The Wave Breaststroke: Tips from a Master The Wave Breaststroke ...

Learn from the MASTERS
Photo #4—”Corners” Body Position
In the “Corners” position, my chest is pressed
forward and down. My head and hands stay up
near the surface of the water. By pressing down
with my chest, my hips rise up to the surface of the
water.
Brandon: While working with Caroline, we focused
on keeping her head down during the
outsweep and pressing her palms toward the side
walls (to the “corners”), which is where the insweep
begins.
Photo #5—Insweep
I am just completing a rapid insweep of my
hands; the acceleration creates lift and power. My
hips move forward, but my legs remain streamlined,
preparing for a powerful kick.
Brandon: I had Caroline work on keeping her elbows
up and squeezing in everything (hands, forearms
and elbows) during the insweep. This action
(insweep to recovery) should be an acceleration of
speed to the front, not a static or deceleration of
speed. Additionally, during the insweep, I encourage
Caroline to keep her head down, looking at the surface
while she takes a breath.
Photo #6—Arm Recovery, Dive Forward
My hands are recovering over the surface of the
water. The recovery is fast, powerful and smooth.
My goal is to drive my body forward and extend.
My hands, elbows and shoulders stay close together
to stay streamlined and not to create resistance.
My legs are being drawn up in preparation for the
kick.
Brandon: During the arm recovery, I ask Caroline
to think about “diving” the top (crown) of her head
forward, as opposed to diving her forehead forward.
Photo #7—Breaststroke Kick to Streamline
Finally, I finish the drill cycle with a powerful
breaststroke kick. Make sure to accelerate through
the kick with feet together and finish streamline.
Brandon: The focus of the kick should be to keep
the knees inside of the ankles and finish each kick
completely (feet together)
with a slight downward
motion. This allows maximum
propulsion and helps
the hips to return to the
surface.
Brandon Seider is the assistant
swimming coach at
UC Santa Barbara.
Photo #4
Photo #5
Photo #6
Photo #7
24 SWIM — JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2004 GET YOUR FEET WET AT WWW.SWIMINFO.COM