Safe Swimming Guide - Porthallow
/A short swimming guide to swimming at Porthallow on the Lizard. This is a swim that offers safe swims in most conditions and it also offers a great day out. A popular spot with divers for it’s crystal clear water.
Poor hip position
/Hip position is an incredibly important part of swimming front crawl. If you drop your hips too low in the water it can force your head into a higher position and you have increased drag…as well as a reduced efficiency when it comes to your leg kick. This unfavourable position may also have the knock on effect of making it more difficult to rotate the body correctly.
The solution to a low hip position can be incredibly easy or not so. It really depends on the swimmer. Typically the quicker and more experienced the swimmer, the easier (in theory) it might be to correct.
The main thing to remember is that although you should be fairly relaxed when swimming, you still need a degree of tension running through your core, as well as your toes pointed and legs straight. We often say that your legs are fairly redundant in open water swimming and some of our clients barely kick at all (in the open water). That said, you still need your legs straight, toes pointed and feet together. You can’t simply forget about your legs.
FIRST : if you’re in the pool or fresh water (without a wetsuit) grab in kick float and hold the float with your hands, at the very back end of the float ie. only your hands are in contact with the float, not the whole of your forearm. You simply then want to carry out some leg kick, with your face in the water. You can do this with just goggles but it works better if you use a snorkel. Water level should be half way across your ears, with your bum just sticking out of the water and your heels just breaking the surface of the water.
If you’re in salt water / wearing a wetsuit, lie on your front in the water, face down. Have your arms full extended, stretching out in front of you, with your legs straight and toes pointed and together (feet touching). In a very streamlined position. Allow the water to hold your weight….and hold it for 10 seconds. This is the position you should be swimming in. Have a conscious think about how this position feels and where your body is in the water. If you’re swimming and your body position differs from this - stop, float yourself in the water (as described above) and then start swimming again. Stop as often as necessary.
Raising your hips in the water (provided you need to) can be as easy as simply thinking about it and consciously doing it! It’s not that easy however, for most. Here are some drills that might help :
DRILLS :
complete a series of 25m swims, on your back, arms out in front (flat on the water), swimming flat across the surface of the water. Your going to do fly kick on your back. It’s good to do these with swim fins. Start with shorter distances and build up. You should find this works the abs and core.
Kick board (face in the water), with snorkel…as described above.
Vertical kick efforts (as often featured in our newsletter). CLICK HERE for video.
Work the arms. You can use pull buoys as part of training and can also use a pull buoy with your ankles strapped together with a swimming band.
As well as distance, include shorter sprints into your training.
Choose your swimming holiday / activity
/We have a range of swims, events and activities, for a range of abilities. This blog post will hopefully help you to decide which option best suits you. I’ll break your options down into what you might swim regularly in terms of distances and speed and your experience level and look at what might be suitable. We’ll start at 1 (which would be a complete beginner) up to 5 (more advanced swimmers).
1.BEGINNER / NOVICE
Just started swimming, possibly don’t swim front crawl or lacking confidence, definitely in need of some coaching…
LOOK AT : 1-2-1 coaching or small group coaching (with some friends), we also run beach you could also safety courses/rip current awareness…
You could also look at our ‘Slow, Short and Social’ swimming holiday option. Short, supervised ‘plods’ in stunning locations…
2. SLOW SWIMMING / SHORTER DISTANCES
Maybe looking to swim further and improve technique. May also want to look at small scale swimming events or take on longer swims safely…
LOOK AT : 1-2-1 coaching or small group coaching (with some friends) & we also run beach safety courses/rip current awareness. Take a look at our Swimfari Events - a non-competitive day of swimming, with multiple swims, based on the days conditions. Ideal as a social day out, to gain experience and fitness and ultimately have a laugh.
Another option might be an assisted swim. We tow a SUP around a longer swim with us. This gives the swimmer the option to take regular breaks or catch a lift around sections of the swim. This option open up a whole new world of swimming options that weren’t possible ordinarily.
You may also consider a ‘Slow swimming holidays’. Chat to a member of staff before booking.
Or again, look at our ‘Slow, Short and Social’ swimming holiday option. Multiple short, supervised ‘plods’ in stunning locations…
3. SLOW SWIMMING / LONGER DISTANCES
LOOK AT : 1-2-1 coaching or small group coaching (with some friends) & we also run beach safety courses/rip current awareness. Take a look at our Swimfari Events - a non-competitive day of swimming, with multiple swims, based on the days conditions. Ideal as a social day out, to gain experience and fitness and ultimately have a laugh.
People often get a little intimidated by swimming holidays. All of our swims are based on the conditions and the average pace of swimmer is generally around 2-2.30 mins per 100m over a distance swim (approx 20-25 mins per km). We obviously have slower and faster swimmers…but we either split the water safety/group up or swim as a group and the faster swimmers double back regularly.
We offer our unique ‘10k Day’ events, taking in 3-4 swims over the course of the day, that total….10km! We’ve stopped this type of event for 2020 (Covid fitness issues) but it will come back. The Swimfari Event follows the same format but with shorter distances.
We also have short-notice / weekend swims or privately book a swim.
4. PUBLIC SESSION MIDDLE LANE SWIMMERS (APPROX)…
You may still look at coaching or water safety courses.
You’ll definitely need to look at Swimming Holidays, all of our events, as well as our one-off swims and private bookings. As well as set-date swimming holidays we also take private group booking swimming holidays (tailoring the holiday to the group), generally starting with as few as 4 people in the group.
5. MIDDLE - FAST LANE PUBLIC SESSION SWIMMER
You’ll definitely need to look at Swimming Holidays, all of our events, as well as our one-off swims and private bookings. As well as set-date swimming holidays we also take private group booking swimming holidays (tailoring the holiday to the group), generally starting with as few as 4 people in the group.
We also cover longer distance swim (up to 10km) private bookings. Either individuals or we’ll take small groups (provided they stay as a group through the swim)….as well as body surfing tuition.
Swimming Course at the Jubilee Pool
/We recently ran a 4 week course at the Jubilee Pool. We looked at water safety and rip currents at the beach, the theory behind breathing, arm pull and recovery, body roll, head position, leg kick….we then ran a practical in the pool. The lady featured in the video had never swum front crawl - this was week 3. Not everyone progressed this quickly but we were really happy with all the progress that the participants made.
We’ll look to run further courses like this one over the summer.