Evondo's Group - FULL (Page 11)

Can someone please explain (and feel free to dumb in down as much as possible) how to do a flip turn? 

I'm with you, I never thought I'd run 13.1mi much less after biking 56mi.  Even a year into starting triathlons a 20mi ride killed me but when you catch the triathlon bug mileage goes up

I had a friend once say... Crazy is how the ordinary explain the extrodinary when they don't understand them.

Many triathletes will tell ya you don't need to learn these but I disagree, they'll increase your lung capacity, reduce your rest during a set and you'll be a better swimmer. Here's my best description...

Take your last pull near the wall, you want to be fairly close to the wall.
Tuck your chin into your chest so you roll into a ball (think half somersault), heels to your butt.
Open your body when you're on your back, extend your legs to push off on your back, arms above head, hands/elbows locked
After you push off the wall rotate your body back onto your stomach, kick
Start swimming when your body breaks the water surface

Almost forgot the most important part... blow bubbles out of your nose as your flipping or you'll be in for a treat! 

Most people's biggest fear is hitting the wall so they'll flip to early and miss the wall. If you tuck into a tight ball you could even touch the wall with an extended arm, flip and still not hit the wall... I dont recommend trying this now just saying to give you an idea on how close you can get... will just take some practice

Clear as mud?

My parents aren't even close to understanding what I do on race days.  Oh yeah he's running some race or he's doing some swim, bike, run thing...  They support me (in that) they don't judge or criticize my desire to do such things.  My wife supports me (except the spending money part), she has come out to the races and she doesn't question/criticize my training schedule [usually].  She has the desire to run, and has mentioned the idea of wanting to try a tri... but, she struggles terribly with running and is only a basic swimmer - deathly afraid of the race swim scenario.  I have encouraged her, tried to work with her, etc.  But she is not ready (mentally) to take on the challenge.  If/When she is ready I will be there 110% for her.

Non-running / non-triathlete minded friends... "I don't drive 26 miles in my car" or "Why would you want to spend 12 hrs swimming, bikib and running!"  You're nuts, crazy, or even retarded!  It is very hard to convince them that it is about personal challenges, desires, goals, and other inner-workings that drive us to go out and do these things.  We are not trying to show-off or prove or worth to the world by exerting ourselves this way.

As I step off of my soap box...  

Haha, carefully so as to avoid hitting your head or missing the wall entirely and be left treading water in the pool and looking silly.

Obviously, I'm not the best person to answer that.  But don't feel silly.  I am the worst flippy turner on the planet and only learned how to do it recently.

Lighter note...

Go Gators!  down with the Oklahoma Yankees to our north! ha!  I got my BS from a small school in Witchita Falls, TX (Midwestern State)...changed their mascot from the Indians to the Mustangs...so not to offend.  I got my MA from U of H Clear Lake, and although they are part of the Univ. of Houston (system)... they are not the Coogs.  And honestly, I don't even think they have a mascot...  Go "mascot-less" school with no real teams to root for.  Therefore, I will choose to have a beer or two this evening, and cheer on the GATORS!

HR & genetics... absolutely!  My wife's resting HR is mid 50's, and although she is pretty healthy, a regular at the gym and a "step-class aholic"... She ain't no Lance either.  It's amazing that she can do the step classes at full speed for an hour (witch I struggle with - not coordinated enough for) yet she STRUGGLES to run 1.5 miles. 

Me neither - I don't do the FLIP, I do the side turn thing! 

You guys need to stop passing that crap around! I'm calling "not it" right now Hope ya feel better, especially before our Tuesday run!

In the military, sing-song, while you run thang!  "medi, medi, gotta-lotta medication".  Thanks - I hope to be good-to-go.  That'll be my last effort run before the 18th.  An easy bike, an extra easy 4 miler that Thursday before, and some walks in between... and I will be officially tapered fot the 18th.

Well, if it's the same thing we had (or at least what I had) it should be gone in just a few days!

If our germs are getting spread through the group, my suggestion to all non-infected people....start taking Zicam now as a preventative measure.  I swear by this stuff!!!

The mascot situation at my school (University of Scranton) was so strange!!  We were the Royals.  What the heck is a Royal....how on earth do you make a mascot out of that??!?!?!  I think it was my spohmore or junior year, they sort of half-introducted the Wolverine.  It was a mascot at games, and for a for a while they contemplated changing our school colors and calling us the Scranton Wolves/Wolverines, but it never came to fruition.  So we were called the Scranton Royals and had a wolverine mascot.....go figure how that works.  Oh yea, and we didn't even have a football team!

As just an extra tip- when I was first learning how to do flip turns my coach had me do the following:

Stand in the shallow end with arms outstretched
Move twords the wall until your finger tips touch
Do a somersault blowing out of your nose the whole time
When upside down in the water, make contact with the wall with your feet and push off

I was always flipping too early, so that's how I got the feel for how close I actually needed to be to the wall for it to work.

Yep, the phlegm subsides after 2-3 days.

I may start with this and move into Eric's in motion version.  I did a sprint with a pool swim last July, and this was my nemisis.  I lost too much time not being able to properly exucute this manuever.  My new mantra for swimming...proper practice prevents poor perfromance!  I would always swim, but I never really practiced or tried to perfect the skillls necessary to succeed in the water!

I agree with Eric in that it is important to learn flip turns.  Espeically if you're doing any races with a pool swim, they save so much time!

Honestly, if it wasn't for this drill I would never do flip turns.  Every single time I would either hit my head or miss the wall.  This was super helpful.  I hope it works for ya.

I really like the drill and will probably steal it for future friends that need to learn a flip turn

Gee now I don't feel so quilty not being very active on the thread.  you guys are passing this sick thing around via the computer now.  Get the hell away from me!!!

HEH, I hope everyone gets better quick, and again get the hell away from me.   I essentially work in a concret box with 8 other people one gets sick, we all go down.

I think I'm gonna try this first as well.  Sadly, the hardest part for me is going to be blowing out my nose.  Growing up I was that kid that held her nose til she was about 13!  It took me months to be able to do this when I was teching myself to swim.  No problem now though.  However, flipping AND blowing out my nose is another story.

I guess for now on I will have to wear a mask and glove to view this thread...

That's funny... I can so picture that!

Good luck with the flip practice!

It's Frrriiiidddayyyyyyy!  *happy dance*  Anybody besides me desperately ready for this work week to be over?

sjf- when I first started swimming I had a lifeguard tell me "I've never seen anyone look so much like they're drowning and still manage to swim pretty well."  Yah... definately caused me to get a swim coach.

YES, o man the last 2-3 hours of each day have dragged on and on and on this week.

2 days till me swim class.  I hope that I have enough of a swimming basis for them to let me in......

YES!!!  And the sooner, the better!!!