{"id":293374,"date":"2018-01-25T06:00:57","date_gmt":"2018-01-25T13:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=293374"},"modified":"2018-01-25T11:05:53","modified_gmt":"2018-01-25T18:05:53","slug":"commit-swimming-what-is-the-best-take-your-mark-position","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/commit-swimming-what-is-the-best-take-your-mark-position\/","title":{"rendered":"Commit Swimming: What is the Best ‘Take Your Mark’ Position?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This post is courtesy of\u00a0Commit Swimming<\/a>, the #1 workout journal for coaches and athletes, as well as\u00a0Abbie Fish of RITTER Sports Performance<\/a>, a stroke mechanics guru who believes anyone with the heart to train can benefit from\u00a0technical advice<\/a>!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Welcome back to Part III of our starts series! Two weeks ago, we discussed what the\u00a0BEST<\/b>\u00a0possible \u201ctake your mark\u201d position a swimmer could get in. This week, we are going to dive deeper into the differences between a \u201cbutterfly\u201d and a \u201csling-shot\u201d start\u2014that way you can decide which starting technique (in relation to the arm swing) is best for\u00a0YOU<\/b>!<\/p>\n

If you missed Part II of this series,\u00a0[CLICK HERE]\u00a0<\/a><\/strong>to catch up.<\/p>\n

Otherwise, let\u2019s get started!<\/b><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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The reason I chose to talk about the \u201cbutterfly\u201d versus a \u201csling-shot\u201d start is in reality\u2014these two starts are\u00a0NOT\u00a0<\/b>that different. The setup, leg orientation, and \u201ctake your mark\u201d position are the same between these two starts\u2014the only difference is what happens with your arms after the \u201cbeep\u201d goes off.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a video to better understand what I mean:<\/b><\/h3>\n

Brad Tandy<\/strong> in Lane 6 performs a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start\u00a0VERSUS<\/i><\/strong>\u00a0Nathan Adrian<\/strong>\u00a0in Lane 7 with a \u201cslingshot\u201d:<\/p>\n

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As you can see from the video, the main difference between these two starts is the amount of arm swing involved. Brad takes his arms and swings them behind his body and then throws them forward into a streamline with no elbow bend throughout the entire arm swing. Below is a sickkkk progression of Brad\u2019s \u201cbutterfly\u201d start:<\/p>\n

https:\/\/rittersp.wistia.com\/medias\/zww010adl3?embedType=async&videoFoam=true&videoWidth=640<\/p>\n

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Nathan, on the other hand, bends his elbows and brings his hands around the back of his head before reaching into a streamline and hitting the water<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\"\"\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\"\"<\/p>\n

\u00a0So which is better\u2013 \u201cbutterfly\u201d or \u201csling-shot\u201d?<\/b><\/h2>\n

Well it really depends on who you are talking to. Most stroke technician\u2019s agree at this point it is necessary to activate and utilize the arm muscles for a faster start. Some, more than others, agree it\u2019s necessary to utilize your entire length of your arms to achieve the highest amount of kinetic energy possible before a swimmer hits the water.<\/p>\n

My opinion is that it really\u00a0depends<\/strong>\u00a0on what you are looking for from the start. Let\u2019s look deeper into the pro\u2019s and con\u2019s of each arm starting technique!<\/em><\/p>\n

1.) The \u201cButterfly\u201d start:<\/b><\/h3>\n

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With a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start a swimmer will need to left their body up\u00a0HIGHER<\/b><\/i>\u00a0off the blocks to ensure they are getting through an entire butterfly stroke before their hands hit the water.<\/p>\n

Reminder:\u00a0<\/b>there\u2019s anywhere from 0.9 to 1.1 seconds from the \u201cbeep\u201d and when a swimmer\u2019s hands enter the water. This means a swimmer who is performing a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start needs to throw their arms through an entire revolution of butterfly at a stroke rate of 60 strokes per minute or more\u201460 strokes per minute is actually\u00a0MUCH<\/b>faster than what we normally see for stroke rates in fly for non-elite athletes. So in\u00a0reality<\/em>, this start is really hard to execute\u00a0well<\/strong>\u00a0with the limited amount of time provided for anybody not on the elite level.<\/p>\n

Also, many younger swimmers who perform a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start will not get into their streamline quick enough and\/or may over-shoot and miss locking their top hand into their bottom\u2013which leads them to entering the water at an array of different angles.<\/p>\n

Lastly, because a swimmer has more vertical displacement during a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start, this extra increase in height has a tendency to make a swimmer enter and breakout very\u00a0DEEP\u00a0<\/b>under the surface of the water. Swimmers who don\u2019t have strong underwater dolphin kicks will want to avoid a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start, because they won\u2019t be able to carry their speed they generated off the blocks through their longer breakout\u2013which is created by diving deeper from a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start.<\/p>\n

Overall, a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start is really hard to do and to do well\u2014that\u2019s why we don\u2019t see that many of them. While this start may produce the\u00a0MOST<\/b>\u00a0amount of kinetic energy\u2014it also requires a swimmer to have a quick reaction time, move at a butterfly stroke rate of 60 strokes per minute or higher, and have phenomenal dolphin kicks all in one.<\/p>\n

If you have all\u00a03<\/strong>\u00a0of these technical aspects down, and\/or have the natural ability to do a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start\u2013definitely,\u00a0GO<\/strong>\u00a0for it. If not, let\u2019s look into a \u201csling-shot\u201d start instead!<\/p>\n

2.) The \u201cSling-Shot\u201d Start:<\/b><\/h3>\n

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In a \u201csling-shot\u201d start, a swimmer is able to get off the blocks quicker and with less vertical displacement, because it requires less arm movement. Also, a swimmer has more ability to guarantee their entry point and depth, because they have more time to setup their streamline\u2019s in-flight.<\/p>\n

What is also great about a \u201csling-shot\u201d start is you can setup your weight balance either neutrally, back-foot weighted, or front-foot weighted. There are 3 options on how you can distribute your weight in a \u201csling-shot\u201d start versus a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start. Your only option in the \u201cbutterfly\u201d start is back foot weighted, so you ensure that you have enough time between the \u201cbeep\u201d and entry.<\/p>\n

I really like the \u201csling-shot\u201d start, because it does allow a swimmer to customize their weight distribution, while guaranteeing more consistent entry points. Also, it is applicable to more ages and ability levels (as you don\u2019t have to be an expert at underwater dolphin kicking to do this start well). Lastly, the \u201csling-shot\u201d start\u00a0still\u00a0<\/em>does\u00a0increase a swimmer\u2019s kinetic energy, because they are engaging their arms during the start\u2013it\u2019s just\u00a0NOT<\/strong>\u00a0as much as you would doing a \u201cbutterfly\u201d start.\u00a0All in all, it seems like a good compromise: a little\u00a0less<\/em>\u00a0speed for a little\u00a0more<\/strong>\u00a0accuracy. After all, if you get better at your dolphin kicking and have perfected your \u201csling-shot\u201d starts\u2013you can always transition into \u201cbutterfly\u201d starts later!<\/p>\n

Until Next Time,<\/p>\n

A. Fish<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Abbie Fish is now offering readers a FREE dolphin kick [stroke technique] lesson! Get access to about Abbie’s amazing lesson\u00a0HERE.<\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Commit Swimming<\/a>\u00a0offers a 2-week free trial so you can see why all of the top coaches are using Commit to write, organize, and analyze workouts. But don’t take our word for it, here are what coaches have said about Commit:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

“I’m excited to be coaching and using your software again,\u00a0it really is as good as you advertise.”<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

“After using a different workout manager for 16 years,\u00a0<\/em>I was amazed how easy it was to switch to Commit.”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

“Commit is one of the\u00a0best things that has happened to my coaching.<\/strong>“<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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