Blog
Skipping
In competitive swimming, every millisecond counts, whether you're chasing a personal best, fighting for a podium spot, or aiming for national team selection. One of the critical factors in reducing overall time is how well swimmers execute starts and turns. While technical precision and daily practice are essential, adding land-based exercises can significantly boost the lower body power needed for explosive starts and efficient turns. A simple yet highly effective exercise that can benefit swimmers of all ages and abilities is skipping. By incorporating just two minutes of skipping into your routine, you can enhance lower body power, coordination, agility, and cardiovascular endurance—skills that are crucial for improving starts and turns.
How Skipping Improves Dive Starts
1. Developing Explosive Power
Skipping is excellent for building explosive lower body strength, which is essential for a powerful dive start. Swimmers need to push off the starting block with maximum force to propel themselves into the water quickly. The rapid, explosive movements in skipping mimic the muscle contractions required for a strong dive start. Incorporating two minutes of skipping each day into your pre-pool routine can help build the explosive leg power needed for a more dynamic push-off and faster dive start.
2. Boosting Leg Strength and Endurance
The repetitive motion of skipping works muscles like the calves, quads, hamstrings, and glutes—all key for a powerful dive. Over time, skipping increases leg strength, leading to a more efficient and forceful push-off. Enhanced endurance also helps swimmers maintain kick speed throughout the race, contributing to overall faster swim times.
3. Improving Coordination and Timing
A smooth dive start requires precise timing and coordination to minimize drag and maximize speed. Skipping helps swimmers develop rhythm and coordination, syncing footwork with the movement of the rope. This skill easily translates to better timing during dive starts, resulting in a smoother, more efficient entry into the water.
4. Enhancing Agility and Balance
Skipping also develops agility and balance, which are vital for maintaining control during a dive start. The improved body awareness and stability gained through skipping allow swimmers to make quick adjustments mid-air and achieve a more streamlined entry into the water.
How Skipping Enhances Turns
1. Building Explosive Power for Faster Turns
Like dive starts, swimming turns require explosive power for a strong push-off from the wall. Skipping helps build the lower body strength needed for a quick and efficient turn. Even with just two minutes of daily skipping, swimmers can develop the leg power necessary to execute faster, more effective turns.
2. Increasing Leg Strength and Endurance
Effective turns demand both strength and endurance from the lower body. Skipping strengthens the muscles involved in the turn, helping swimmers maintain speed and control during the push-off from the wall. Over time, stronger legs lead to more consistent and powerful turns, especially in longer races.
3. Engaging the Core for Better Stability
While skipping primarily targets the lower body, it also activates the core muscles. A strong core is essential for stability and proper body alignment during turns. Improved core strength allows swimmers to maintain better form, resulting in quicker, more streamlined turns.
Integrating Skipping into Your Pre-Pool Routine
At Hamilton Aquatics, many of our competitive swimmers bring their skipping ropes to training sessions. Our athletes typically perform up to four minutes of skipping during competitions and land-based training. While skipping may not seem as glamorous as other strength exercises, its simplicity and effectiveness can provide the marginal gains that swimmers need to outperform their competitors.
If two minutes of daily skipping can improve your explosive power, leg strength, coordination, and overall conditioning, why not make it part of your pre-pool routine? It might just give you the edge you need for faster starts and turns.