Swimming with long strokes is more important than swimming with fast strokes (stroke rate). Increasing your stroke frequency only pays off if and when you move a lot of water. Here are a few practical tips to increase your stroke length:

• Count your strokes: regularly count the number of strokes you need to cross the length of the pool. The rule is that less is better.
• Enter the water at the end of your arm length (the general advice is a 2/3 or 3/4 ratio) and push your arm out until it is completely stretched next to your body (tip: make a little mark on your thigh with your thumb).
• Under water, try to stretch your arm (at chest height) a little more. When you swim, submaximally, you can look for a higher resistance.
• Chose the right size paddles and use these to swim very technically. We suggest the TYR Catalyst. Paddles won’t make you stronger, but they do make you better.

More information: http://www.swimacademy.be/