Crawl Technique: Position and Kick

Body alignment as a hydrodynamic foundation

In freestyle, efficiency begins with body position. Before thinking about propulsion, the coach must ensure that the swimmer minimizes forward resistance.

The goal is to maintain as perfect a horizontal alignment as possible, known as the streamline position.

If the hips or legs sink, the swimmer's frontal area increases, acting as a hydrodynamic brake.

To correct this, specific exercises such as the streamline kicks are used.

This exercise forces the athlete to keep the body tense and aligned from the hands to the feet, developing the proprioception necessary to sense when their body is cutting through the water efficiently and when it is generating unnecessary resistance.

The mechanics of the crawl kick

The freestyle kick serves a dual function: propulsion and stabilization.

Although most of the speed comes from the arms, an inefficient kick can destroy rhythm and body position.

The kick should be born from the hips, with the legs relatively straight but relaxed, avoiding excessive bending of the knees ("pedaling"), which increases resistance.

A common mistake is to kick just to avoid sinking. The coach must transform the kick into an active motor. To do this, the "side kick" exercise is used.

By isolating the kick in an unstable sideways position, the swimmer is forced to improve his balance and strengthen the action of the legs to move forward, which translates directly into better propulsion when swimming the full stroke

Integration of rotation

A critical aspect of the position is the rotation of the body on the longitudinal axis (body roll).

The swimmer should not remain flat on the stomach; he/she should rotate from side to side with each stroke.

This rotation allows the large muscles of the back and torso to be involved in the pull, rather than relying only on the shoulders, and facilitates a more relaxed and higher arm recovery.

The side kick drills mentioned above are fundamental to teaching the swimmer to be comfortable in this rotated position, which is the basis for a powerful and biomechanically safe freestyle stroke.

Summary

Efficiency begins with perfect horizontal body alignment to minimize resistance. Keeping the hips high avoids acting as a hydrodynamic brake during the entire swim.

The kick is born from the hips with relaxed legs, fulfilling propulsion and stability functions. It is an active motor that must be strengthened to prevent the body from sinking.

The rotation of the body on the longitudinal axis allows the large muscles of the back to be involved. This rotation facilitates a powerful stroke and a relaxed arm recovery.