Is straight arm swimming better than high elbow?
In this article Coach Alan writes about how the recovery part of your swim stroke can play a significant role in your performance. Swimming is renowned in age group triathlon for often being the difficult ‘one’, the one in which no matter how hard you try it doesn’t seem to get any better. Often this is put down to a lack of ‘correct’ technique, but was it correct technique? In this instance which is correct: a straight arm recovery or a high elbow recovery?
‘It depends’ is often the coach’s default answer but in this article, Coach Alan will try and explain ‘how’ it depends.
Is this a high elbow or straight arm recovery?
1.High Elbow
Let’s start with the ‘conventional approach: the high elbow recovery. Why is this put forward as the way? Because in a perfect swimmer, it can set up for a more mechanically powerful and leveraged position. The hand travels in a more direct line towards a more exact entry to set up for a more precise arm stroke which leverages under the water. This precision and peak leverage allows the swimmer with very high mobility and relatively long limbs to execute the stroke.
Pros:
Prettier
Potentially more precise hand entry
Potentially better setup of the arms underwater for each arm stroke
Increase in finesse
Reduce unnecessary sideways movement of the arm
Reduced ‘weight’ of the arm at the shoulder.
A reduced distance of hand to travel, which may equal increased efficiency.
Cons:
Shoulder girdle impingement for less mobile swimmers
The hand could clash with other swimmers more easily
The hand could clash with waves more easily
Requires more rotation which can lead to an increasing dead spot in the stroke which will require kicking to overcome
The rotation also requires extra shoulder mobility as the lead hand is extended under the water to affect an effective setup of each arm stroke.
2.Straight arm
The simpler approach but perhaps seen as brawn over finesse. To some, it is even interpreted as not doing it properly. However, it can allow for a higher peak stroke rate and acceleration; it is, therefore, advantageous to sprinters, water polo players and open water swimmers accelerating out of turns or when trying to swim in the surf. It is important that a straight arm is relatively vertical and not horizontal like a recovery Butterfly arm. The latter is unlikely to make you many friends in a lane or a group open water swim.
Pros:
Easier in a wetsuit
More effective for athletes with tighter upper backs/shoulder
Works well for sprinting due to potential increase in stroke rate
Works well for sprinting due to potential change in arm entry and lift at the front end of the stroke
Hand more likely to avoid waves and other swimmers
Potential for better maintenance of momentum
Cons:
Not as pretty
It could lead to pressing down at the front end of the stroke, upsetting body position at a pace less than very fast
Lower peak leverage
Decreased mechanical efficiency
Why does “it depend”?
“Intra-individual variations in thoracic and shoulder mobility (and time to invest in swimming)”
That’s it, but why?
A high elbow action, especially one too close to the body, can lead to a compensation movement. This compensation movement extends across the shoulder girdle affecting the position of the stroking arm under the water. This is due to the swimmer trying to take the recovering hand through a range of movement, that they don’t have. To facilitate it, the shoulder girdle dips in an ‘I’m a teacup movement’, and from above the water, this sets up a twist in the upper body that sets of snaking movement through the water that is shoulder dominant. This also often includes a lateral movement of the head to the side.
Due to the shoulder dominance, the hips can then struggle to work in time with the shoulders and the whole system is weakened due to the lack of whole-body power application. Another aspect would be a lowered stroke rate through a restricted stiffened movement.
I test for this by using a streamlined hold as part of a poolside warm-up routine. After completing some shoulder mobility work and trunk activation work with some plank variations, I would then ask the group to stretch tall and hold a streamlined position whilst tip-toeing forward. Coached athletes are also asked to share videos of themselves attempting an arm raise into a similar position to assess their range of movement in their shoulders and upper back whilst maintaining a neutral posture elsewhere.
Common faults:
Too close to the body with the hand (as viewed from behind or head-on)
Often the shoulder can be so dominant that the upper arm is starting to point towards the opposite side of the stroke.
Freeing up this aspect of the stroke may help other aspects of the stroke to work more effectively and get a better ‘net’ effectiveness from your stroke to swim faster.
3. High-elbow, wide-hand
Often this high elbow approach is emphasised incorrectly by drills; finger trail zip up the side both do this as they are ‘pictured’ traditionally with the hand close to the body. This can often be misinterpreted as to how you should swim, with a tight hand to the body. In reality, it is what works well for you: with the hand gradually going wider until eventually, it is a straight arm in a continued angle of recovering the upper arm.
However, the drills can be used (but with deliberate variations) to help identify your individual range of movement and preferences. Instead, try the below;
Traditional High-elbow finger trial hand ‘zipping up your side.’
The same but this time, with the widest possible semi-circle, you can draw from hip exit to hand entry.
A line that draws a midpoint between 1 and 2.
If you find that you are closer to 2), then a straight arm recovery will likely work for you. If you find you are closer to 1), then a high elbow, wide, relaxed hand recovery will likely work well for you. Either way trying this type of contrast practices can help individual swimmers to cut through what they should be doing according to the perfect swimming model and instead work out what works best for them as an individual. I hope that this article can help you to work out what works well for you in the water!
As always, the real secret with swimming well is to get all of the parts to sing and dance together in harmony for the best overall effect. Working out what works well for you will really help unlock the combination that will release your swimming potential.
Alan has worked with Tri Training Harder since 2014. During this time working with a wide spectrum of athletes from beginner, to youth and junior elite athletes through to 70.3 and Ironman AG winners and Ironman Kona Qualifiers.
An active Triathlon coach since 2007 Alan has been fortunate enough to work with athletes, peers and support staff who have continutally challenged him to evolve and develop. Building on a solid foundation in swimming teaching, Alan has specifically developed swimming coaching experience having worked in High Performance Swimming environments. Alan's other passion is all things fast on a bicycle!
Since 2015 Alan has worked in conjunction with the other Tri Training Harder Coaches to significantly develop collective coaching practice both on camp and online.
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