If you want a fast breaststroke, make sure you're heading in the right direction.

Why do it:
Limiting downward direction in the recovery of breaststroke get your body ready to accept the propulsion from the kick.

How to do it:
1 - Brendan Hansen shows us clearly, that by keeping the hands in contact with the surface of the water as far through the recovery as possible, we'll send the hands forward in a straight line.
2 - When the head falls into line, the hands are held close to the surface, again, aiming straight toward the other end.
3 - The body falls into line with the eyes showing under the arms when seen from the side.

How to do it really well (the fine points):
The hands LEAD the direction of the stroke, so making sure the line forward is as straight as possible means you'll take a shorter line to the other end of the pool.

With the hands leading in a straight line, the timing of the stroke will also improve, so the front half is ready to move forward when the kick comes in.

See more of Brendan's great breaststroke at our website.

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Breaststroke - The Hands Lead the Way