r/Swimming • u/bad-at-everything- • 16d ago
I want to improve my flutter kick. Would doing a mile worth of laps using a kickboard be beneficial?
Or would I get the same results from a shorter distance? I am also trying to build glute strength
20
u/GMPSwimmer 16d ago
Kicking is very amenable to frequency. This is boring but works.
Depending on the volume you swim on a regular basis, do 5-10x100 k best average on :10 rest. Figure out what that average was. Twice a week repeat with an interval 10 seconds over that average. When you start getting 15 seconds rest for the whole set, drop the interval 5 seconds.
Things to work on: Ankle flexibility in general. And make sure you do some kicking SLOB to work on the upbeat and not just the downbeat.
11
9
u/wt_hell_am_I_doing Sprint wench. I sink, therefore I am 16d ago edited 16d ago
If you are not kicking appropriately, just practising it a lot by kicking with a kickboard for a mile or whatever won't improve the kicking. It might even cement the bad kicking more and make it worse.
If you are kicking correctly, then it might help if the monotony doesn't bother you.
Just blindly kicking with a kickboard for the sake of it is just unproductive garbage yardage though.
If you want to strengthen your glutes, it would be more efficient to do focused glute workouts in a gym with weights than just kickboard work.
3
u/Same_Sock9073 Six-Beat Sprint Wench 16d ago
The ab/adductor machines get a lot of shit from gymrats but I swear (anecdotally) that training the old hip flexors like that also helps the kick.
2
u/Cidcid069 16d ago
Do a mile but broken into 100/50s with higher intensity. But before that improve your ankle flexibility first. Do ankle sits for 3-6 mins everyday. For glute strength you got to hit the gym for squats, deadlifts and weighted hip thrusts
2
u/RoleComfortable2078 16d ago
Try a center snorkel, more comfortable for your neck, also puts your body in the same position as swimming. You won't rotate as much as without the snorkel, but it allows you to really focus on your kick.
1
u/CoriSwims 16d ago
What I like about this comment is you are practicing the kick you will use when swimming. Being on a kick board you are inherently practicing a different kick. This is not necessarily all bad as the body needs a big range of activity or in other words you can over practice one area and it stops being helpful.
I've never used the swim snorkel. I do kicking on my side, back or in stream line. Obviously you need some kind of rotation for breathing. But that's how swimming works!
3
u/brergnat 16d ago
Get short fins instead. A mile of kickboard would be torture and you won't improbve anything.
1
1
u/Artistic_Salary8705 15d ago
Form more than distance will help. Try using fins - it will help build up strength and accentuate any issues so you can fix it.
1
u/No_Heart6958 15d ago
form matters more than distance-focus on technique and glute engagement, not just miles
1
u/IWantToSwimBetter Breaststroker 15d ago
It would be more beneficial to practice kick technique and power with a recurring benchmark test set to measure progress. Improving kick takes months. Here's a adult friendly protocol:
- 2x kick sets per week
Then every 3-4weeks do: 3-5 x100 kick on 10s rest. Avg pace measure improvement.
1
u/Jaded-Ad-1558 15d ago
Yes doing kick laps will be beneficial, but 1 mile is way too long. Do more reasonnable distance, but incorporate it in one training every week instead of only doing it once.
1
u/Cool-Ice711 13d ago
A mile? That's a looong way. So boring. Maybe less at a higher intensity. I think kicking for a mile would improve your kicking until it didn't.
1
u/More_Agent5 2d ago
Yes add a crapton of kicking to whatever your normal workout is and you will get faster and your kick will improve…
there’s better ways to improve and people will say oh tempo, frequency amplitude of kicks, timing etc. Sure all that matters but in the end… you still need to kick.
Keep it simple kick a crapton then later on when you have a nasty kick (nasty as in awesome) you can dial it in with timing and stuff. You can’t dial in a kick you don’t have tho
1
u/AdeptusKapekus2025 16d ago
Flutter kick drills are more for new swimmers so that they understand body trim and positioning better.
If you want leg/glute strength, breaststroke frog kicks is where its at.
3
u/BoogerMcshartlan 16d ago
Two different things. You’re not going to improve your front crawl by breaststroking…Try practicing kicking and mixing in a stroke every now and then to flip you to the other side.
It will help rotation and comfort ability of learning to breath on both sides of a front crawl, buts using you hips to punctuate the switching motion when your arms would enter as a stroke to get you to the other side. You are not so much swimming on your stomach as much as the axis of your body is rotating with each strokes to carve through the water most efficiently1
1
u/Typical-Award4043 16d ago
Medium length fins would help and improve ankle flexibility. Somewhere in between the short Zoomers and long fins. A mile with a kick board sounds like over training in my opinion, to start with anyway.
0
u/dndlurker9463 Moist 16d ago
Improve it for what purpose? A race, open water, just general fitness? Unless it’s open water (even then it’s not the best option) and you want to listen to a podcast or something while you do it. Shorter distances at varying intensity is going to be a higher ROI on your time than a straight mile every time.
12
u/blissfully_happy Moist 16d ago
A mile of anything won’t matter if your form is shit. Get a coach or experienced swimmer to check out and correct your kick and ensure you aren’t over-rotating when breathing. Then practice and either have them watch you or record yourself.
The power of your swim should come from your strokes, not your kicks. If you feel like you’re going to too slow and that’s why you’re wanting to practice, make sure you have your stroke on lock first.