In addition to the preparatory exercises, some core exercises are required.
The crawl start in this exercise is characterized by legs oriented in parallel, with the jump from both legs at the same time. Although this technique was used frequently in the past, it is now considered obsolete. However, it is still worthwhile to continue practicing the parallel start method, as it is still considered the fastest start method for some swimmers.
This exercise focuses on the normal head jump from the starting block without first going into the specific starting position. After the jump, the swimmer glides through the water without leg or arm movements to get as far as possible. The goal is an ideal dive angle of 10-20 degrees and a powerful jump. The distances traveled should be noted in order to improve them when carried out repeatedly. Optionally, a ring or a swimming noodle can be used as a jumping aid, but there is a risk of injury. The main goal of this exercise is to cover as much distance as possible in a short period of time and this is intensively trained.
In this exercise, a ring or swimming noodle is held about one meter in front of the child at thigh height. The child should now head jump through the ring or over the swimming noodle. The swimming noodle is pain-free, while a hard ring can be a bit uncomfortable. Just drop the ring in the water if the child gets stuck with their feet. It's up to you to decide which element to use. This exercise is particularly useful if your child still has too much memory of the angular momentum from the forward roll and rolls over when jumping head.
Similar to head jumping, many children also tend to take their heads upwards during the flight phase, which results in a shallow impact of the abdomen on the water. If this problem persists, it is recommended that you repeat the preparatory exercises for the head jump again.
