3 Ways You Can Improve Your Swimming Kick

Photo Courtesy: Quinn Rooney

3 Ways You Can Improve Your Swimming Kick

By Wayne Goldsmith

Wouldn’t it be great if kick sets could be interesting, challenging, exciting and something every swimmer looked forward to doing at every workout? Well, they are and here are 3 Ways You Can Improve Your Swimming Kick

1. Stop Doing Slow Kick

Slow kick is one of those old habits in swimming whose time has come and gone. Stop doing slow kick.

It doesn’t do anything to help you swim faster.

It has limited effect in helping you recover between swim sets.

All slow kicking really does is give you a chance to talk to your training partners about what you did last night, what you’re wearing to your next date or what’s the latest news you’ve heard about your favorite TV show.

Instead, make kick sets more interesting, more challenging and more effective by completing them with a real focus on achieving a specific goal.

Some excellent and challenging kick goals are:

Kick 25 metres in under 20 seconds;
Kick 50 metres within 10 seconds of your 50 metre PB swim time;
Kick 75 metres in your 100 metre PB swim time;
Kick 200 metres of your best stroke in under 3 minutes;
Kick 400 metres of your best stroke in under 6 minutes.

When it comes to slow kicking, it’s time to “kick” the habit!

Photo Courtesy: NFHS/AIA/SwimmingWorld.TV

2. Swim Your Kick Work Relative To Your Swimming TRP – Target Race Pace

Another great way to improve your swimming kick is to perform your kick sets relative to your swimming T.R.P. – your target race pace – i.e. the pace you are aiming to swim at your next meet.

For example, if you’re swimming goal is to swim 1:10 for 100 freestyle at your next meet, practice doing kick sets which are progressively faster relative to the achievement of that time.

For example: 10 x 50 metres kick on 1:30:

1st 5 repeats at 120% of your goal swimming pace.
2nd 5 repeats at 115% of your goal swimming pace.

Or you might extend this type of goal focused kick set to something like this:

6 x 100 kick on 3:30 holding 120% of your goal swimming pace.

Kick sets such as these are very effective for swimmers of all ages in that by being future-focused, i.e. by being directly relevant to the achievement of a future swimming goal, swimmers will be more engaged with their kicking practice and highly motivated to work harder on their kick than ever before.

And of course the great thing about this system is that as your kick time improves relative to your goal swim time….120%, 115%, 112%, 110%…and ever lower…then your swim PB just keeps getting faster and faster.

3. Take As Much Pride In Your Kick PBs As You Do In Your Swim PBs

When’s the last time you rang a friend to tell them all about your 100 metre kick PB?

Or when did you last rush home to tell your family you’d broken your all-time 200 metre kick PB?

Take as much pride in your kick PBs as you do in your swim PBs.

By elevating the way you think and talk about the skill of kicking, it gains a much higher level of importance in your overall swimming training program.

When you can say with genuine excitement and real conviction, “My training is going really great. My 100 kick time is down to 112% of my goal swimming time, I am kicking 78 metres in my 100 PB swim time and I’ve just broken 3 minutes for a 200 kick for the first time” – you will not believe just how fast you will swim at your next meet!

Great kicker = Great swimmer and unstoppable athlete.

66 Comments

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Kristie Wisniewski

8 years ago

Great advice.

-1

Laura M Wanco

8 years ago

Can not relate I go backwards.

Penny Kronengold

8 years ago

Reply to Laura M Wanco

I had the same problem, going backwards or just staying in place, until about a month ago. I’m over 80 and imagine learning how to kick at that age (with the help of my coach and a swimmer friend). Practice and technical correction did it, and I’m most pleased!

Wayne Goldsmith

8 years ago

Hi Laura – Wayne here.

I’ve worked with triathletes and others who kick and go backwards….so relax – you’re not alone.

Here’s a few suggestions:

1. Do some hip and ankle flexibility exercises. This will help you to kick a little more easily. I find that with runners, footballers, basket-ballers, triathletes and others that their hips, hamstrings and ankles are often so tight that it’s very difficult for them to get into the right positions to kick effectively.

2. Don’t think about kicking HARD – think about keeping your legs and feet loose and soft as you kick.

3. Never point your toes when you kick – this just creates stiffness and stops the nice flowing, easy, relaxed movement we’re looking for.

4. And perhaps most importantly remember this tip – the faster you want to go, the more relaxed you have to be. As you try to kick faster – take a deep breath and relax even more. Don’t try to force a fast kick. Stay relaxed, keep it smooth, keep your legs and feet soft and you might be surprised how well you go.

All the best – thanks for reading my post.

Tom O'Toole

8 years ago

I thought I was going to read an article about how to improve my kick–Not “3 Ways to Die a Painful Death in the Pool”

Fred Dever

8 years ago

Ugh

Janet Wolff- Stewart

8 years ago

Sierra Stewart this article was written just for you in mind

Teena Gianatti Paini

8 years ago

Christina Paini

Melissa Shields

8 years ago

Robert Stott

Bobby Garcia Veyna

8 years ago

Lindsey

Scott Doherty

8 years ago

Carson Doherty

Carrick Fins Swimming Club

8 years ago

Eoin Smith

Billy Arfianto

8 years ago

Lena Margaretha Lili Sutanto

Jamie Placke Arkenberg

8 years ago

Maybe with would work!! And they wouldn’t have to take my non kickers fins away from her in the future

Allie Maxwell

8 years ago

Anthony Harris; today’s practice!

Ian Reichow

8 years ago

Nicholas Martin

Vicky Brown

8 years ago

Yes I just read that Robert …. Good plan

Robert Lucas

8 years ago

Vicky Brown next time you’re coaching include some of these kick sets…interesting reading..x

Donna Marsh

8 years ago

Connor Marsh Liam Marsh

Julia Hogg

8 years ago

Sophie Colson hahaha

Sophie Colson

8 years ago

Reply to Julia Hogg

Thanks will read up HAHAHAHAHAHAH

Alex Edwards

8 years ago

Ruth Hall

Mary Michal Workman Eggers

8 years ago

Hahah!

Alex Edwards

8 years ago

Ruth Hall

8 years ago

Reply to Alex Edwards

pfft i dont need this but you on the other hand…..

Alex Edwards

8 years ago

Ruth Hall

8 years ago

Reply to Alex Edwards

pfft i dont need this but you on the other hand…..

Alex Edwards

8 years ago

Ruth Hall

8 years ago

Reply to Alex Edwards

pfft i dont need this but you on the other hand…..

Barbara Colgan

8 years ago

Laura Laura Colgan

Ken Koppenhaver

8 years ago

Mary

Hayden Melnik

8 years ago

Clarise Fourie I’m sorry had to hahah

Penny Rollo

8 years ago

Nicholas Rollo William Rollo

Dan Porat

8 years ago

Eileen Reiner

Zi Qin L

8 years ago

Kick PBs yoooo JR Jacob Ng

Kent Hurst

8 years ago

Great kickers are made, not born …

Antonio Tapper

8 years ago

Is this for real?
I reckon if you can kick within 110% of your PB swim time you should be worrying about improving your swimming not your kicking 🙂

Lin Tozer

8 years ago

Cameron Gillespie lol

Janet Wolff- Stewart

8 years ago

Sierra Stewart

Ed Eckels

8 years ago

Pia

Sarah McChesney

8 years ago

Chris Street

Lance Robinson

8 years ago

I hated kick sets until i decided to focus on building a strong kick. Now i love kick time

Lance Robinson

8 years ago

It gets better.

Alison Miller

8 years ago

Yep, interesting ideas. Looks like an absolute suffer fest. All the best for improving yourself.

Lily Bellehumeur-b

8 years ago

François Caudal

8 years ago

Reply to Lily Bellehumeur-b

Thanks broe ! Si yer pas trop tard j’essaye sa ?

Osama

8 years ago

Thank you

Marina Sinclair

8 years ago

Adam Sinclair

Kerrie M Canavan Klovstad

8 years ago

Thomas W Canavan Wayman

Gary Stoops

8 years ago

Mark Stoops

Melodie Polidori Harris

8 years ago

Grace Harris

Antony Edwards

8 years ago

Jerome Elliott. This is interesting!

Jerome Elliott

8 years ago

Reply to Antony Edwards

I was was actually thinking we should do some kick time trials during the speed set!

Antony Edwards

8 years ago

Reply to Antony Edwards

Our next Kick set this week or Monday morning next week?

Sean Doonan

8 years ago

Taylor Doonan

Brightie Rowlands

8 years ago

Tomas Najman

8 years ago

Reply to Brightie Rowlands

Shut up. I’ve already seen this. I tried tonight. It didn’t help.

Brightie Rowlands

8 years ago

Reply to Brightie Rowlands

Awh it’s ok aha

Muhamad Danish Azfar

8 years ago

Abbas Hussain Dhanji no posting

Isabella Finestone

8 years ago

Hannah Haswell Lisa-Nicole Scholtz #swimtealgoals

Hannah Haswell

8 years ago

Reply to Isabella Finestone

Answer my whatsapp dude