Backstroke - straight or bent arm?

[Anonymous]

I decided to take a stroke refinement course and the instructor is teaching bent arm which is natural for me. Her method if bend in at the side push hand down once back at hip. I have previously been doing straight arm backstroke.

The bent arm -pushing hand down once at the hip- is confusing the heck out of me. It’s almost a backwards sculling with the hand. I went to YouTube and see videos saying do not bend.

Did I enroll in a terrible course?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I decided to take a stroke refinement course and the instructor is teaching bent arm which is natural for me. Her method if bend in at the side push hand down once back at hip. I have previously been doing straight arm backstroke.

The bent arm -pushing hand down once at the hip- is confusing the heck out of me. It’s almost a backwards sculling with the hand. I went to YouTube and see videos saying do not bend.

Did I enroll in a terrible course?

The truth will be revealed in your times... are they better?

If you don't compete, then the criteria would be sustainability - does the switch allow you go longer/further with the same/similar effort?

[Anonymous]

Do you mean underwater? Yes, arm is bent underwater

[Anonymous]

you want to recover with a straight arm, and pull with a bent arm.

What YouTube video did you watch.

Of you want good advice, you need to communicate clearly.

And in general, it's really tacky to jump to questioning your teacher's incompetence at the first moment of difficulty you experience.

[Anonymous]

Olympians do windmills above water, fippers under water.

[Anonymous]

I don't think straight arm underwater is ergonomically optimal, OP. You'll probably strain your shoulder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Olympians do windmills above water, fippers under water.

This. Windwill above water gets arm back to the water faster (straight, streamline trajectory) to allow more progress quicker. Under water you want to have more "sideways" movement as a means to have more to "push" against, gaining more velocity. You forward trajectory come from pushing and pulling against the water.

[Anonymous]

You should be able to do the arm movements if you stand an inch or so in front of a wall (straight arm up then push “down” to the side)

[Anonymous]

All strokes have the same mechanic of pushing the water. Stand with your back to the wall, arms in cactus arms palms facing away. Then from your shoulders flip your cactus arms down while maintaining the 90 degree angle at your elbows and your palms are now facing the wall behind you.

For free, fly, and back you’ll always push the water away at your hips. Breast obviously keeps that pull in front of your chest.

A good drill for the straight arm phase of back is to practice deliberately bringing your hand out of the water thumb up, rotate to pinky entering the water first. Then bring your arm back to that cactus (palm up) and push the water to your hip (palm down). You’ll also need to practice the idea of rolling your torso side to side.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think straight arm underwater is ergonomically optimal, OP. You'll probably strain your shoulder.

Agree.