Swimming is Technical
Now we all know that getting "fit" is a major objective of the training that we love to thrash ourselves with every day, and that alone does bring good improvement. But there always comes a time with swimming when we do start to plateau out. And at this point no amount of volume or intensity seems to allow us to break through. This is when something radically different has to be accepted as the solution and the best place to start that process rolling is a technical assessment. We need to know where you are now, to move forward. Most simply explained, your technique is the ceiling to which your highest level of fitness can take you. It is absolutely impossible for you to travel faster in water than your current level of efficiency. So if you desire swimming improvement then you need to shift the ceiling upwards.

Habits & Correct Strength
The unconscious method in which we do most things in life is merely a product of something that we learned years ago. These actions can be classified as habits and some of them have become so ingrained that they become extremely difficult to change. But given that we are shown structured sessions in which to re-write this stubborn conditioning, we can then begin the neural adaptations necessary for swimming improvement. During this process our muscles also begin to be utilised differently. When this results from a change in our training techniques, then our muscles actually begin to develop a more specific strength, which has been termed by FutureDreams as "Correct Strength". After watching 10-year-olds wiz by, you are probably aware that you do not need to be physically big or even strong to be a good swimmer. So the answer seems simple - assess the inefficiencies of where we are now, and then go about re-writing those habits with more efficient ones. The correct strength will then follow the different physical movement patterns. Fitness is then applied to the ever-evolving technique and a higher plateau is reached, just like stepping-stones. 

The Importance of the Swim Leg
Triathletes who have been in the game long enough will know only too well just how important it is to come out of the water with your competition. Your relative placing after the swim leg has an immediate mental effect on you because it determines what calibre of athlete you start the bike leg with. The old adage "out of site, out of mind" has all too often allowed a lesser athlete stay away and beat the better athlete who merely had a bad swim. Also with the advent of drafting races, if you miss the boat in the first leg of a triathlon then your chances of success can be seriously affected. You simply must be there at the start of the bike in a drafting legal race or your whole race will be over before you really begin