April 21, 2020
Butterfly With Coach Biller
Ready To Fly, Ducks?
Hi everyone! Ready to launch into learning about new stroke? Here we go...

I want to talk about the Butterfly next because it is the one stroke everyone is afraid of. BUT...Butterfly should be the stroke that everyone should love and want to master because it is so awesome. 

The Butterfly is a beautiful and graceful stroke if done properly, and a swimmer's nightmare if done wrong. The stroke is all about rhythm and timing and not strength. This stroke is swam with the whole body and not just the arms or legs. Again, we will break the stroke down into parts, then put it all together.
Watch Kelsi Worrell's beautiful butterfly in this video. Especially notice the timing of her stroke.
We'll begin with the motion that all butterfliers need to have - Undulating (Pulsing)

Undulating means (literally) move like a smooth, wave-like motion. Within our short-axis strokes (Butterfly and Breaststroke), undulating is a key component to a faster time. Basically, undulating aids our forward motion in the pool by strengthening our pull (putting us in a stronger physical position to catch water) AND by firing our hips and lower back MORE to create a greater amount of propulsion from our kicks!

Basically–if you do not undulate in fly, you won’t be able to pull or kick as much water!

To have a successful undulation motion during your fly stroke–there are few important concepts:

1, Strong Core .
The undulating motion starts at the core and ripples through the body like a wave. Without a strong core to create the motion itself—it will all fall apart and your body alignment will suffer.

2, What Goes up–Must Come Down!
Swimmers (especially younger swimmers) have tendency to use their undulation to drive themselves up and down, versus (flying) forward. Remember: the goal is to get down the lane as fast as possible—not dive down towards the bottom of the pool.

3, Body Alignment is Key!
While swimming fly–if you lead the undulation with your head and not your chest—your body will come out of alignment. This misalignment will create a bigger increase in frontal drag (i.e. more resistance) against your forward motion. Check out the video above of Kelsi Worrell doing fly.

Watch Kelsi's undulation through the water. She presses with the chest and does not dive down with the head and arms. Kelsi always keeps her hips close to the surface of the water thus keeping her body Horizonal and not Vertical (drowning butterflyer), She always follows the golden rule of Butterfly, when the arms go in the hips come out.
A Message From Coach Cyndy
Hello, my Little Spotted and Marbled Ducks!

I have been thinking of all of you and miss you all so very much. I hope you are staying safe, keeping up with your studies, but most of all DRIVING YOUR PARENTS CRAZY!!

Because, that is what Little Ducklings do when they are away from the Pond. I have a lot of fun things planned when we get back.

I have an assignment for you...
I want each one of you to think of something you want to work on. Write it down and put your name on the paper. We will pull one of these papers out of a basket each day during swim practice, and we will add it to our lesson.

The Candy Basket is full!! See you all soon, and Love to all of our swimmers.

Coach Cyndy
Worth Repeating - Record Board Refresh!
Last week, we announced that our Ducks record board has been updated, and we have a spot on our website to feature all of these record-breaking successes. If you missed it last week, be sure to check it out . SEVERAL of our swimmers will find their names on this list. Congrats, everyone!
Ducks Dryland Workouts
Here's Dryland Routine #3 - Do 2-3 Times Weekly

Please modify to your strength and ability, change the reps, change the intensity. You can also start to alternate between all 3 dryland workouts I've provided. Keep up the great work! Remember, progression and consistency is key. If you did two workouts last week try to up it to 3. No one has yet shared a video of photo. Come on, Ducks! I'd love to see someone share a pic or clip showing me how hard you're working. It just might appear in a future newsletter!


Warm Up
2:00 Jumping Jacks
1:00 Squat/ Thrust
2 x 1:00 Planks - Mix in Side Planks
10 Minute Stretch Routine ( use this video )

Work Sets
4 x 1:30 Walk-Out Push Ups 2 Push Ups per Walk Out
5 x 1:00 Squat/Thrust 25 per minute is a challenging goal
6 x 25 Squats vary stances wide, neutral, narrow

Core Rotations
4 x 1:30 rotate Jack knives, sit-ups and superman every :30 seconds
Duck Spotlight
We have amazing swimmers on our team! We're excited to highlight a different Duck in each team newsletter. If you'd like to be featured, send in a picture and answer these questions. Email them to Coach at glenn.biller@glymca.org .
Meet Master's Swimmer, Mark Larkin
1. Tell Us About Yourself (age, school, swim group, parent(s):
I'm 48 years old,and swim with the "Grey Ducks" (aka Master's). My two kids, Emersyn and Will, are both on the Team as well. My lovely, compassionate and understanding wife, Erin, puts up with us.

2. If you had a warning label, what would yours say?
Fragile- the older you get the tougher it is to stay healthy.

3. What motivates you to work hard?
I would say to stay faster than my kids, but they have a ways to catch up. Sorry kids..ha, ha, ha! I’ve set the goal of placing in the top five at Nationals in the 50 and 100 free. Some health issues and the latest cancellation of Nationals kept me from getting there but I will!!! The beauty of swimming is I can keep on competing through a Master's program. I started age group swimming at 7 years old and swim to this day, I get butterflies in my stomach before a meet. It’s an adrenaline rush that I hope never goes away.

4. What is your proudest accomplishment?
When I was 16, I qualified for a Zone Championship meet. I was seeded 56th in the 50 meter free. Dead last. In prelims, I took 8th, and in finals I took 5th. These guys I raced against were huge. When we were standing on the podium with our medals, the guy in 7th standing below me was still taller than me! That was a pretty cool feeling. Outside of swimming, it would be getting a Black Belt in Martial Arts with my son Will.

5. What makes you laugh the most?
My daughter, Emersyn. Every day she says or does something that cracks me up.

6. If you could choose to do anything for a day, what would it be?
Deep Sea fishing in the morning. Pool side for the 50 free at the Olympics in the afternoon. Spend the evening at a Blackjack table in Vegas with Jim Gaffigan, Christopher Walken, Kevin Hart, and Seth Rogan. That would be a fun table!
 
7. What would you sing at Karaoke Night?
Don’t stop Believin' - Journey. Everyone needs to join in, though. My voice is the worst.

8. If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Pizza. I might gain a couple hundred pounds, but I could do it.

9. How would your friends describe you?
I hope loyal and fun.

10. If you were a super hero, what powers would you have?
That's easy... Superspeed!
Quote Of The Week
Questions About Team?

Contact Coach Glenn Biller at glenn.biller@glymca.org or 262-248-6211, ext. 23

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