The key to moving fast in backstroke is not… to move…your head.

In this clip, I’m swimming race-pace backstroke.  I’m moving my arms and my body as fast as I can, but watch my head.  It barely moves.

Let’s slow that down.  Notice how my head remains rock steady, even when my body is rotating.  

Holding my head rock steady and super still lets all the other focus points fall into place.  A steady head helps me rotate, it lets my hand recover and enter at the right place, it lets me take full advantage of my pull and kick, and it sends me forward.  

But I’m getting ahead of myself.  Like I said, the key to everything in backstroke is keeping your head extremely still.

**Common Error**
Here’s what can happen if you let your head move from side to side.    Your body will follow your head…and you’ll move from side to side down the pool.
    
Nobody wants to swim extra yards like this, so it’s important to keep your head from rocking back and forth. 

It also makes a difference how you hold your head.  Notice in this clip that I keep my head and neck aligned and stable.  I try to keep a neutral or natural position – tucking the chin just slightly.

Also notice my eyes.  I look up, and just slightly toward my feet.  

**Common Error**
If you look too much toward your feet, as this swimmer is doing, you create a lot of resistance with your head, and you have to kick harder and pull harder to overcome it.

Try to keep your head and neck in a straight line.  Look up and slightly forward.   If you get it right, you should be looking at the ceiling or sky not directly above your face, but directly above your feet.

Let’s look at that from a different angle.  Notice that my head is steady and that the water is touching my ears.   I’m almost leaning in with the back of my head and the top of my spine.    Leaning in like this helps keep my hips high and gives me a more streamlined shape in the water.

You can see this a little better from under water.  Notice how much of my head you can see.  That means I’m looking mostly up…and that I’m leaning in with the back of my head.  As a result, my hips and legs ride higher in the water, and I’ve got less drag to overcome.

Here’s a fun drill that will make you more aware of your head position in backstroke.    .  Take a water bottle that’s about half full and place it on your forehead.  Then try to swim backstroke without losing the bottle. You might have to go really slow at first, but if you keep your head rock steady, you can soon build to full speed. 

Keeping your head absolutely still and rock steady is the Number One skill for a fast backstroke.


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Rock-Steady Head