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Kicking Focus

One of the great myths of triathlon swimming is that the kick is not important. Many triathletes assume that because they will not be kicking hard during the swim leg, they don't need to spend time working on their kick. But swimming is a whole-body sport, and swimming without legs is like running while holding your arms still at your sides.

Technique Focus Points

• Kick from your hips.
• Kick compactly, in the shadow of your body.
• Minimize your knee bend.
• Point your toes back, but keep your foot relaxed.

What to Watch For

• Not kicking. Don't stop kicking. Even with a wetsuit. For longer distances you can use a relaxed two-beat kick or a compact four- or six-beat kick.
• Avoid always using a two-beat kick. If all of your training is with a two-beat kick, over time your knee bend will increase and your kick will become too wide. I have seen this deterioration in virtually 100% of the swimmers who use a two-beat kick exclusively. In contrast, swimmers who develop and practice a good six-beat kick have a much easier time keeping their two-beat kick compact and efficient. In addition to that, a strong six-beat kick gives you a greater capacity to accelerate or surge - which can be important at the start (to find some space) or during the race (to catch a draft or to lose a draftee).

Kicking Focus Workouts

• Group Workout
• Key Workout
• Recovery Workout

More Information

• Video Clips - Kicking
• Bottom Up Swimming. A set of three articles by Coach Emmett Hines on how to develop a proper six-beat kick and connect it up to a full-body stroke:
  • Part 1: Let Your Legs Drive Your Long Axis Strokes
  • Part 2: Your Swimming Machine
  • Part 3: The Spin Doctor's Prescription
• Dancin' With Yourself - Another article on kicking by Emmett Hines. This one is the best description I have seen on how to do the two-beat kick the right way. (Above I am not saying "Don't use the two-beat kick" but rather don't use the two-beat kick exclusively.)

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