Swimming on the back: equipment and types

Swimming on the back is the most specific style of swimming, which is radically different from everyone else. The advantage of swimming on the back is that it allows you to breathe freely. Today we will find out how to properly swim on our backs, and find out what is useful for this exercise.

Benefit

Swimming on the back, like other types of swimming, is an excellent cardio exercise. In addition, it is very useful for the spine. And even with the correct execution of the exercise allows you to work well around such muscle groups as the broadest muscles of the back, hips, shoulders and trapezium. Swimming of a man on his back helps make his posture more beautiful, and his back is wider. Well, representatives of the weaker sex choose this exercise to tighten the whole body, to become slimmer and more enduring.

The technique of swimming on the back is not very difficult, however, when you start mastering it, be patient and determined, since at first, most likely, nothing will work.

Kinds

Swimming on your back is of two kinds: breaststroke and crawl. However, the breast has no sporting value. It is used either for rest after a long swim, or for rescuing drowning people. Krol on the back is more known and common. Many competitions are held on it. Krol is also part of the Olympic Games program. Therefore, today we will pay more attention to this species.

According to the technique of execution, the crotch on the back is very similar to the eponymous style on the chest, only the movements are performed in a mirror image.

Body position

First you need to take a horizontal position on the back and fully extend the body. The chin needs to be tightened to the chest, and the eyes are fixed on the toes. The back should be slightly bent in the thoracic area, and lift the chest (just try to reduce the scapula). When the arms are extended beyond the head, the water level should be at the level of the ear shells. This is the starting point.

If you can not keep the collections pressed against your chest, try the following exercise. Between the chin and chest squeeze the tennis ball. Try not to drop it. Controlling the ball, you will learn to follow your chin and keep it pressed to your chest for a long time. Having mastered the exercise on land, try it on the water. Soon you will be able to completely abandon the ball.

Movement of hands

The cycle of movement of hands during the implementation of this technique of swimming is divided into three phases: "capture", "pull-up" and "return". So, let's start with the "capture". The outstretched hand is immersed in the water with the palm of his hand, that is, the first to enter the water is the little finger. In this phase, the hand grasps the volume of water, which in the future will have to be pushed out. It's time to perform the "pull-up". For this, the hand moves under the water towards the thigh, pushing out the water. In the final stage of "pull-up" the hand passes near the hip and comes out of the water with the little finger up. Here the "return" begins, during which the hand simply returns to the position for "capture".

When the first hand is under water, in the middle of the "pull-up", the second one performs a return. The hands must always be in opposite phases. Between them there should always be a half-turn.

Movement of legs

The legs in swimming on the back move in the same way as in the free style, - counter strokes up and down. During movement, the distance between the legs should be 15-30 centimeters. One cycle (a full circle with one hand) includes three hits with each foot, that is, six strokes in total. Movement is mainly due to the muscles of the thigh. Knees should be relaxed, and socks slightly stretched. Movement must be biting. With the proper work of the feet, they create a small fountain on the surface of the water. In this case, only the feet can slightly look out, and the knees should always be under water. As in freestyle, the body receives the main impulse through the work of the hands, not the legs.

Swimming on the back: nuances

Looking at the athletes sailing on their backs, one might think that their hands are always in a straight position, but this is not so. A straight hand, cutting water, will not give any impulse to the body. To quickly swim on your back, you need to learn how to do the so-called S-shaped bending of the hands. Let's analyze step by step what he is.

After the "capture" the hand must push the water to the feet. For this, the arm bends at the elbow in the direction of the waist. Imagine that you need to push the ball to your feet. This is how the movement of the hand under the water should look like. After the push, the hand again aligns and turns so that the little finger comes out first from the water.

In addition, during the "pull-up" the body turns around its axis in the direction of the working arm. All these simple tricks allow you to achieve maximum speed.

Training

To work out the right technique, first learn how to work with your feet. When the kicks are brought to automatic, you can safely swim without hands. This will allow you to train your hands without thinking of having to stay on the water.

To learn how to work with the body, you will also need to swim on your back without hands. The arms are stretched along the trunk. The body turns alternately from side to side with a periodicity of three hits by the feet. At the end of the turn, the shoulder should be slightly peeked out of the water. Do not forget that the head should always be face up.

Common Errors

We will analyze the most typical mistakes in the development of swimming on the back and the ways to solve them.

1. The body does not slip on the surface of the water, but it seems to stretch. The reason is simple: the legs are bent in the hip joint, which causes the pelvis to fall down. To solve this problem, you just need to monitor the elongated, streamlined position of the body.
2. Shuffling with the feet does not hold the body on the water without hands. First you need to check the correctness of movements. If everything is in order with the technique, then the reason is the clenching of the ankle joints and the wrong position of the feet. Try to turn the stops inside (make them "club-footed"). If this did not help, try using fins until you learn how to work with your hands.
3. During the "return" of the hands they splash their face. The reason lies, most likely, in the bend of the hands. Carrying a hand over your head, you need to keep it straight, and do not forget that the little finger goes first.
4. Slipping on the water is slow. If you are faced with this problem, then your body along with your shoulders is always in the same position - horizontal. Add to the corners of the body rotation, and your swimming on the back will be correct.

Technique of brasse on the back

Although this style does not have such a fame as a crook, for general development it does not hurt to get acquainted with his technique. Moreover, it does not differ much from the technique of the rabbit. The starting position is absolutely the same as it was said above. The technique of hand movement is also completely identical. The only difference is that the hands do not alternate, but work simultaneously. Well, the second difference, most importantly, - the legs are pushed, not punched.

The push is made at a time when the hands are in a passive phase, that is, sweep over the body. In preparation for the push, the hips form with the body an angle of 160-170 degrees, and the drumstick with the thigh is the angle close to the straight. The feet turn inwards, as in the rabbit. During the push, the entire body aligns in one line and slides on the water until the hands make a stroke.

Swimming on the back: Olympics

As already mentioned, the crochet on the back is included in the program of the Summer Olympic Games. For him in the Olympic program there are 4 numbers: 100- and 200-meter swimmers for women and men. In addition, this style of swimming is used in the relay 4 x 100 at the first stage and in complex navigation in the second stage (distance 200 and 400 meters).

So if you want to see how real professionals swim, watch the video from the Olympics. Now that you know the theoretical side of this style, watching competitions will be much more interesting, even if our swimmers do not take part in them. And they, by the way, showed at the last Olympics any results in the discipline "swimming on the back." Rio de Janeiro helped reveal many talents.

Russian swimmer Yevgeny Rylov took third place in the final 200-meter swim on his back. And his compatriot Daria Ustinova - the fourth. Ukrainian swimmer Daria Zevina, unfortunately, was able to win only the fourth place in the semifinal swim by 200 meters.

Conclusion

Today we found out what a swim is on the back. Women and men perform this exercise the same way, so there is no need to consider the technique separately. This style is presented in competitions only one species, nevertheless it is very useful and interesting.