Three essential stages in learning freestyle—practices that become more refined with consistent training.

•4 min read
Three essential stages in learning freestyle—practices that become more refined with consistent training.
As swimming distance and experience grow, the deeper one’s appreciation for the activity becomes—and the more they come to love it. The human mind and body are naturally synchronized in any given endeavor: mental tension inevitably leads to physical tightness, and when the body is tense, the mind struggles to truly unwind as well. Yet once you master the art of relaxation through swimming, both mind and body transcend to a whole new level of harmony. As a natural consequence, overall physical health begins to flourish effortlessly.
The process of learning freestyle can generally be divided into three stages: the first stage focuses on mastering relaxation and balance; the second stage involves breaking down the movements and timing your strokes effectively; and the third stage is all about refining your balance, perfecting technical details, and honing your ability to control your swimming rhythm. As they say, "All beginnings are difficult," but improvement becomes even tougher—especially when you hit a plateau where breakthroughs feel particularly elusive. That’s why there are three key exercises that swimmers should revisit regularly, as they can help push past these challenging barriers.

1. Floatboard Kick Practice
While the float kick exercise with a pull buoy can be done later under the full immersion approach, that doesn’t mean it’s unimportant. After all, in any sport, strong lower-body muscles are essential—without them, your overall performance would suffer significantly. And if you skip solid kick practice, maintaining balance in freestyle swimming becomes nearly impossible over time. Yet balance is the key prerequisite for swimming freestyle smoothly and efficiently.
When practicing flutter kicks with a kickboard, keep two key points in mind: First, make small kicking motions with quick speed; second, focus on using the tops of your feet to press and push the water—pay close attention to the sensation of pushing rather than simply snapping your legs through the water. Additionally, remember to engage your hips for power during kickboard drills, rather than relying solely on your knees. As you initiate the hip rotation for each kick, try to mimic the relaxed, playful movement of your legs when you’re being affectionate, letting your waist and hips guide the fluid motion of your lower limbs.

2. Single-sided swimming practice

When swimming freestyle, the body alternates side-to-side movements. These lateral rotations are best executed by coordinated motion of both the shoulder and hip joints. There are two key points to keep in mind regarding body rotation: First, the amplitude of the rotation should be just right—neither too shallow nor overly exaggerated. It shouldn’t fall below 15 degrees or exceed 45 degrees, ideally settling somewhere between these two limits, with the arm’s ability to smoothly transition into a high-elbow recovery position after exiting the water serving as your guide.

Practice has shown that when the high-elbow recovery movement is executed correctly, the underwater push phase can be significantly improved—though any differences may not be dramatic. Single-side swimming drills involve performing the entire sequence of movements (catch, pull, and recovery) on just one side of the body, while keeping the opposite arm either stationary, extended forward, or relaxed along the body’s side. The key to mastering this drill lies in maintaining a stable body axis during the high-elbow recovery, which requires the shoulder and hip joints to rotate as symmetrically as possible—and simultaneously keeps the core muscles engaged at an optimal level of tension.

3. Hip Rotation and Glute Push-Up Exercise

Swimming speed is the combined result of stroke length and stroke frequency. For swimmers who maintain a consistent stroke length, increasing stroke frequency directly translates to faster swimming speeds. The key to boosting stroke frequency lies in improving the speed of your body's lateral rotation—or more specifically, the speed of your hip rotation. When practicing hip rotations, there are two crucial points to keep in mind: First, focus on feeling how the hip movement naturally drives your kicking motion; second, consciously engage your glutes by tightening and actively pressing them upward during the rotation. Enhancing the speed of your hip rotation will directly help increase your stroke frequency. As you perform these drills, make a deliberate effort to accelerate the pace of your hip turns. After the hip rotation initiates the kick, follow through with an upward hip movement—while simultaneously engaging your gluteal muscles, even lifting your hips slightly higher. This not only supports the next stroke but also provides optimal assistance for your upcoming pull.

These exercises aren’t just for freestyle beginners—swimmers with some experience can also use the three drills to identify areas and details in their technique that need improvement, helping them steadily enhance their swimming skills.

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