What it is
A good streamline is the ultimate goal after establishing comfort gliding with the face in the water. All glides lead to streamline; an excellent streamline is a habit to be over-emphasized.
Essentials
- "Lock your thumb" — stack hands, wrap top thumb around bottom palm, lock and press
- "Squeeze your ears" — elbows squeeze toward the ears (younger swimmers) / back of the head (mastery)
- "Look down" — face aims at the floor; Pinocchio nose dragging on the ground
- "Do a streamline first, then do 3 free" — speak in streamlines
- Tight, strong, locked hand on top of hand
- Target: just behind the ears
Progression
- Supported glides, independent glides across benches, horizontal motion (all build toward SL)
- Position 11 (foundation drill; every competitive stroke flows through it)
- Streamline (the goal; gliding alone is streamline)
What goes wrong
- Swimmers want to see where they're going, causing incorrect body position → cue: be Pinocchio and drag your long lying nose on the ground; put mirrors on the pool bottom to encourage aiming the face down
How you know it worked
The swimmer feels "weird" when they push off the wall without a good streamline. The habit is so ingrained that skipping it feels wrong.
How you teach it
Lock your thumb: stack the hands and wrap the top hand's thumb around the bottom hand's palm. Lock in the thumb and press into it to make the ear squeeze easier. Make sure this is a tight, strong, locked hand on top of hand.
Squeeze your ears: at first, talk about squeezing your ears with your elbows. Younger swimmers think in relatable targets — elbows squeeze the ears. As mastery grows, shift the cue to "squeeze the back of the head with your elbows." Target word: ears. Goal: just behind the ears.
Look down: the head should aim at the floor during most streamlines. Tell swimmers to be Pinocchio and drag their long lying noses on the ground. Put mirrors on the bottom of the pool to encourage swimmers to aim their face at the bottom. Most incorrect SL body position comes from swimmers wanting to see where they're going. Backstroke SL is the exception: "Look up." Aim the face down; avoid looking forward.
Help swimmers physically by squeezing their elbows together.
Repeat the three things to a good streamline over and over. Speak in streamlines: "Do a streamline first, then do 3 free." Focus all feedback on those three things. Practice on land — standing, laying, and floating. Comfort in SL comes with a lot of practice. The goal is to make swimmers feel "weird" if they forget to streamline, so the habit is so ingrained that pushing off the wall without one feels wrong.
SL = Streamline.