May 15, 2020

By Ali Sensintaffar, HRCA Assistant Aquatic Program Coordinator

One of the key components to good technique is an early vertical forearm catch, or EVF. A mistake seen in all levels of swimming is that they drop their elbows when their hands enter the water. This is a big no-no as it places a lot of stress on the shoulders which can lead to major shoulder injuries later on. Regardless of your current level of swimming, whether you are a seasoned veteran or you are just starting out, practicing your EVF out of the water can help improve your technique for when you are in the water.

Here are some tips for practicing your EVF at home:

Standing up

While standing, extend your right arm above your head and place your left arm at your side. This motion mimics the freestyle body position for when you go into your EVF. Then lower your forearm while keeping your elbow extended overhead until your wrist is level with your elbow.  Holding that position, lower your arm until it is extended and down at your side. Then repeat with your other arm.

For backstroke, start in the same position as freestyle except that you will rotate your shoulder so your arm is slightly behind you.

While standing, extend both arms overhead. This motion mimics the butterfly position right before you go into your EVF. Keeping your elbows extended, lower your forearms until your wrists are level with your elbows. Then bring your arms down while holding that position, rotating at the shoulders so that your hands come closer to your body until they are extended completely down.

For breaststroke, start the same as you would butterfly, but rather than bringing your arms in, you will keep them out. Once your arms are at shoulder level, bring them in together. Do not allow your arms to go below your shoulders.

Taking it up a notch

Once you have the positions correct, enlist a friend, parent, spouse or someone to help provide resistance. This will help to strengthen the muscles used in your EVF. If you feel pressure or pain in your shoulder, stop and reassess your arm position then try again.

To get a closer feel for what it is like in the water, practice laying down. If you have a bench, that is preferred, but most of us don’t have gyms in our houses. You can use a bed or a couch and allow your arms to hang off the side.

Check out DRYLAND - EVF Isometric Exercise by GoSwim for another dryland exercise that focuses on the EVF.

Again, I cannot emphasize enough just how important it is to have a proper catch when swimming. If you are just learning - practice this and it will make it easier to learn in the water. If you already know how to swim - practice this and it will allow you to focus on it when you go back in the pool which will help to solidify your technique in the water which leads to faster, more effective, and safer strokes.

Stay safe, everyone!

Also - say hello to my cat, Tonto, who kept photobombing my pictures, which led to a 5-10 minute picture session double.