Anybody used a swim snorkel???

[Q.]

Since breathing is probably the biggest limitation to my swimming workout, this might be worth using! Not permanently but maybe mix it in with normal workouts. What do you think?

[swiminto]

Q...my swim buddy was using one of those yesterday.....he used it during a kick set with no board.....He also tried it when he was pulling and not using his legs.

Both times he said that the no breathing thing was a bit awkward to get used to, but it did give him chance to work/concentrate on his form. Especially when pulling and having his legs supported with a pullbouy.

I know this did not really help, but that is all he said about it.

[Q.]

Originally Posted by swiminto

Both times he said that the no breathing thing was a bit awkward to get used to

You mean, when he wasn't breathing normally, as in rotating? Hopefully, he was still breathing! Afterall, that is the point of the snorkel.

I hate to shell out the $$$ without some idea about this so, if you get a chance, please ask him if he'd recommend getting one of these.

THANKS!

[swiminto]

Hmm did I mention that the sets were hypoxic... You are correct though, he was not rotating to breathe.

I will probably see him tomorrow at practice I will ask him what the pros and cons are to swimming with this snorkel.

[Q.]

Muchas gracias!

[swiminto]

Hey Q..my buddy was not too impressed with the swim snorkel....in fact in the past few workouts, he has not even taken it out of his bag.

[Q.]

Originally Posted by swiminto

Hey Q..my buddy was not too impressed with the swim snorkel....in fact in the past few workouts, he has not even taken it out of his bag.

Thanks, for some reason, I was kinda feeling blah about the whole idea, too. That seals the deal, NO SHARK MAN SNORKEL FOR ME! THANKS!!!

Have a great weekend!

[milkman21]

Hey, I'm a little late to the discussion here, but hear me out.

I've used the swimmer's snorkel a good deal myself, and I feel it is an absolutely great tool.

(1) It helps balance your stroke
(2) It trains you to swim more efficiently in a straight line, with less bowing at the hips.
(3) It adds a hypoxic element which can be enhanced by taping over part of the opening.
(4) It allows you to become more technique-minded during your swims.
(5) It's a challenging change of pace.

For what it's worth, *many* top swimmers train with swimmer's snorkels. When I was at Auburn, the coaches swore by them, and they arranged for several sets per week for everyone. For some swimmers, particularly the ones who needed conditioning work, they used them even more often.

[Q.]

Originally Posted by milkman21

Hey, I'm a little late to the discussion here, but hear me out.

I've used the swimmer's snorkel a good deal myself, and I feel it is an absolutely great tool.

(1) It helps balance your stroke
(2) It trains you to swim more efficiently in a straight line, with less bowing at the hips.
(3) It adds a hypoxic element which can be enhanced by taping over part of the opening.
(4) It allows you to become more technique-minded during your swims.
(5) It's a challenging change of pace.

For what it's worth, *many* top swimmers train with swimmer's snorkels. When I was at Auburn, the coaches swore by them, and they arranged for several sets per week for everyone. For some swimmers, particularly the ones who needed conditioning work, they used them even more often.

COOL! Thanks for balancing the argument!!! I'll reconsider!

[swiminto]

Q, I have to agree with Milk..I liked the snorkel. It helped me focus on my proper technique, esp the front quadrant of my stroke, without having to worry about having my body go out of alignment when i rotate to breath. When I combined the snorkel and the pullbouy, that felt great to me, I felt like I was slipping through the water again, just like I did in college. (gasp 20 years ago)

Milk I have a question about the snorkel. I felt that it helped me with technique, but ,then again I do know what I am looking for and how my stroke feels best for me. What about a lap/fitness swimmer?

In my opinion, and that is all that it is, my opinion. I still suffer from the lap swimmer vs the competive swimmer syndrome..LOL I think lap swimmers should learn proper technique/form, before using swimming tools. I watch many a swimmer use a pullbouy and paddles, just so that they can go faster/longer or they know that the paddles enable them to add resistance so they plow through the water without a thought to adjusting technique. I can see people using the snorkel, much in the same way.

I guess I am old school eh? LOL

[Q.]

Originally Posted by swiminto

I watch many a swimmer use a pullbouy and paddles, just so that they can go faster/longer or they know that the paddles enable them to add resistance so they plow through the water without a thought to adjusting technique. I can see people using the snorkel, much in the same way.

I am very interested in improving my technique but I'm still a lap swimmer because my only means of improving is through reading posts or books or other published stuff. It's hard to objectively evaluate yourself and know what it is/is not that you should be doing.

I guess what I'm saying is that we're all lap swimmers until someone helps us get better... hard to do on your own when you don't know what you don't know. When you enter the competition ring, coaches become an ingredient in the mix but not everyone is interested in competing. If you don't compete, you often don't get coached.

[swiminto]

I was thinking about what I wrote this morning while I was swimming, and I thought to myself, I hope no one took/takes offense to the comment I made about the lap swimmer vs competetive swimmer, cause that was not my intent at all.

[milkman21]

swiminto,

I agree that "lap swimmers" (as you so belittlingly called them ) can, at times, overdo it with the use of equipment. However, a big part of learning any physical skill is training the neuromuscular system to operate in a particular, coordinated way. I think the snorkel can help with this.

In swimming, I think one of the most difficult things to teach (though easy to understand, conceptually) is the need to keep the body as linear as possible during all phases of the stroke. This means a small, narrow kick, a tight core with no bowing at the hips, and rotating through the hips and shoulders simultaneously.

Most swimmers don't do these things properly. Moreover, for many "beginners" (or even advanced swimmers who never learned proper technique), there is too much going on with kicking, pulling, rotating, and breathing for there to be any *real focus* on keeping the body as linear as possible. It's often too difficult to concentrate on all the technical aspects of the stroke when rotary breathing is in the mix, because breathing takes precedence over everything else. It's a primary instinct, after all.

For this reason, then, I like the idea of using a snorkel--no matter what your skill level may be. Removing the rotary breathing can really help get the feel for swimming in a straight line. It can also really help synchronize the rotation of hips and shoulders, balance the stroke, prevent the hands from crossing over the center line, and help keep the kick contained within the body's alignment. Simply put, when you don't have to concentrate on rotating every 3-5 seconds for air, you can put a lot more thought into the rest of your stroke.

I could probably go on, but I think this is sufficient.

Any thoughts?

[Q.]

Originally Posted by swiminto

I was thinking about what I wrote this morning while I was swimming, and I thought to myself, I hope no one took/takes offense to the comment I made about the lap swimmer vs competetive swimmer, cause that was not my intent at all.

Hey, I took no offense whatsoever! I thought you just meant competitive (= more likely to have been trained by someone) vs. noncompetive (= got in the water and tried not to drown). Made perfect sense to me.

Actually, I did have "swimming lessons" when I was little but technique was not the focus.

[Q.]

Originally Posted by milkman21

Any thoughts?

You kind of cued me into something about my own stroke. When I first get into the pool, I feel like I have a really sweet stroke and feel like I'm gliding almost effortlessly through the water. That's what keeps me coming back because that feels so right! Then, after about a lap , I start to struggle with my technique and it never feels as good unless I rest again first.

That's probably because I'm getting fatigued and requiring more 02. So, I need to improve my conditioning but I don't want to do so at the expense of practicing bad technique! Maybe the snorkel would be just the thing!

[milkman21]

Originally Posted by Q.

You kind of cued me into something about my own stroke. When I first get into the pool, I feel like I have a really sweet stroke and feel like I'm gliding almost effortlessly through the water. That's what keeps me coming back because that feels so right! Then, after about a lap , I start to struggle with my technique and it never feels as good unless I rest again first.

That's probably because I'm getting fatigued and requiring more 02. So, I need to improve my conditioning but I don't want to do so at the expense of practicing bad technique! Maybe the snorkel would be just the thing!

Exactly.

When any swimmer gets tired, technique suffers as those breaths become sky-high. We have some ridiculous subconscious belief that the O2 a foot above the water is higher quality than the O2 an inch above the water, and we strain our necks, over-rotate, bow at the hips, etc. to get it.

Depending on your level of conditioning and training, the technical breaking point can come pretty early... meaning technique suffers for the majority of a workout if this is the case.

A snorkel can at least train the proper technique, which can later be carried over more efficiently to the full stroke.

[Q.]

I tried using a regular snorkel today and, although I kind of expected this, you have to get used to keeping water out of your nose. I've done a lot of swimming and I've done a lot or diving/snorkeling so I guess those motor skills are fairly engrained. Combining them was a completely new experience!

[milkman21]

Q, you might try a simple nose plug. I used the clip-on type when using a swim snorkel. The point of the snorkel is to train your lungs--not to train your nose to self-plug, after all!

[finboy]