Front crawl help please

[actiongirl1978]

Hi all,

I've just started adult swimming lessons to ideally take me from swimming like a labrador with my nose out of the water, to sleek fast lane swimmer.

With the help of my teacher I have nailed breast stroke as it's meant to be done, plus I can just about do the breathing without a nose plug.

But when I swim crawl, I find I'm running out of breath after one or two strokes. As if the stroke is more phyically draining of oxygen (probably is as its harder) and after about half a length I have to pop up and take an absolutely massive proper breath.

Does anyone better at swimming have any tips please? I really want to nail it before my next swimming lesson. Ideally I'd like to get quite proficient as soon as possible!

Are you taking a breath on every 3rd stroke?

@dementedpixie I am trying that yes, although when I first did a few lengths of it in my lesson last week, the instructor said I should take a breath every second stroke - so turning on the same side each time.

Bizarrely it didn't feel right to do that though and my instinct was to go three strokes. All those hours watching my children's swimming lessons I think my head is programmed into 3 strokes not 2.

I don't agree with your instructor.
Breathing every 3 strokes ( bilateral breathing) can be extremely helpful for some, particularly with getting a good rhythm and head position.
I would say that if it feels better to you, go with it

Are you steadily breathing out underwater? Sounds silly but putting your face in and practising steadily blowing out helps. Also I would slow your stroke down if you are really getting out of breath. I'd get the rhythm right as you will naturally speed up as you get fitter.

Make sure you breathe out the air into the water in between breaths otherwise you are just topping up each time and not actually using the air . So, turn head, breath in, head down, steadily breathe out through nose or mouth to empty lungs, turn head and breathe in. That's the bit you don't see swimmers doing as it's under water. I'm in a club and we do lots of breathing drills, don't worry about nailing it first time but you will have a preferred breathing pattern, I can't do every two, three is best five is fine.

Oh and well done for getting lessons!

Thanks all, that's brilliant.

@Eightytwenty I would agree that my brain is whizzing trying to keep all the components of the stroke working properly AND get my breathing right!

@DDfollowed I wondered if I am breathing it all out too quickly like I do with breast stroke.

I had one lesson of breathing into the water slowly and gradually while I just held a float. I thought that because I had then done a few weeks of breast stroke breathing out under the water I had it totally nailed...obviously not! I do go for a swim most days, for about 30 mins so I have the time to practice assuming it isn't too busy.

I will absolutely try and slow it all down when I go tomorrow, see if the sedate swimmers won't mind me in the slow lane for a few days!

@FindingMeno The instructor didn't mind that I did 3, he had just told me to do 2 and my instinct was 3. He said there was a danger I would 'snake' if I did 3.

Ok so tomorrow I will slow it down and try to slow the breath down as I expel.

Thanks so much all! I knew I'd find answers here.

@horseymum thank you! I was forced into it slightly as I'm an injured runner! But I had been talking about doing it for a few years. Its such a brilliant feeling learning a new kind of exercise. I normally run and do weights but I've had to give them a miss due to injury too.

I'm loving swimming, only downside it isn't free like my running and weights were (I did the weights in the garage at home). And there is a LOT of exciting kit to buy!

Total immersion swimming. Jo Wright if you're around herts. cannot recommended total immersion enough, I literally can swim as long as I like now

@seperatedmum thanks, sadly not, a different Shire entirely. I'm happy with my instructor and I have only had two lessons so shouldn't expect miracles I suppose, but I'd like to sort the breathing asap.

It took me about a year to sort front crawl!

My preferred breathe is every 4, I feel too heady with 2. I can do 3 or 5 but 4 is my go to ( breathing same side). You need to experiment and choose what suits you.

There's nothing wrong with doing 1/2 length FC and switching to BS whenever. I did this to build up the stamina. Perhaps alternate starting FC or BS. Keep doing this and you will find you go further on FC and will eventually get the length.

Breathing is important, but don't take too much breath, it's easy to gulp, thinking you need more air because of what you are doing. Focus on breathing everything out when your head is in the water, and then taking a normal breath when your head is at the side. You can either breathe out in a rhythm, like 1-2-3, to coordinate with your arms, or do a big burst. Again you need to experiment.

And like a PP, slow your stroke. Good FC isn't always about being fast paced, a slower effective stroke (with arms/ rotation) is for me faster than going all out with arms. I would also say kick less if you can, although I need to work on my kicking as I've got pretty lazy with that!

[quote actiongirl1978]@seperatedmum thanks, sadly not, a different Shire entirely. I'm happy with my instructor and I have only had two lessons so shouldn't expect miracles I suppose, but I'd like to sort the breathing asap.[/quote]
ok, well then maybe check out the YouTube formerly known as triathlon Taren about the "no lion breathing just a little sip" thing, really really helped me. plus my original instructor never explained how to keep my legs up and make myself less tired so once I learnt that I was laughing

I am having similar issues with trying to swim front crawl. I'm fine with breaststroke, but run out of oxygen really fast with front crawl and also have to stop before the end of the length and switch to breaststroke. I find I'm much better if I try to slow right down and don't aim to get to the end of the length - just focus on the movements rather than speed. I think I panic and just want it to be over, so I try and go as fast as I can, but if I do this then I don't leave enough time to breathe out, so when I lift my head to inhale my lungs aren't quite empty.

I also find my lack of control with front crawl really difficult. With breaststroke I can look around on the inhale to check for other swimmers etc, but feel like I'm swimming blind with front crawl. Hoping this will get better in time?

Also saying well done here to all the posters wanting to learn how to swim FC properly. I've been swimming consistently for five years now and it brings me so much joy. It's hard to persevere through the early stages!

I'd second breathing every 3, really surprised your instructor said about snaking - I think you're more likely to be unbalanced going to the same side.

this 1:52

I was taught that 3 is optimum but it took a long time to go from 2 to 3. I did swim diagonally across the pool to the chagrin of the genteel older ladies who never deviated from their 4 stroke breaststroke widths in the entire time that this whippersnapper took lessons (It was the 90's and the culture has got much kinder to learners in any sport)

Youtube is a great asset to beginners too.

It will take time and patience. It took me about 4 months to do my first length after a starting point of frantically thrashing out a width and being exhausted. The first thing I was taught was to slow down. That helps with breathing! 11m after the first length I was swimming a mile.

It was breast stroke that took me much longer. I finally managed to work from the heads in rythum from crawl. I tend to find every other stroke better than every third for that.

Can I join in the chat, I’m a rubbish swimmer but I’m trying to improve. Every time I take a breath I take in water and choke!! Any ideas?

Are you holding your breath as you swim? Many people do that without really realising, then they’re gasping for air. There’s a few things to try:

• concentrate on breathing out steadily through the nose, then taking a breath before you completely run out of air;

• consciously breathe every 3 strokes, or every 4 (whatever feels comfortable & in rhythm), even if you feel you don’t ‘need’ to breathe. Focus on blowing air out through the nose just before turning your head, then suck the air in & turn the head back.

It could be that you find the stroke more demanding than breaststroke, but if you can do lengths of that it likely isn’t a stamina thing. You need to learn how to control your breathing - with breaststroke it’s easy since the head is regularly out of the water, but with crawl you have to think about both exhaling & inhaling.

There are different schools of thought about whether you should steadily breathe out while swimming, or a slightly different strategy that involves timing the exhale a bit more. As you’re a new swimmer, I’d say trying the steady exhale is a good starting point. You can also practice it without moving: lie on your front (perhaps holding onto the pool wall or steps), or even stand in the shallow end and bend forward to put your face in, and breathe out slowly underwater, turning your head to breathe as you need to. This also helps develop body rotation, a key part of the crawl.

Hope this helps. Happy swimming!

Lots of good advice here and sorry if it's been mentioned but have you got a strong kick going at the same time? If your arms are doing most of the work it's going to be more tiring and you might want to breathe more frequently because of that.

We were talking about this the other day I came to front crawl very late and only learnt when I got to 40. I was exactly the same as you I still remember feeling elated the first time I did a whole length.

Things that helped me was slow everything down I always tried moving too fast. Also chin right down so head fully streamlined in water.

One of the ladies I was talking to was just learning in her 60s and she chants bubble bubble bubble breath when she’s doing it.

Try and aim for half a length to start with. I’ve built mine up over 10 years, initially I was in a 20m pool and would do one length crawl followed by one length breast stroke and I’d rest every 10 lengths. Now I do 2k crawl comfortably

As if the stroke is more phyically draining of oxygen (probably is as its harder) and after about half a length I have to pop up and take an absolutely massive proper breath.

This is exactly what I am working on.

Want to swim well enough for it to be exercise but run out of breath long, long before my muscles are used.

Intuitively, I find my self expecting to run out of breath (as you say, expecting it to need more oxygen and so breathing harder) and so gasping for breath. My teacher has me trickling the air out blowing bubbles very gently and then taking a much gentler, smaller breath in

All very calm.

While I practise this, the suggested around when I run out of breath is to turn onto my back for a few 'normal' breaths til I'm ready to start the trickle out and breath in gently again.

@FinallyHere that's a brilliant idea of turning over before starting again, probably a much easier transition than going from breast to crawl as your body is in the same position I'll try that tomorrow.

@sauvignonblanket I think I might have but I'm not sure on account of my brain trying to think of all the things at once I know they are in the right place because I am looking at the bottom of the pool and my body doesn't feel 'tipped' like in breast stroke.

Fab - as well as being in the right place are you kicking hard? It's easy to forget when focussing on arms but for me it really helps everything else fall into place.

I'll check myself tomorrow on the kicking.

So my key points for tomorrow so far:
Slow down
Dont be afraid to stop after half a length (poss turn onto back for a few strokes)
Think about kicking properly
Trickle my breath more and don't blow it all out too soon
Dont try to gulp air when I breathe

Thank you all so much! Its nice to know I wasn't the only child who didn't learn this in the early 1980s. Its only recently I realised you don't swim breast stroke like a frog any more. We were held on the bars at the side of the pool and told to make frog legs and that's they way I swam until I was 43. Its so so much fun swimming properly now!