First freestyle arms and side breathing

Setup

1. Shallow end with a qualified teacher on deck; learners can already push and glide and kick with a board.
2. Work over 5–10 m so everyone can stand up at any time; one learner per lane or well spread along the wall.

How it runs

1. Standing in the water, practise the arms: reach long in front, pull down and back past the thigh, lift the elbow out and swing the arm over.
2. Walk the arms out across the shallow end, adding the breath: as one arm pulls back, turn the head to that side, ear on the leading arm, breathe in, face back in and blow out.
3. Board in one hand: kick and pull with the free arm, breathing to that side; walk back and swap arms.
4. Catch-up on the board: one arm pulls while the other waits on the board, hands meet on the board each stroke, breath every second stroke to the favourite side.
5. Push, glide, kick and swim five or six strokes of full freestyle, then stand, breathe and go again.

Coaching points

• Reach long in front and push the water back past the hip.
• Turn the head, don't lift it: one goggle stays in the water.
• Blow out while the face is in, so the turn is only for breathing in.
• Keep the legs kicking while you breathe.

Common mistakes

• Lifting the head forward to breathe, so the legs sink.
• Short, quick slaps at the water that don't push anything back.
• Holding the breath, then trying to breathe out and in during one quick turn.
• Crossing the hand over the middle line in front of the head.