In most cases, you need to work on your fitness level and increase the intensity and duration of your swimming workouts to swim faster. It is true that conditioning will always be an important factor but paying attention to many other things can help you learn how to swim faster. Some swimmers instinctively learn to swim faster, while others require some time and practice to master the skill. Let's find out what you can do to move more efficiently in the water.

Best Tip to Swim Faster

For most people, it is difficult to have a good sense about their efficiency when in the water. It means that doing more laps without first correcting your bad swimming habits is only going to make matters worse. You have to consider your swimming technique and make necessary corrections to learn how to swim faster. Here are a few tips to help:

1. Improve Your Body Position

Failing to maintain proper body position will hamper your swimming speed. You will not be able to achieve maximum efficiency if you make common mistakes like lifting the upper half of your body out of the water or letting your legs to sink the bottom. Doing such moves would result in wasted energy. Similarly, if you try to swim on top of the water, you will exhaust yourself in no time. You need align yourself horizontally and try to swim below the surface of the water. Never let your legs or hips sink while swimming. By swimming through the water, you will be able to swim more effectively with the buoyancy supporting your body.

2. Take the Straight Route

Another common issue is that some people swim all over the lane. This would make your body zigzag down the pool. The best thing is to move in the straight route. Zigzag swimming is not a good thing because it makes you pull your arms underneath of your body. Ideally, you should move with wide arms to learn how to swim faster.

3. Try to Swim on Your Side

It is a good idea to intentionally swim more from side to side because this will help improve propulsion. By doing it with each arm stroke, you will be able to utilize your back muscles more effectively. You will obviously be swimming faster when you use a combination of shoulder and back muscles. Just keep in mind that it takes some to use this technique properly.

4. Utilize Your Core

Swimming without using your core efficiently will hamper your speed in a big way. Ensure that you use the combination of back, shoulder, and abdominal muscles. Your core needs to be strong to help you more efficiently in the water. When these muscles work synergistically, you end up swimming faster and that too without having to put in a lot of effort. Remember, your core muscles are strong and have more endurance as compared to your shoulder and arm muscles.

5. Kick Powerfully to Gain Speed

Some swimmers can naturally swim faster because they have a powerful kick. By learning to kick powerfully, you will be able to improve propulsion and move ahead in a more efficient way. Most swimmers stick to the flutter kick, which is all about moving your legs up and down. By kicking more powerfully, you will be able to cover more distance and maintain a good sustainable tempo. It also helps maintain your balance and assist you while rotating your body in the water. By learning to kick correctly and powerfully, you will also be able to maintain the right body alignment. All these benefits will help you learn how to swim faster.

6. Maintain Proper Alignment of Arms

In order to swim faster, you have to ensure that you apply enough propulsive force in the water. How you move your arms will have a big role to play. It is important to ensure that your forearm and hand are properly aligned and facing backward. This will help you move your arms like big paddle. Therefore, pay attention to how you use your arms and keep them in right position to get better results.

7. Learn to Stay Tall while Swimming

One simple way to decrease drag is to learn how to be as tall as possible while swimming. Studies show that a long tapered object is likely to move more efficiently through the water because it creates less turbulence. To achieve a right position, pay more attention to extending your recovering arm quickly. You should do it as soon as it passes over your head.

8. Correct Your Head Position

How your head moves while swimming will also affect your overall speed. You need to keep your head in a neutral position in order to swim faster. By maintaining a neutral head position, you will be able to reduce drag and move more efficiently. You will be swimming more to one side if your head is not positioned correctly. It may lower your legs and hips, which may make you feel as if you are sinking. To maintain a neutral head position, be sure to look down while swimming. Looking forward or up while swimming can affect your speed.