Ohio State Drills & Skills for Butterfly

featuring Bill Wadley, Ohio State Head Men's Swimming Coach; 2010 Big 10 Coach of the Year, and Bill Dorenkott, Ohio State Head Women's Swimming Coach; combined they have won 13 Big Ten Championships and have coached 118 NCAA Champions

Stop fearing the butterfly! Ohio State Swim Coaches Bill Wadley and Bill Dorenkott show you how to combine technique, precise drilling and repetition to help your swimmers learn to love the power, finesse and rhythm of the stroke.

Coaches Wadley and Dorenkott believe in developing a butterfly stroke with a balanced make up of finesse, power and rhythm with the goal of creating a stroke can become effortless. Their construction of such a stroke begins with establishing a body position that will reduce drag and make it easier for a swimmer to be able to maintain an efficient stroke over a longer period of time.

With the body position established, Coach Dorenkott demonstrates posture cues to help athletes feel the right body line. He proceeds with a series of undulation drills that can be implemented to establish more of a full body kicking action that will help balance the chest press and lift, and the upward and downward sweep of the kick for an even power transfer from core to feet. Focusing first on amplitude, and then on frequency, he shows how to build a balanced and powerful basis for full stroke. Introduction of the arm action follows with Coach Wadley presenting a series of single arm drills that allow the swimmer to focus on that recovery and pull in the stroke. Wadley teaches a low "close to the water" recovery that helps to keep the stroke flatter and more forward focused on the landing. Drills are designed to:

• Develop a kick powerful enough to be heard by the swimmer.
• Create acceleration through the pull
• Develop a quick recovery that does not sacrifice kick power or amplitude

The timing of the breath is crucial for the stroke to be most efficient. Late breathing is a habit that many younger swimmers develop that can become quite challenging to correct. Coach Dorenkott presents two drills that are specifically designed to teach or in some cases re-teach a swimmer to breathe at the proper time. Drills done on land and in the water develop breathing in the power zone of the stroke and a steady, two kick-per-cycle rhythm. Tempo is driven by the speed of the kick first, ensuring athletes keep the body connection.

Coach Dorenkott also presents a unique series of combination drills that are designed to let a swimmer focus on specific critical stroke components, one component at a time before combining them with full stroke swimming. Demonstrations include both male and female swimmers that give invaluable insight into how to best incorporate swimmers individual strengths into the stroke.

These butterfly drills will help swimmers use Power, Finesse and Rhythm to make their butterfly easier and more successful!

64 minutes. 2013.