Past Clinic: High Performance Swim Camp
MCKENDREE METRO REC PLEX
205 Rec Plex Drive,
O'Fallon,
IL 62269
A description of what was covered at this past clinic is below the upcoming clinics.
Upcoming Swim Clinics and Camps
Within 250 miles of O'Fallon, IL.
Past Clinic
Introduction
MARCH 20 & 21, 2021
Two-Day High Performance Swim Camp – This camp is designed for swimmers to learn strategies to swim with more speed and power as well as explode off every start! On Saturday, the curriculum will focus on explosive starts, powerful underwater dolphin kicking, and dryland. Then on Sunday, younger participants will focus on sprinting skills and older swimmers will develop speed and power in every stroke.
Session sizes are limited to ensure the highest level learning experience!
Scroll down for more details on the curriculum!
Session Times (Both Days):
11 & Under: Check in 9:00 AM, Clinic 9:15 AM-11:15 AM
12 & Over: Check in 12:15 PM, Clinic 12:30 PM-3:00 PM
Suggested Participants
Roland and Carlos will lead two sessions for each age group. This camp is recommended for swimmers with at least one year of competitive swimming experience. Swimmers younger than 9 years old are not recommended without their coach's approval.
Curriculum
DAY 1 (BOTH AGE GROUPS): STARTS, UNDERWATERS, & DRYLAND
The start is your swimmer’s opportunity to cover as much ground as possible in a very short period of time with great efficiency and momentum heading into a tight streamline. There are countless intricacies to performing a start, and it will only improve with practice. Four-time Olympian and Olympic gold medalist Roland Schoeman and Olympian Carlos Claverie have spent countless hours practicing starts and underwater dolphin kicking and will show your swimmer how to be explosive and efficient with each movement. Participants will also go through dryland exercises to complement and enhance the work being done in the water.
- STARTS: Your swimmer’s proper hand and foot placement on the block can allow them to drive forward with a lot of explosive power. Roland and Carlos will work with your swimmer to find the best position on the block as well as how to launch their body forward efficiently into a tight streamline and enter the water through a small hole.
- UNDERWATER DOLPHIN KICKING: The fastest swimmers know how to weaponize their dolphin kicking. It is absolutely, undeniably, the fastest way to move through the water! Whether you dolphin kick on your stomach, side, or back, understanding the importance of streamlined, underwater speed is vital for every swimmer!
- DRYLAND FOR SWIMMING: Dryland training is designed to build strength, increase flexibility and to become a more well-rounded and agile athlete. Swimmers will learn age appropriate, simple body weight exercises that will strengthen their core and major muscle groups to complement the training done in the pool.
DAY 2 (11 & UNDER): SWIMMING A FAST 50
Swimming the 50 is all about perfectly executing the details of the race and swimming with explosive power. A swimmer's technique should vary slightly depending on the distance their swimming. The arm pull, breathing, timing, and rotation style will be different in the 50 than they are in the mile. In this session, your swimmer will work with Roland Schoeman and Carlos Claverie to find ways to be more explosive in their freestyle technique and sprint faster in their shorter races!
- SPRINTING: Sprinting is all about swimming with “controlled aggression!” Roland and Carlos will demonstrate how to swim with power, while also being relaxed - having too much tension will make your swimmer slip in the water and slow down. Swimmers will observe how to tweak their stroke to make them quick yet efficient - increasing tempo, shortening the breath, and a strong connected kick will lead to an explosive race!
- BREAKOUTS: Many swimmers add movements in their breakout that create drag and destroy all of the momentum created during their underwater dolphin kicks. Your swimmer will work on staying streamlined and keeping their head down on the first stoke to accelerate into the first few strokes.
- FINISHES: Races can be won or lost by hundredths of a second, and many races come down to the last few strokes. Your swimmer will learn how to use their kick to accelerate into the wall, time their stroke for a perfect arm extension, and keep their head down so they don’t waste any time or strokes as they approach the wall.
DAY 2 (12 & OVER): SPEED & POWER
Swimmers will take their racing to the next level by working to develop power in every stroke and enhance their speed! Participants will work on changing their race strategy by adjusting just two aspects of their stroke - distance per stroke and tempo. For example, it might be faster for one swimmer taking long slow strokes, while another swimmer may be better suited for more strokes at a higher rate. Developing speed and power is one way for your swimmer to continue to get better in the water!
- 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: Your swimmer’s tempo is how fast or slow they complete each stroke. Having a slower tempo allows swimmers to conserve energy by taking fewer strokes, while a faster tempo is more tiring but much faster. Changing tempo based on event distance and fatigue level will help your swimmer swim as fast as possible.
- IMPROVING POWER IN STROKE TECHNIQUE: Swimmers are taught to decrease their resistance in the water for a faster stroke, but ADDING resistance 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.
- RESISTANCE TRAINING: One of the best ways to build power in freestyle and butterfly is to add resistance. Many swimmers use expensive equipment such as power rack to add resistance, but there are many inexpensive items like hand paddles and rubber tubing with a belt have the same effect. Even swimming with a T-shirt and shoes in the water can help add resistance and develop power!
- MAINTAINING TECHNIQUE THROUGH FATIGUE: When your swimmer gets 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. Your swimmer will learn from Ben how to handle fatigue in practice and races.
ASK QUESTIONS
Swimmers and parents are invited to ask Roland and Carlos questions during a Q&A session. Gain insight into their training regimen, diet and nutrition, and recovery tactics.
WATCH THE CLINICIANS
Observe Roland and Carlos 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 top speed with two of the best swimmers and coaches in the world! They'll work on holding onto their form while challenging themselves.
Take a photo with Roland and Carlos, get autographs, and ALL PARTICIPANTS receive a FREE Fitter and Faster Collector’s Bag Tag for each day they are at the camp. Collect all 37 and trade with your friends!!
Inquisitive, Educated Swimmers are Faster Swimmers! Sign up today!
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