Front crawl tips: don’t get caught out by the catch

There is a lot to work on before you start thinking about the underwater phase of front crawl, says Jonathan Cowie.

The ‘catch’ is the least instinctive part of front crawl, but one that many swimmers obsess over without having a full understanding of what it is and how it fits into the mechanics of their stroke.

What do we mean by the catch?

Swimming is simple: get water, move it back. The catch is essentially the position to get into to move water in the most effective way. Moving water is ‘the pull’ phase. There are multiple factors that need to be in place to get a good catch position.

Although propulsion is obviously important when swimming, it is actually the last thing you should work on when deconstructing your stroke. Imagine your body as a vessel – there is no point having a powerful motor if your hull and propellers aren’t efficient.

Think about what position your body needs to be in to move water effectively. Spend time working on your head and body position to ensure you are as streamlined as possible. How should your body be moving in the water, and how does that movement engage with the catch and pull? Work on your rotation so that you are in the correct position in the water to make the most of your powerful lat muscles in the propulsion phase of your stroke. 

Where do you rotate from?

Make sure your rotation is driven by your hips, not your shoulders. Think of throwing sports and the relationship between body position and power. Only once these fundamental elements of body position and rotation are in place should you start thinking about the propulsion phase.

Some points to remember when working on the underwater phase of front crawl: Your ‘paddle’ to move water backwards is from the fingertips to the elbow. The paddle is not just your hand. The elbow should be above the hand, but terms like ‘early vertical forearm’ and ‘high elbow catch’ can be problematic.

Your paddle is most effective when vertical – hence the term ‘early vertical forearm’. Unfortunately, early vertical forearm is chasing an extreme that very few people, other than elite swimmers, can achieve. We are not all capable of getting our bodies into that position!

Every degree you can improve the angle of your paddle adds power to your propulsive force. Slow to fast, don’t rush the catch. The fastest part of the propulsion phase is the end of the stroke. The pull phase is a gradual acceleration through to recovery. 

Unhelpful front crawl tips

Be careful of terms like ‘feel for the water’ and ‘reaching over the barrel’. Pushing straight down can feel amazing and powerful because of the amount of water you are moving – it is just a shame you are moving it in the wrong direction!

Likewise, reaching over a barrel can lead a swimmer to have an exaggerated bend in their wrist, when their paddle should be flat and straight. Beware of over-extension at the finish of the stroke. Overextending will move water upwards instead of backwards, and risk injury.

For more advice on the catch and other front crawl techniques from open water swimming champion Keri-anne Payne, head to Straight Line Swimming.

This article is from the April 2023 issue of Outdoor Swimmer. Click here to subscribe to the magazine.