How to do that pesky back finning thing

[Progen]

Not too sure whether my journey to back finning will be the same but with the frog kick, I was actually doing it right in the water BEFORE I planted my tummy on a chair to emulate the divers in a training video. It was just that it didn't feel like I had my knees at a 90 degree angle and my feet didn't feel as if they were at my head level. Was only after recording myself on video that I realized I'd been trying too hard all along and ended up having an arch in my back.

 

[nimoh]

I will add that it is critical to have good horizontal trim. If you can stay in one spot while in trim and without moving your hands or feet, the backwards kick shouldn't take long to master.

 

[Imla]

You might want to actually slightly break trim (just a little) when you start your backstrokes. Many tend to look down, or keep their necks relaxed... if you are not careful, you will end up going upwards.

So.. Slight break of trim. Look up. Head towards manifold, Arch back, extend legs, and do the backkick.

 

[Progen]

I will add that it is critical to have good horizontal trim. If you can stay in one spot while in trim and without moving your hands or feet, the backwards kick shouldn't take long to master.

Trim's as good as it can get. I'm a bottom feeder! Can stay comfortably just 2 - 3 inches from the pool floor and remain there. Can maintain buoyancy and trim with all of the other kicks. It's only the back one which sends my arse up to the surface.

Thanks Imla, I'll give it a try. Perhaps I should just get a slate, jot down all the tips so that I can have something to refer to when underwater.

 

[Ayisha]

I will agree that the mechanics are slightly different on the surface. But I watched my husband gain a truly functional back kick in about 3 weeks doing it that way, whereas I took about six months to get it underwater. GUE now starts people on the surface, too.

3 weeks? 6 months? No wonder I couldn't do it in a pool session! Or the next two times, except a couple of freak occurrences. Back to the drawing board...

 

[TSandM]

Progen, if your trim is that solid and you are having trouble with the back kick, it is the orientation of your fin tips. It is EXTREMELY common to move back and up because the fin tips are pointing upward. Think about dorsiflexing your foot (the motion you make when you let off the gas pedal) through the kick. It will help.

 

[Progen]

I'll try to get some videos done soon. Will be good for a couple of laughs.

 

[Quero]

It's the angle of your ankle, most likely. You need to flex your feet (the opposite of pointing your toes) throughout the whole kick cycle. When you flex your foot, your fin tips automatically point downwards and you are able to "scoop" the water with the tops of the fins. Lie face down on that chair you were using to practice the frog kick moves while watching the video (or a bed or the floor) and work through the movements while actively flexing your feet.

 

[Progen]

Here're two taken yesterday.

[video=youtube_share;mcI-Ef7V0Lo]http://youtu.be/mcI-Ef7V0Lo[/video]

[video=youtube_share;_-jGQemK0IU]http://youtu.be/_-jGQemK0IU[/video]

I can see clearly where I've gone wrong now. Didn't extend my feet enough and angle my fins downwards but started off as if in the frog position.

Also noticed that I still have a bit of the Floaty Legs Syndrome. Guess it'll take a bit of conscious effort to reprogram myself to tighten the abs to bring the butt and legs down after months of using lightweight fins.

 

[beanojones]

I think it is worth point out two things about those videos:

1. What an amazing pool! Holy deep end Batman! That is awesome! Where is it? Do you have to pay to use it?

2. Back kicks done the side of the fin way, which is how most people here at SB recommend doing it, result in a very gentle backwards movement which can be completely undone by the return movement of the fins. In my conditions, it's just not strong enough to be of use, and I am perfectly willing to be a "shrimp dance" back kicker.