Breaststroke technique drills

Timing Breakdown: Pause and Pull

To correct common breaststroke coordination errors, the king drill is the Pause and Pull Drill. This drill forces the swimmer to consciously separate the phases of the swim.

The athlete is instructed to perform a stroke, breathe, kick and then hold the glide (arrow) position for a two- or three-second count before initiating the next cycle.

This recalibrates the nervous system to respect the glide and ensures that the kick is completely over before the arms begin to generate resistance again.

Its purpose is to synchronize the kick and jerk for maximum hydrodynamic efficiency, eliminating the overlapping movements that slows progress

Power kicking: The wall drill

The breaststroke kick is technical and requires specific flexibility in the ankles and hips. To improve mechanics and strength, the "Frog kick against the wall" is used.

The swimmer holds onto the edge of the pool with his hands, body extended, and practices the kick statically.

This allows the coach to observe from above the symmetry of the legs, the external rotation of the feet necessary for the water grip and the speed of the leg lock.

By eliminating the floating and breathing component, the athlete can concentrate solely on improving the strength and technique of the kick whip.

Sensitivity and grip: Sculling

Finally, to improve the pull phase, "Sculling with pull buoy" exercises are employed.

By isolating the legs with a float, the swimmer must hold on and move forward using only the sweeping motion of the hands and forearms.

Different types of sculling (outward sweep, inward sweep) can be practiced for the athlete to develop the "feel of the water".

This improves proprioception of the hands, teaching the athlete to find the proper pressure in the water to generate propulsion without "slipping".

Other advanced exercises such as "2 k