Developing faster strokes takes a lot more than just working on stroke technique. There are strategies and training methods that elite athletes use to become more efficient with their strokes to create more power and speed. Participants will work both in and out of the water to develop essential skills that will improve critical areas of swimming that apply to every stroke and race.

SATURDAY, September 25: DEVELOPING POWER AND DYNAMIC WARM UP

While strength training helps swimmers get stronger, working on power exercises in the water helps to strengthen swimming specific movements. Developing power will help participants be more efficient and stronger in the water!

• IMPROVING POWER IN STROKE TECHNIQUE: Swimmers are taught drag is bad! However, ADDING resistance as a training tool causes swimmers to alter their technique and highlight any deficiencies. Removing that resistance then allows swimmers to feel those differences in technique and build power in their stroke technique. Kat will take the swimmers through some resistance training techniques during this camp!
• RESISTANCE TRAINING: Resistance not only helps expose places to strengthen technique but also is a huge way to build power. Hand paddles, rubber tubing with a belt, even swimming with a T-shirt and shoes in the water can help add resistance and develop power!
• DYNAMIC WARM UP: Get ready for every practice and competition with a short dynamic warm up routine! Kat will take participants through a combination of light cardio exercises and dynamic stretches. This is an excellent way to get the blood flowing to the muscles and loosen joints to prepare for training and racing. Being properly warmed up will also help prevent injuries.
• PRE-RACE/WORKOUT FUELING: Nutrition can have a HUGE impact on how you swim! The clinicians will talk about how they fuel for their races and workouts!

Sunday, September 26: SPEED, DRYLAND, AND RECOVERY

Swimmers can significantly change their race strategy by adjusting just two aspects of their stroke - distance per stroke and tempo. Kat Simonovic will coach swimmers to help their tempo and speed, as well as review, changes dryland exercises designed specifically for developing strength and power in swimmers as well as techniques for recovery from dryland and swimming workouts.

• DISTANCE PER STROKE: One way to increase efficiency is to take fewer strokes. Counting the number of strokes and improving technique to decrease that number will save energy. On the other side, it may be faster to take more strokes per length, especially in shorter events.
• TEMPO: A swimmers tempo is how fast or slow they complete each stroke. Changing tempo based on event distance and fatigue level will help swimmers swim as fast as possible.
• DRYLAND FOR SWIMMING: Dryland training is designed to build strength, increase flexibility and become a more well-rounded and agile athlete. Swimmers will learn age-appropriate, simple bodyweight exercises that will strengthen their core and major muscle groups to complement the training done in the pool.
• MAINTAINING TECHNIQUE THROUGH FATIGUE: When swimmers get tired, it’s the easy choice to revert to sloppy technique in order to make the interval and finish the set. Choosing to focus on technique through fatigue is the difficult decision, but more beneficial in the long run. Participants will learn from Brett how to handle fatigue in practice and races.
• RECOVERY: While training is important for swimming faster and gaining strength, recovery is just as essential to continue training at a high level. While you can buy expensive products to help you recover, Kat will walk through some of the most important things to get your body ready for the next session.
• POST WORKOUT/RACE FUEL: What you put in your body after a workout can impact how you feel for the next couple of days. No fuel = no energy or muscle recovery. Kat will talk about their nutrition routine for post-exercise recovery.

The fastest that swimmers are ever moving through the water is after the start and after every turn! Day 1: Swimmers will focus on explosive starts, powerful underwater dolphin kicking, and snappy breakouts. Day 2: participants will work on accelerating through every flip turn and open turn into a well-timed finish.

Saturday, September 25: STARTS, UNDERWATERS & BREAKOUTS

The start sets up a swimmers race. The more power off the block, the better! There are countless intricacies to performing an explosive start, followed by an efficient and dominating underwater. Kat Simonovic has spent countless hours practicing starts and underwater dolphin kicking and will work with swimmers on being explosive and efficient with each movement.

• STARTS: Kat will work with swimmers to find their best position on the block as well as how to powerfully launch off into a tight streamline. Swimmers will also discover their optimal reaction time to get off the blocks fast and ahead of their competition.
• UNDERWATER DOLPHIN KICKING: The fastest swimmers know how to weaponize their underwater. It's the quickest way to move through the water! Understanding the importance of streamlined underwater speed is vital for every level of swimmer.
• BREAKOUTS: Many swimmers add movement within their breakout that creates drag and destroys all of the power created during their underwaters. Participants will work on timing their breakouts to accelerate to explode into the lap.

Saturday, September 26: FLIP TURNS, OPEN TURNS & FINISHES

Focusing on having faster turns is an easy way to drop time and win close races. Elite swimmers maintain their momentum through a quick turn and powerfully push off every wall. Kat will lead participants through a series of drills to have compact, fast turns in any race.

• FLIP TURNS: Swimmers will work on what techniques carry their momentum through the turn to get in and out of every wall faster. Participants will also practice accelerating into the wall, using their core and arms to get through the turn, and planting the feet on the wall for a powerful push-off in the perfect streamline.
• OPEN TURNS: Swimmers should not just go through the motions of an open turn; if they’re doing this, they are actually stopping and then trying to regain speed. An expertly executed open turn involves carrying momentum from one lap into the next. Swimmers will work with Kat to nail an efficient and quick open turn.
• FINISHES: Races can be won or lost by hundredths of a second, and many races come down to the last few strokes. Swimmers will reinforce their kick to accelerate into the wall, time their stroke for a perfect arm extension, and keep their head down to out touch the competition.