BACKSTROKE TECHNIQUE

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Backstroke Technique Basics

• Body Position– The body position should be straight and flat. This position allows the hips and shoulders and feet to ride high in the water creating the position for minimal resistance/drag. The ears, shoulders, hips (and toes) should form a relatively horizontal line. Get your “belly button dry” and “no reading books in bed” while swimming backstroke!

• Head Position-The correct head position is vital for achieving correct body position. The head should be laid back in the water (not tilted from neck, but in line with spine and relaxed) so the eyes look upward toward the roof or sky and they stay there at all times.  A bit of up and down arching happens naturally as the recovering hand hits the water, but it needs to be under control. Sometimes it helps to tell kids that it’s OK if a small trickle of water (bow wave) flows over their face just as the hand enters above, caused by arching the body a bit with a strong forward throw of the arm from high up. Pro Tip: It is actually more advantageous to arch your back and tip your head just slightly under water just as the hand enters, as you can take advantage of the surge that comes from the power of the kick and throwing the hand back combined. It only goes under because the back arches just a bit, NOT because the head tilts back from the neck. The head comes back out again during the pulling motion, as it gives your body a better position to generate more power. So, when you need to go really fast, a little “arching” is OK. Please Note: Just jumping up and down (bobbing) is usually caused by the hand pushing water straight down at the end of pull rather than back.

• Kicking– The kicking action is generated from the hips and upper thighs with feet below surface and knees bending minimally. Swimmers should use a continuous 6 beat kick and it should be fast, small kicks with knees staying under water and fairly straight. Legs should rotate side to side as the body rotates (so as not to crisscross them), so you technically end up kicking on your side more than straight on the back. Usually everyone could use more tempo and less amplitude while kicking, if they want to swim faster.

• Underwaters– You can definitely underwater dolphin kick faster than you can swim backstroke. Utilize both up and down kick phases, plus your hips, while coming off of the turns/starts to maximize the speed. UWDK kicks are incredibly important for fast backstroke. Practice it specifically for backstroke starts and turns, as it is hard to maintain straight body alignment and line of movement because of disorientation on your back under water.

• Hand Entry and Exit– The hand enters directly in front of the shoulder. Arms should be fully extended and the little finger enters first to set up the catch/early vertical forearm. Hand exits with thumb or wrist first and then turns in the air to pinky first entry again.

• Arm Action– Early vertical forearm! The arms initially sweep and catch in a downward and outward pattern as the body is rotated to side. They then complete the pull keeping the palm/forearm perpendicular to the body for as long as possible and straightening out at the end. At the completion of the pull, the hand ends by the hips as low (not deep) as possible (Don’t let the hand at the end of stroke push water down). The recovery begins with a relaxed wrist and forearm (thumb out first), with the wrist firming again on entry in the front and pinky finger entering the water first. Arm swings back to front straight and above the shoulder, with the shoulder extending as high up towards the ceiling as possible to reach farther at entry. Shoulder should be higher than the cheek at every stroke. ALWAYS be pushing water straight back, NOT to sides or up and down.

• Tempo– Fast tempo is perhaps the second most important component of fast backstroke. More than in freestyle, backstroke is shoulder driven, hips will follow as necessary. It’s easier to get a faster tempo if you concentrate on rotating your shoulders faster.

• Hip and Shoulder Rotation– Backstroke is mostly shoulder driven because of the high stroke rate needed for shorter distances (max race is 200) and the feature of the stroke being symmetrical (you don’t need to breathe sideways). Shoulders should rotate aggressively, but hips can stay just a tiny bit steadier than in real distance (hip driven) freestyle. Yes the hips and legs/feet will rotate side to side, but each swimmer needs to find the balance between rotation degree and stroke rate. Probably same as in freestyle, the longer distances allow for more hip rotation as the stroke rate is slower, but you don’t really have time to rotate hips as much in sprints. The important part is the aggressive rotation happening in some way and never really staying on your back, but rather always moving side to side and doing so fast.

• Bent Arm Pulling– Make narrow tracks. With good rotation, it’s fairly easy and pulling with bent arms (vs straight) helps you to push water back, not sideways and saves your shoulders from crazy amounts of torque. Ideal elbow bend is 100-130 degrees, so definitely not as bent as in freestyle, but definitely NOT totally straight (a common mistake with young swimmers) either. Just make sure to rotate, otherwise fingertips start coming out of the water mid-pull.

• Shoulder Height and Entry Speed– When the arm recovers, it should always move at as high of an arc as possible, with the arm really stretching upwards from the shoulder joint and body turned to the side, NOT just shoulders curled towards the chest. Related to that is hand entry speed. The arms should enter the water straight, fast and with force. Don’t be gentle and do make a splash.

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