Good Catch from the Side

This sequence illustrates the catch portion of the stroke. The frames are spaced about one-fifth of a second apart.

The sequence begins with Karlyn's stroking arm at full extension.

In the second shot, Karlyn has flexed her wrist slightly to begin the catch. Her hand is diving down, but her elbow remains high in the water, because she has not yet begun pulling back with that arm. At the start of the catch, her goal is to get her hand under her elbow as quickly as possible.

In the third shot, she is continuing to get her hand and forearm perpendicular to her direction of travel, and in the fourth shot, she has a good catch on the water and is beginning the pull.

Notice that her elbow is still out front as she completes the catch. To maximize stroke length and efficiency, it is important to treat the catch and pull as two distinct motions.

What's next? Good Pull from the side.

See also:
Good Catch and Pull from the Front

These shots are from my very favorite freestyle DVD for illustrating efficient freestyle technique: Go Swim Freestyle with Karlyn Pipes-Neilsen.