Starting Over: Season 1, Episode 1 The Swim

Hey all,

I have a serious desire to improve on my swim efficency and feel that starting over is the best place to begin. And by starting over I mean just that; day 1 type training with progressing drills (only) to get my body balanced, entry and catch improved, breathing bilat comfortably, and feel the water. But.....I need swimming advice of where to start b/c I am seriously about to just go the pool and continue practicing laying prone in the water until I can raise my legs and hips to the surface before I even think about progressing to any other drills.

So let me give you a little background on myself and then get into where I want to be. Once upon a time 2 years ago I started competing in tri's; since then I have competed in 2 Sprints, 2 Oly, and 2 HIM and my swim times are consistantly around 1:45/ 100m. I breath primarily on the right side, use a two beat kick, and have access to two Masters Groups. When I go to the swim groups have asked questions on particular drills, but still don't really understand what the drill is for or what I am supposed to be working on/ feeling for. So typically I went through the motions, swim about 3500 y per class, but still often felt like I was fighting the water. I did have a few moments when I was flowing with the water, but I couldn't tell you what I did to get there but I knew I felt relaxed and swam faster with less strokes. Cliff Notes: So basically, when I had the desire to compete in tris I joined the groups, jumped in the water, got a little direction, was happy to put up some weekly yardage, but still feel that I am off course with my swimming technique.

I remember in the swim leg of Eagleman this year I was passed by a guy two heats behind me during the swim. All I could do was watch as he glided by and he was so flipping smooth...beautiful and rhythmic I tell you. Thats what I want and thats where I want to be eventually, but where do I start? If I were to do just drills, beginning = floating and end = full strokes w/ repeatable laps; Do I really just work on body balance and keeping my hips/legs up, then incorporate body roll, then add more and more drills?

I don't even know if I can call this "a path to follow", but if I am on the right path or a semi right path to learning how to swim again, what drills do I start with first and which ones do I add there-after? I have no deadline and I'm not worried about making this a winter project b/c I have not even signed up for any races next year, I just want to get this right so that swimming becomes more enjoyable. If anyone can provide a progressing list of drills to do that will get me from A-Z I would appreciate it. Also, I would love some description of the drill and why it's done. Even if it's a list of 20 drills, I'll start at 1 and work my way through.

Thanks for reading my post and helping me start over!

D.