still on your side with your shoulders stacked, then slide the hand back to your side. Finish by rolling your needle shape past your Sweet Spot.

4. Take at least three yoga breaths, then repeat the sequence. You’ll probably fit in three cycles in each 25 yards. Switch sides on the next length.

THE UNDERSKATE POSITION ALSO ILLUSTRATES SWITCH-TIMING FOR ALL UNDERSWITCH DRILLS.

How to Practice: Your key focal points are the same as for Drill 4, but with added emphasis on remaining on your side as you bring your hand to your face and on slipping through the smallest hole in the water as you do it. Practice UnderSkate by itself, alternating sides. Or practice it in a series with Lesson Two drills: 50 yards each (25 right, 25 left) of Drills 2, 3, 4, and 5. Some athletes can master this drill after no more than ten minutes of practice. If you feel you’ve got it, move on. If not, spend as much time as you need because the skills learned in Under-Skate are key to every drill that follows.

DRILL 4: BALANCE IN THE SKATING POSITION

Why We Do It: This is your first opportunity to experience balance as it should feel when

you begin swimming. This is also the first movement in all the Switch drills that follow.

Last, but not least, this is the first drill in which you practice the proper technique for breathing, developing good habits now that you can maintain right through to whole-stroke. Here you’ll learn to breathe by rolling your body to where the air is—rather than lifting or turning your head. The act of rolling your body to breathe imprints the critical habit (when drilling) of finishing every rolling movement in Sweet Spot.

Follow This Sequence

1. Start as in Drill 3, kicking gently. Balance on your back and hide your head, then roll gently to show one arm, and finally extend the other arm. Allow each position to feel great before you move to the next.

2. After “sneaking” your arm up, pause to check: Is the water still at the corners of both goggles? Do you feel like a long, balanced needle slipping through a small hole? Then . . .

3. Swivel your head and look directly at the bottom, rolling to your side as you do. After you look down, pause and check: Are you looking directly down? Are you balanced on your side with your shoulder pointing directly up? Is your extended hand below your head? (Put it deeper than you think you should!) Do you feel great balance—even a downhill gliding sensation?

4. Stay for a comfortable interval, then roll all the way back to where you started. When teaching, we always instruct our students to roll past their Sweet Spot in order to breathe comfortably. If you feel unbalanced or uncomfortable after you roll up to breathe, you haven’t rolled far enough.

5. Regroup in Sweet Spot for at least three yoga breaths before rolling nose-down again; avoid feeling breathless or rushed.

DRILL 3: HAND-LEAD SWEET SPOT—LENGTHEN YOUR “VESSEL”

Why We Do It: To experience how balance feels with an arm extended and to imprint your most slippery body position. Hand-Lead Sweet Spot is also the position in which you’ll start and finish every drill. Finally, it’s one of the two best positions for practicing flutter kick. (Skating Position—Drill 4—is the other.)

Follow This Sequence

1. Start as in Drill 1, balanced on your back, kicking gently. Is the water at the corners of your goggles? Do you feel effortlessly supported? (Take all the time you need to feel this.) Then roll just enough to show one arm. Do you still feel comfortable? Do you have a long, clean head-spine line? Is your top arm dry from shoulder to knuckles? If not, return to your back and start over. If yes, then …

2. “Sneak” your lower arm to full extension. Your hand should be an inch or two below the surface. Your palm can be up, down, or sideways. Your arm should feel as if it’s just floating forward.

3. Next, make yourself needlelike. Once your arm is extended and weightless, check the gap between the back of your head and your shoulder. Narrow the gap if possible, but avoid strain or discomfort. Finally, make sure your head is aligned with your spine, that water is at the corners of both goggles, and that your top arm lies easily on your side with a dry strip of skin from shoulder to knuckles.

4. Practice until you could glide blissfully in this position on either side indefinitely. Take the time to make your “vanilla” side feel as good as your “chocolate” side; patience here will pay big dividends later.

How To Practice: Once you feel “bliss” on either side, practice 1-length repeats (resting for three or more yoga breaths between) for seven to ten minutes, alternating sides. Choose one of these focal points for each length:

1. Create a long, clean line from your extended fingertips to your toes. As you extend your arm, focus on lengthening from the back of your body, not the front.

2. Slip through the smallest possible hole in the water. Make sure your head slips through the same “hole” that your body is traveling through.

3. Glide silently and effortlessly. Kick gently, keeping your legs long, supple, and within the “shadow” of your body. (Use fins if this is impossible.)

4. If at any time you lose balance or comfort, put your arm back to your side and start over.

DRILL 2: FIND YOUR “SWEET SPOT”

Why We Do It: You’ll swim mainly on your side and start and finish every drill on your side, but “side balance” is almost never exactly on the side. The Sweet Spot is where you’ll find true equilibrium and balance and is influenced by your body type. If you’re lean or densely muscled, side balance will probably be almost on your back. Finding your Sweet Spot is critical because you’ll start and finish every drill here. When you master Sweet Spot, you’ll drill with ease and fluency; if you don’t take time to master it, you’ll struggle instead.

Follow This Sequence

1. Start as in Drill 1, palms at your side and kicking gently. Remain on your back until you check your head position and feel effortlessly balanced.

2. Without moving your head, roll just enough for the knuckles of one hand to barely clear the water. Your goal is to find a position where one arm is dry from shoulder to knuckles and you’re just as comfortable as you were on your back. If you feel any discomfort,

return to your back and try again with less rotation.

3. Check that your head is still positioned as in Drill 1, with the water at the corners of your goggles.

4. Watch for signs of discomfort: lifting the head, craning the neck, arching the back, helping with the lower arm. If you feel any tension, return to your back and start over with less rotation.

5. Once you feel at home in Sweet Spot, focus on staying tall and slipping through a small hole in the water, then on making stillness, quiet, and effortlessness feel natural.

6. Repeat on your other side. You may feel more comfortable on one side than the other. I call this having a “chocolate” (better balance) and “vanilla” side. Balance improvements on your vanilla side will usually bring greater dividends. Alternate one length or minute on one side with a similar distance or time on the other side.

7. When you begin to feel comfortable on each side, begin practicing Active Balance. Kick easily on one side for three yoga breaths, then roll gently to show the other arm for three breaths. The two key skills in Active Balance are: (1) maintain constant equilibrium as you roll, and (2) use effortless weight shifts to initiate body roll. Roll without using your arms, without kicking harder, and without disturbing the water. Keep your head in a steady position, with water at the corners of your goggles as you roll from side to side, as if carrying a champagne glass on your forehead.

Your most important task here is to learn the right way—patiently and mindfully—to practice all skill drills. Give yourself unlimited time to acquire effortless ease. You are not on a schedule to advance to Lesson Two. If you cultivate these attitudes and habits in Lesson One, your skills will be stronger and sounder at each subsequent stage:

 

 • Practice each drill with no set time limit or number of repetitions in mind.

• Stay with it until it becomes effortless.

• Then continue a bit longer until you are “bored” (you can do it without mental effort).

• Only then should you progress to the next drill or skill.

Make a commitment to avoid “practicing struggle” at any stage. Any time you feel yourself losing control, stop and rest, regroup at the prior drill or skill, or do both. If you don’t, you’ll simply end up imprinting struggle in your muscle memory and your body will naturally revert to inefficient patterns whenever you get a bit tired.

DRILL 1: BASIC BALANCE ON YOUR BACK

Why We Do It: This is the easiest way to relax and enjoy the support of the water. You don’t have to worry about breathing, so you can just lie there and experience balance. Effortlessness and stability are the key sensations of balance; learn them here then maintain in other positions.

Follow This Sequence (Kicking Gently at Each Step)

1. Hide your head. Your face should be parallel to the surface, with water wetting the top of your forehead, the bottom of your chin, and the corners of your goggles. Tuck your chin slightly to keep your head aligned. If other swimmers splash waves in your face, you can minimize this distraction by wearing nose-clips. Spend five to ten minutes simply getting your head position right or have a partner check the illustration and help. Patiently practice until it feels more natural and you’re comfortable with the water that close. In every subsequent drill, hide your head before doing anything else.

2. Make a “hull shape” with your back. It’s harder to balance with your shoulders back and your chest thrust forward. Round your shoulders slightly and shape your back like the hull of a boat. Keep your shoulders in this neutral position for all balance drills.

3. Press your “buoy.” You achieve balance by “lying on your lungs,” which are the most buoyant part of your body. Keeping your head hidden and your torso hull-shaped, lean on your upper back until your hips feel light. When you’re balanced, you’ll show a “dry patch of thigh” on each kick. But don’t let your kick become splashy; your knees and toes should just ruffle the surface. In subsequent drills, “lie on your lungs” in the same way.

4. Just lie there. The true test of balance is being able to do nothingwith your arms. If you need to brace yourself or scull with them, you aren’t balanced. When you are really supported by the water, you can use your arms just to help shape yourself into a torpedo. 

5. Time to practice. Limit repeats to 25 yards or less. As soon as you begin losing your sense of ease and relaxation, rest until you regain it.

Focus mainly on the sense of stillness produced when you can just lie there, kicking gently, and let the water do the work. Imagine being so stable that you could carry a champagne glass on your forehead. This feeling is a hallmark of balance! Keep it as you progress to other balance drills.