Dynamic No Fins

[Brockdorf]

I just started Dynamic with no fins in a 25M pool. I have a few problems:

I spend too much effort trying to stay under water, what is recommended as weights to stay under. I might as well ask what is a good wet suit for this, since this will change the weight I need.

It takes me 8 strokes to get to the other side. It seems as though it takes others only 4. Is this because of form, or becuase I am wasting effort trying to stay under water?

 

[cdavis]

You want to stay positive, but not very much. How much lead is very individual, depends on your body. Try 4 lbs as a start, no suit. At first, as long as you are close, it won't make a lot of difference. As you get better, getting the weight right (and in the right place) will be much more important.

Excess strokes is at least partly too positive. Better technique will also reduce stroke frequency.

You do have a spotter, don't you?

Connor

 

[watts]

Make up some neck weights which you can find out how on this forum. Then do a simple glide test. Wearing the same wetsuit setup you want to use just push off hard from the wall into a tight streamline and hold until you come to a complete stop. With the correct weight you should not be fighting to stay off the bottom and not shooting to the surface but rather very slowly gliding to the surface preferably quite flat. You can the add more or less weight to the neckweights by just untaping them and poring more in.


Hope this helps Nat.

 

[Evita]

Wearing weight will cut down on your strokes and so will your glide. Pull with your arms - glide - then kick with your legs and bring your arms forward - glide, in stead of moving arms and legs at the same time. Most people could glide more after their kick than they actually do. But only with extra weight, so you should get that sorted out first.

 

[monkeyhatfork]

you definatly need the weight, you can't get much glide without it, here is a recent weight I made took about 20 minutes spent about 8 dollars it's around 5 1/2 to 6 lbs and I don't use a wetsuit, I use primarily with monofin but no-fins also and I'd say its more important with no-fin cause you don't have as much forward momentum.

 

[shoutatthesky]

If I use my neckweight (approx 2kg) it feels very unnatural but I am sure that it is just a case of getting used to it. Pratice pratice practice and all that...

I tried a practice session a few days ago without weights. The only buoyant material I was wearing was a 2 mm neoprene top. The extra effort required was considerable. Not such a problem when I put my fins on but nevertheless I was positive and had to fight against the floatation to maintain a hydrodynamic profile.
The best combo I have found so far is wearing my Orca P-Flex with about 4 kg weight on a belt - no neck weight. I find I get at least another metre on my push off and glide from the wall.
That is what I have discovered so far but know I have a heck of a lot more to learn and experiment with.
I don't pack, but from what I have heard, guys like Dave Mullins calculate their neck weights by how much the intend to pack. Makes sense.

I guess a good analogy is the aeroplane. In the design the weight must be ditributed in such a way as to maintain optimum aerodynamics and performance.

Being humans there is quite a large degree of variation amongst us.

 

[fflupo]

if you take less air in your lungth you don t need weight and the performance is most prob the same if you train on 25m
f.e. 25m every 2 min 8-10 times
or 25m and a little static of 5s
and
25m and 10s
and
25m and 15s
..+
be focused on the technic of stroke and glide an increase in technic is an increase in performance

don t loose the joy of it

 

[Brockdorf]

When you put on a neck weight, do you need a weight on your body too?

 

[monkeyhatfork]

I use just neck, but you can always experement with various combos and find something that works for you- the main point is to offset the boyancy from your lungs