When Scott decides to turn on his kick, you can barely see him.  His kick is quick, compact, and powerful…and he works on it every day.

Scott’s kick can be described in one word:  consistent.  No matter what speed he’s swimming, Scott maintains a steady, consistent rhythm with his legs – and he never lets them drift or slide outside the shadow of his body.

When Scott is swimming smooth and easy, his feet barely break the surface of the water.  But notice the consistency.    It’s not a big kick, but the legs are always moving.  And the toes are always pointed.

If we slow it down, we can see that Scott takes 6 to 8 kicks on every stroke cycle, even when he’s going easy.   

That’s a lot of kicks, but as a world-class sprinter, Scott feels this is the minimum number of kicks he should take, no matter what.  

If you’re a triathlete or distance freestyler, six kicks may be too many.  But what you can learn from Scott is the importance of making your kick consistent and steady, and keeping it narrow and compact.  

Here’s a rare clip of Scott taking just a few kicks per stroke.  If you take only 2 or 4 kicks per stroke, this is the kind of flow and consistency you want to achieve.  

At race pace, Scott’s feet do come above the water.  This gives him even more foot speed because he’s catching some air and dragging it down.  This allows his feet to travel with greater speed through the water.

Here’s race pace from under water.  Notice that the air is being dragged down not by the front part of the feet, but from the back part of the feet. 

Scott points his toes, and this gives him a great surface to push on, and the air allows the feet to move a little faster.

How fast?  At full speed, Scott takes an amazing 12 to 14 kicks per stroke cycle.   

Even at 12 kicks per cycle, Scott’s kick is fluent and natural.  It’s not overdone.  He keeps the movement small and controlled.  He keeps his toes pointed at all times.

Here you can see that the thighs move, but are hidden behind his body.  His knees bend a little, but never at sharp angles.  The feet whip through the water, just barely going outside the shadow of his body.

While you may not achieve Scott’s leg speed, his kind of steady, rhythmic, consistent kick, is something worth striving for. 


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Consistent Kick