Back kick issue

[phoenix31tt]

Hi all,

When i attempt the backfin, it seems to work to some extent, as in, on the first one i stop moving forward, but the second and third only marginally propels me backward and i feel like my legs are going skyward then i stop for fear of doing a nose dive :depressed:.

I took videos while learning frog kick but i cant take videos of the back kick as the visibility is way to low...

in the absence of that, do you guys know of anything i can be doing wrong that would cause the issue... my trim appears to be good because i'm usually horizontal from head to knee without any effort and frogkick works really well

thanks

 

[TSandM]

It's very common to point the fin tips up when working on the back kick, which pulls you backward and upward. (It's called the "backward shrimp dance" for obvious reasons ). The more you get your feet pulled up, the harder it is to perform the kick at all, and the more you pull yourself upward.

Think about pulling the fin tips down as you do the extension part of the kick. Nobody ever pulls themselves DOWNWARD when back-kicking, so you don't have to worry about that!

 

[rongoodman]

OTOH, once you get it worked out, the "backward shrimp dance" is very handy for looking at critters under rocks and ledges--you simply go head down, nose up to the critter's spot, and when you want to move away, just kick back and up. Once you're clear, flatten out and head forward again.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Whenever I teach the back kick the most important thing I emphasize is slow and deliberate motions. Do not try to power through it or cover a lot of distance when just starting out. It takes time and patience. If you manage to get four good kicks in that's really doing something. If on the fifth you find the going up thing happening, stop. Come to a complete stop and don't try a sixth. Swim around and try to think about what changed. Something did. Often it's cockiness. It happens and you lose focus. I have been teaching it for going on five years now and am the first to admit that some dives mine goes to crap. It just won't work. And dammit it should!
I'm teaching others how to do it!
Big deal. Settle down, relax, go back to basics, slow down, concentrate, and it all falls back into place. Usually.

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Dsix36]

Nobody ever pulls themselves DOWNWARD when back-kicking, so you don't have to worry about that!

I just figures that I would be the only idiot that could manage it though.

 

[phoenix31tt]

thanks for the advice guys, will try it on my next dive

 

[Divedoggie]

I usually advocate learning and practicing a skill while neutrally buoyant. But since we want to stay on a level plane, it helps in this specific drill to use a level plane surface as a learning tool.

Try lying face down on the floor of the pool. Keep your legs relaxed but straight behind you and parallel to each other. Gently take your hands and push yourself back a couple of feet. Your relaxed legs will automatically move through the ideal motion for a back-kick. Gently straighten legs again, push with hands. Once you feel that you can commit the movement to muscle memory, get neutrally buoyant a few inches above the floor and repeat the motion using muscle energy in your legs. As you back up you can visually monitor the distance between you and the floor. After a short while, you should be able to do it anywhere in the water column.

Consistent and successful back-kicks are very dependent on the fins one uses. To do it well requires a paddle fin, and imo a relatively short fin.
My favorites are the Hollis F2, HOG tech fin 2, and any rocket fin/jet fin design. We had a fun contest the other night backing along the marked line in a 25 meter pool. I demonstrated the entire length a few times, and then switched fins with one of my students. His Atomic Split Fins enabled me to go backward exactly zero inches and after trying vigorously, I was rewarded with a butt cramp.

 

[danvolker]

Also make sure your looking up--not head down, and that your back is in the right posture.....experiment with how changing your head up or down, and back posture will change your rear ward trajectory....( Sun Tzu version.... "to know, you must know what you don't know..")

 

[Randy g]

Good stuff guys/gals. My back kick is exactly like the OPs.

 

[Tortuga68]

When i attempt the backfin, it seems to work to some extent, as in, on the first one i stop moving forward, but the second and third only marginally propels me backward and i feel like my legs are going skyward then i stop for fear of doing a nose dive :depressed:.

Two things I've seen contribute to this outcome are 1. trying to put too much power into the kick and 2. having your weight too high up on your body/rig

You should be able to execute an effective backkick in the pool with no fins/gear; good way to practice/perfect your technique. Once you've got yourself moving backwards well like that, try it in scuba.

Maybe be stating the obvious but if there is any sort of current at all, practice facing into it.