What it is
A long or tall spine with raised arms is the foundational body posture for gliding through the water — the position from which all Level 2 streamline work builds.
Essentials
- "Tall spine, long arms"
- "Glide, move, zoom!"
- "A wonderful long line from fingers to toes"
- Spine must remain long (not rounded); arms raised overhead
- A single continuous line from fingers to toes is the benchmark before any kick or arm work is added
- Arms are good, but not at the expense of a sloppy hanging belly, a drooping hip, or flailing legs
Progression
- Streamlines, glides, position 11, and holding a long, tight body posture (the "wonderful long line from fingers to toes").
- Once the long line is mastered, begin adding kicks.
- Only when swimmers are great at kicking in streamline, start introducing arm strokes.
What goes wrong
- Sloppy hanging belly, drooping hip, or flailing legs: return to the long line from fingers to toes before re-adding arms.
- Lifting the head up: give targeted and specific feedback on streamline and glide performance to prevent this habit from forming.
- Boredom during 30 front glides: break up the streamlines with challenges; the instructor must stay engaged in the lesson and the swimmer's progress.
How you know it worked
The swimmer holds a single continuous line from fingers to toes with a long, tight body posture — no rounded spine, no hanging belly, no drooping hip, no flailing legs.
How you teach it
Spend significant time on streamlines, glides, position 11, and holding a long, tight body posture. Do over 30 glides each lesson for Level 2. Keep the swimmers moving with the rotation method; help and assist when needed, and make gliding fun. Repetition builds confidence, grows trust, and demonstrates how swimmers can cross gaps without standing. Break up the streamlines with challenges to prevent boredom. Ensure staff gives targeted and specific feedback — Level 2 should be full of performance language and feedback on streamline and glide. Doing 30 front glides can get boring if the instructor isn't engaged in the lesson or the swimmer's progress.
For the streamline position itself, three checkpoints make it immediately clear whether the swimmer is in: lock your thumb (wrap the thumb around the outside of the bottom hand), squeeze your ears (elbows in), and look straight ahead (cued as "look down" in the water). If any one of those is off, the streamline will not work. Coaches walk around and check that arms are straight; if a swimmer is not doing one of the three things, it is immediately visible.
Source: Lesson Coordinator Handbook for Fun and Effective Instruction, 1st Edition, 2023, p. 17; Swimming Ideas Podcast, Episode 002.