Paul Newsome explains why technique matters and how to improve it

As those of you up in the northern hemisphere head into the winter season, many of you will shift your focus away from performance-driven sessions into more technical work. It’s the perfect time to lay the foundations for 2025 by honing in on the fundamentals of your stroke technique. While it may be tempting to rest or maintain basic fitness through light swimming, dedicating some time now to improving your technique will pay significant dividends when you ramp up your training next year.

WHY GOOD TECHNIQUE IS SO IMPORTANT

From my years of coaching and personal experience, I’ve seen how a swimmer’s technique can be the defining factor in their progress, speed, and overall enjoyment of the sport. Good technique not only helps you swim faster, but it makes swimming more efficient and enjoyable. One of the key benefits of refining your technique is injury prevention.

Everyone regales in the fact that “swimming is a sport you can do for your entire life”, and whilst it is arguably better than running on your joints, there are technical issues that you need to be aware of to swim pain-free and efficiently.

Poor technique is like driving a car with flat tires. You’re expending more energy than necessary and inviting strain that could easily be avoided. Whether it’s shoulder pain from a thumb-first entry or cross-over, lower back issues due to poor posture and snaking in the water, or elbow pain due to too much emphasis on the final push at the back of the stroke, many common swimming injuries are rooted in technical flaws.