Streamline 3 body lengths on front and back (skill)
Definition: Streamline for three body lengths with or without kicking. Body posture of utmost importance. For backstroke streamline, can be done in soldier position.
Core cues:
- Locked Thumb
- Squeezed ears
- Looking down / up
Coach interpretation:
- Locked Thumb: one of the three things to focus on for streamline.
- Squeezed ears: one of the three things to focus on for streamline.
- Looking down / up: one of the three things to focus on for streamline.
Teaching strategy:
Spend significant time on streamlines, glides, position 11, and holding a long, tight, body posture. Once swimmers have mastered a wonderful long line from fingers to toes, then begin adding kicks, then arms. Do over 30 glides each lesson for Level 2. Repetition, repetition, repetition will build confidence, grow trust, and demonstrate how swimmers can cross gaps without standing. Focus on body position, kicking in streamline, and then, only when they are great, start introducing arm strokes. Break up the streamlines with challenges! Keep the swimmers moving with the rotation method. Help, assist when needed, and make gliding FUN! Ensure that your staff is giving targeted and specific feedback. Along with level 1, level 2 should be full of performance, language, and feedback on swimmer’s streamline and glide performance. Instructors should be underwater to the shoulders throughout the lesson. Their hair should get wet because they’ve demonstrated streamline, front crawl, back crawl, soldier, and streamline on back. Demonstrate.
Common errors and corrections:
- Lifting the head up: No feedback will also lead to bad habits like lifting the head up. Avoid not looking.
- Wrong support: Avoid support once a swimmer can SL alone. Pull on the head on BK glides, and hold the hands on SL or front glides.
Progression:
Streamline and then front crawl arms 5 body lengths; Streamline and then back crawl arms 5 body lengths; Introduced to fly kick.
⚠ Language below was not found in the source — do not publish as-is. Most often this means the original sits inside a table or a multi-column layout that extraction could not read cleanly:
- “Instructors should be underwater to the shoulders throughout the lesson.”
- “Their hair should get wet because they’ve demonstrated streamline, front crawl, back crawl, soldier, and streamline on back.”
Short verified cues (confirmed present; check by eye): “- Locked Thumb”, “- Squeezed ears”, “- Looking down / up”, “Demonstrate.”, “Avoid not looking”