Background: I’m a 47-year-old male. I swam on a summer team from 5 to 18 years old. I was never fast (2:30 for 200m freestyle) but I’ve always been comfortable in the water. After many years away from swimming, I did two sprint triathlons in 2023 (400 yard swims) with minimal training, mostly using breaststroke to make it through.
Now, I’m trying to swim consistently twice a week to get better for a few triathlons in 2025. Yesterday, I swam 17x100m with 30 seconds rest. Strava says I’m around 1:50/100yd pace.
So here’s the thing: I’ve never been a strong kicker, and it’s getting worse. Both my wife and my 19-year-old son swam with me recently and said, ‘you don’t kick… at all!’
I realize I don’t need a super strong kick for triathlons, but how can I start to improve it? Even a small, consistent kick would help keep my legs up.
Dar said:
Long distance swimmers usually don’t kick much. I do a gentle 2 beat kick just to keep my legs from sinking, it doesn’t really propel me.
Yep, I swim a mile several days a week at my local pool and kick just enough to maintain my balance in the water without it helping me much in propulsion.
Leighton said:
Do you do kick sets? I would start there.
I don’t. Now that I’m getting more comfortable in the water again, I thought about incorporating kick sets into my workouts. Maybe I should start with using a board and adding some 50s of kicking each session?
@Voss
Can I recommend not using a board? While boards can be helpful, if they’re not used correctly, they can mess with your body position. Try kicking while streamlined on your back or face down, keeping your legs straight and kicking from the hip, not the knee.
After watching Katy Ledecky win the mile at the Olympics this summer, I’ve been working on incorporating her two beat kick into my freestyle. It doesn’t need to be a strong kick, just consistent enough to keep your legs up. I use a small pull buoy while practicing the rhythm of her kick during pull drills, then try to maintain it during my swims. Watching some underwater footage of her can help you see the cadence you’re aiming for instead of kicking a lot at once and then not at all.
Devan said: @Kirin
Exactly, Ledecky is the ideal example for distance swimming kicks. It’s there, keeps body position steady, but doesn’t waste much oxygen.
@Firth
More like watch and learn from how she kicks. You’ll never swim exactly like her, but we can all benefit from her efficiency. Why make it harder when it’s smarter to learn from those who’ve already gone through the process?
Definitely do kick drills. Although I’m still new to swimming, I noticed I wasn’t kicking during freestyle at the beginning. After I started doing more drills with the kickboard, kicking became second nature.
A few things might assist with your kicking. Start by doing kick sets, and if you have fins available, I’d suggest using them. Also, try to think about your legs and kicking while swimming, or practice an ‘overkick’ where you kick while also using your arms.