Past Clinic: High Performance Technique for Faster Racing
Adelson Educational Campus
9700 Hillpointe Road,
Las Vegas,
NV 89134
A description of what was covered at this past clinic is below the upcoming clinics.
Upcoming Swim Clinics and Camps
Within 250 miles of Las Vegas, NV.
Past Clinic
Introduction
Two-Day Swim Camp - Sign up for 1, 2, or all 3 available sessions for your swimmer's age group.
There will be 5 sessions - each with a different curriculum that will help your swimmer improve different aspects of their races. Two sessions are for swimmers ages 11 & under. Two sessions are for swimmers ages 12 & older. Session #2 focusing on turns and finishes is for swimmers of all ages.
Each session will be led by Olympic gold medalist Nick Thoman and National Champion Laura Sogar. They will be in the water leading the participants through techniques and drills to improve while also providing individual feedback.
Scroll down for more details on the curriculum.
Suggested Participants
SAVE: Sign up before prices increase or the sessions fill up.
Nick and Laura will lead 5 sessions:
Curriculum
SESSION 1: (11 & UNDER) STARTS AND UNDERWATER DOLPHIN KICKING
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 starts 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.
- UNDERWATER DOLPHIN KICKING: The not-so-secret weapon of elite level swimmers is their underwater dolphin kick. Nick is known as one of the best underwater dolphin kickers in the world and she specializes in teaching swimmers how to unlock their potential in this important skill.
SESSION 2: (ALL AGES) FLIP TURNS, OPEN TURNS, AND FINISHES
Races are often won and lost because of the quality of turns and finishes of the competitors. Many people don't realize this, but the push-off and streamline from the wall after a turn SHOULD BE the fastest a swimmer will go while in the water other than the streamline after a dive. Even elite level, swimmers often add in extra movements on their turns and finishes that slow them down and even cause them to lose races that they could have won. At these sessions, Olympic gold medalist Nick Thoman will work with each participant to maintain their momentum at these key points in a race.
- 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!
- FINISHES: Races can be won and lost by hundredths of a second. Many races come down to the very last stroke. Your swimmer will learn how to drive their legs, elongate their arms, and keep their head down so that your swimmer doesn't waste any time or strokes as they approach the wall.
SESSION 3: (12 & OVER) STARTS AND SPRINT FREESTYLE
This session is all about SPEED! The fastest a swimmer is ever moving in a race is off the start. The rest of the race is about maintaining as much of that momentum as possible. Participants in this session will work with Olympic gold medalist Nick Thoman to create explosive power off of the block on every starts AND in your swimmers sprint freestyle races.
- STARTS: A fast reaction time is all about setting up on the blocks with every muscle engaged and ready to explode. Nick Thoman is an expert on the proper posture as well as how to create power when leaving the block. Your swimmer will work with Nick to improve the whole starting process from how they set up to how they enter the water in the tightest streamline possible.
- SPRINT FREESTYLE: Having a fast tempo in sprint freestyle is important, but it is worthless without first creating power and distance per stroke. This session is all about maintaining that length and strength in each stroke while your swimmer will then driving their tempo to top speed. Participants at this session are lucky that there aren't speed limits in the pool!
SESSION 4: (11 & UNDER) BREASTSTROKE AND UNDERWATER PULLOUTS
A fast breaststroke racer will utilize a powerful breaststroke pullout and an efficient breaststroke technique. Both of these skills can be challenging to master due to the importance of timing, posture, and rhythm. At this session, Olympic gold medalist Nick Thoman will work with your swimmer to deepen their understanding of the technique necessary to improve in their breaststroke races.
- BREASTSTROKE: With a strong understanding of the timing of the kick and pull, your swimmer will now begin to utilize the same strategies world class breaststrokers use to minimize their footprint in the water. Participants at this session will work on the skills of swimming in a horizontal plane, keeping the hips high throughout the entire cycle, and utilizing a small but powerful kick while generating power forward with the recovery.
- BREASTSTROKE PULLOUTS: The best breaststrokers are faster under the water than on the surface! Learn the components and sequence of movements that make up a fast underwater breaststroke pullout from Olympian Nick Thoman. With the proper body position and timing, a swimmer's pullout will take them almost to the other side of the pool faster than you could imagine!
SESSION 5: (12 & OVER) BUTTERFLY
Swimming a relaxed and fast butterfly is all in the technique and timing! Nick will go over the proper body position, kick, arm pull, and breath as well as the timing of how it all fits together! Your swimmer will look and feel more smooth and fast after improving on these key areas of butterfly technique.
- BODY POSITION: Keeping high hips and a horizontal body position is key to reducing drag in order to swim a fast and efficient butterfly! Learn to drive and press forward in every stroke so that your swimmer can keep their momentum throughout each length.
- KICK: The technique of the kick is very important in butterfly. Nick will work with swimmers to understand which muscles should be engaged as well as how much they should be bending their knees.
- ARM PULL: Think about the arm pull in 3 dimensions: length, width, and depth! Grab water early and maintain long strokes while also achieving a depth and width that allows for maximum power! Nick will work with each swimmer to find the best arm pull for them.
- BREATH: When elite level butterfliers swim fly, it's hard to tell the difference between a breath stroke and a non breathing stroke! Your swimmer will learn to keep their chin in the water and stay low during the breath.
- TIMING: The "when" of butterfly is the most important part to having an efficient stroke. Learn about how each of the components above fit together so that your swimmer will have a complete understanding of a connected butterfly.
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 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!
Search all of our clinics...or request a clinic in your area
