Swimming technique: high elbow

In freestyle, the entire forearm and hand should be used as a single unit to provide the greatest propulsion.

Our collaborator Ricard Perez, tells us in this article how to avoid a very common mistake in swimmers, the high elbow.

Many people with chronic problems in the biceps shoulder and tendon will benefit from trying to keep their elbows high and using the large muscles of their upper trunk.

One of the most common mistakes in the swimming technique is the so-called "low elbow". In freestyle, the entire forearm and hand should be used as a single unit to provide the greatest propulsion.

Compare the surface area of ​​your hand with the surface of your hand next to your forearm. Which do you think allows you to capture as much water and apply greater force?

The key to using the entire forearm and hand as a shovel is to minimize the flexion of the wrist and keep the "elbow high".

In this video, you have the correct high elbow technique:

Once the arm is in front of your body, you should leave your elbow on the surface of the water while you lower your forearm and your hand in the water. At the moment when your body is at the level of the elbow, you must propel yourself through the anchored forearm and make an acceleration movement to propel yourself. Observe in the video how this propulsion movement is also coordinated with the rotation of the hips.

The protagonist of this video (Grant Hackett) is always pulling with the forearm and the hand that drives the movement, never drop his elbow or lead the stroke with the elbow first.

The maintenance of an arm stroke with the high elbow implies more demand of the lats and the upper part of the back, and puts less stress on the rotator cuff and deltoids.

Many people who complain of chronic problems in the shoulder and biceps tendon will benefit from trying to keep their elbows high and using the large muscles of their upper trunk.

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