The Space Between the Strokes

If “music is the space between the notes,” a concept often attributed to Claude Debussey (and to Glenn’s Mom, an accomplished singer), then is swimming the space between the strokes?   Join us this week as we talk about how to tune in to what happens BETWEEN strokes – those moments when you’re not pulling or kicking, but simply letting your body move through the water.

⚙️ **3. What Happens to Velocity**

If you imagine two shapes of equal frontal area and force:

• A **streamlined ellipse/tapered body** keeps flow attached → less drag → more velocity for same power.

• A **vertex-ended body** creates early separation → more drag → less velocity for same power.

Quantitatively, the difference can be large:

• For smooth vs. blunt-ended shapes of the same size, drag coefficients (C\_d) differ roughly **0.04 vs. 0.4–0.6** —

a **10× difference** in drag for the same frontal area.

That’s why swimmers — and fish — have rounded, tapered shoulders, hips, and feet, not sharp corners.

⸻

🧠 **4. Swimmer Application**

• **Head and hands:** Pointed enough to part the water cleanly.

• **Shoulders and hips:** Rounded and rotating to delay flow separation.

• **Feet and toes:** Together and streamlined at the finish of each kick to minimize vortex shedding.

Every time a limb creates a “vertex,” you get a small *mini wake* that eats velocity.

Smooth rotation and body alignment help those wakes reattach or dissipate cleanly.

⸻

🏁 **5. In plain words**

**Vertices are velocity killers** —

they cause water to peel off too soon, create turbulence, and waste energy you could’ve used for forward motion.

A swimmer’s goal is to **replace sharp transitions with smooth, continuous curves** — exactly how a dolphin or torpedo keeps water hugging its body until the very end.

**Monday**

**All Strokes: Practice Pushoffs**

Pushoffs.  Streamlines.  Glides and underwaters.  Stretches of time on EVERY length when you’re not pulling or kicking but simply allowing your body to glide through the water.  The SHAPE of your body will determine how well you maintain your momentum.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/1914-all-strokes-how-to-push-off>

**Tuesday**

**Kelsi Worrell: Butterfly Full Body**

Watch closely for the moments when Kelsi is not pulling or kicking.  Her body is in balance, allowing her to take full advantage of the pull and kick that she’s setting up in each “in between” moment.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2322-butterfly-full-body>

**Wednesday**

**Margaret Hoelzer: Backstroke Full-Body Rotation**

Watch for the moments just before Margaret Hoelzer initiates her catch.  Her body is balanced and horizontal.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/933-backstroke-full-body-rotation>

**Thursday**

**Brendan Hansen: Streamline Timing**

In this clip, try not to watch the kick or the pull.  Focus only on what happens between the kick and the pull.  Watch for the streamline.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/237-streamline-timing>

**Friday**

**Joao de Lucca: Freestyle Extension**

For Joao de Lucca, swimming happens between pulls – during the extension.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2053-freestyle-extension>

**Saturday**

The defining aspect of James Guy’s freestyle is not his pull or kick.  It’s his bodyline during extension, the moments when he is moving forward in horizontal balance.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2579-freestyle-full-body>

**Sunday**

**Kara Lynn Joyce: Learn to Swim Soft to Go Fast**

To feel what happens between strokes, three-time Olympic sprinter Kara Lynn Joyce slows down.  It’s all about bodyline, head position, hand entry, catch, and technique.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/661-learn-to-swim-soft-to-go-fast>


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Nov. 4, 2025 - The Space Between the Strokes