Kicking Technique

Originally published on the USA Swimming website

This  week’s Speedo Tip of the Week comes from Deb Whitney, USA Swimming’s physiology coordinator and holder of several school records at Dartmouth College. Whitney offers some advice on kicking technique.

Whitney’s Tip:

It is important for you to think about your kick and how it fits into the rest of your stroke. If you look at the top American swimmers, you will notice that the number of kicks, strength of the kicks and kicking technique is different for each swimmer.

Some swimmers kick with a six-beat kick in freestyle (six kicks for each stroke cycle), while others use a two-beat kick or a four-beat kick. A six-beat kick raises the legs slightly higher in the water, and the energy needed to maintain this kick during training or racing is higher than for a four-beat or two-beat kick.

In the past, it was thought that distance swimmers should use a two or four-beat kick, while sprinters should use a six-beat kick. We now realize that the type of kick a swimmer uses is only as important as how well it fits into and complements their stroke.

As with everything, practicing your kick is very important. Kick in practice the way you want to kick in competition. I would recommend discussing your kicking technique with your coach to determine what works best for you.