Past Clinic: High Performance Starts and Turns

West Bend High School Natatorium
1305 E Decorah Rd., West Bend, WI 53095

A description of what was covered at this past clinic is below the upcoming clinics.

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Past Clinic

Introduction

Did you know that the fastest that your swimmer is ever moving in a race is after the start and after every turn?

At this high performance swim clinic, there will be one session for each age group focusing on starts and backstroke starts and a session for all swimmers focusing on flip turns and open turns. Olympic gold medalist Nick Thoman will teach your swimmer how to maximize their speed at these key points in a race and how to maintain that momentum for longer.

Sign up for one or SAVE by signing up for BOTH sessions for your swimmer’s age group! Scroll down to read more about the curriculum at this clinic.

Suggested Participants

SAVE: Sign up before prices increase!

Nick Thoman will lead three sessions on October 7th. Sign up for 1 or both sessions for your swimmer's age group!

Curriculum

SESSION 1 & 3: STARTS, BACKSTROKE STARTS, AND CHAMPION MINDSET

The start is your opportunity to cover as much ground as possible in a very short period of time, with great efficiency and momentum heading into your underwater kicking and breakout. There are countless intricacies to performing a start and you only get better with practice. Olympic gold medalist Nick Thoman will share his experience on how he found time to practice and improve his start both in and out of the water and some of his most effective strategies to execute this explosive and athletic movement.

  • STARTS: How you set up on the block including proper hand and foot placement can allow your swimmer to explode forward with a lot of explosive power. Nick will work with each swimmer to find their best position on the block as well as how to launch their body forward into a tight streamline and enter through a small hole.
  • BACKSTROKE STARTS: Getting into the right ready position with a straight back, hips high on the surface of the water, and feet positioned to get maximum power is extremely important to being able to execute a fast and clean backstroke start. Nick will work with swimmers at this session to achieve a beautiful back arch over the water so that they can have an advantage in every backstroke race!
  • CHAMPION MINDSET: Get inside the mind of an Olympic gold medalist! Learn his strategies for goal setting, visualization, and pre-race rituals that have helped him to become one of the best swimmers in the world.

SESSION 2: OPEN TURNS AND FLIP TURNS

Most age group swimmers add in extra movements on their open and flip turns that slow them down and prevent them from carrying their momentum through the turn! Even at Olympic Trials we see many very fast swimmers who miss making finals and even the Olympic team because of their turns! The turn is an opportunity for a swimmer to actually GAIN MOMENTUM, when in fact most swimmers actually slow down. At both of these sessions, Olympic gold medalist Nick Thoman, will be in the water teaching your swimmer how to improve their turns so that they can drop time!

  • FLIP TURNS: Your swimmer will learn how to carry their momentum through the turn to get in and out of every wall faster. Swimmers will practice accelerating into the wall with long strokes and then using their core and arms to get through the turn. They'll practice planting their feet on the wall for a powerful pushoff in the perfect streamline. Nick will give the swimmers drills and exercises to help them master this athletic skill now as well as in the future!
  • OPEN TURNS: Think about the open turn differently! You should not be making an open to turn around and swim the next lap. If you're doing this - you're actually stopping and then trying to regain speed again. An expertly executed open turn involves spinning backwards. This enables you to carry momentum into the pushoff. We're going to teach you how to cut a lot of time on this turn... helping you in all of your breaststroke and butterfly races!

ASK QUESTIONS

Swimmers and parents are invited to ask Nick questions during a Q&A session. Gain insight into his training regimen, diet and nutrition, and recovery tactics.

WATCH THE CLINICIAN

Observe Nick swim at full speed and demonstrate a progression of perfectly executed drills to achieve powerful, efficient and fast swimming.

PUT YOUR SKILLS TO THE TEST

Swimmers will get to practice what they've learned by taking their stroke to your top speed with one of the best swimmers in the world! They'll work on holding onto their form while challenging themselves

Take a photo while wearing Nick's medals, get autographs, and a gift from TYR Sport!

Inquisitive, Educated Swimmers are Faster Swimmers! Sign up today!

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