paddles

[Steve]

Having had a go at pull, I'm now going to turn my attention to paddles ;) Now I've never used them extensively so I don't speak from experience, but I found this in peak performance; anyone got any thoughts as to whether they're a good idea or not? All I know is that it hurts a lot when someon wearinog paddles gives you a whack :o


Considerable attention has been paid to the possible advantages of using hand paddles during training.

A study in Japan looked at the difference in oxygen uptake between unaided arm-stroke-only swimming and paddle-aided arm-stroke-only swimming. The findings showed that although paddles obviously allowed faster swimming, this was entirely due to the higher propelling efficiency of the swimmers and not to any increased energy production. Thus, if it is purely physical improvements one is looking for, the use of hand paddles offers no advantage. However, their usefulness in increasing one's 'feel' for the water undoubtedly exists, as I'm sure readers who are involved in swimming will agree. It is also true to say that the state of training influences swimming efficiency, and that well-trained swimmers have higher efficiencies than the untrained at any given swimming speed. (Ogita and Tabata, 'Effect of hand-paddle aids on oxygen uptake during arm-stroke-only swimming', European Journal of Applied Physiology, 1993, vol.66, pp489-493)

[Chris]

They hurt my elbows - that's all I know.

With poor lane discipline (very common with some of the people I swim with :wave: ) they can definitely be a lethal weapon.

I would have thought that when used excessively on younger swimmers they would place unnecessary stress on developing shoulders :confused:

[mammamedley]

I love pull with paddles! You have to build up slowly and 'prepare professionally' before you use them!!!!! ;)
I agree with the article: once built up - pulling with paddles is easy and an enjoy to do however I try and make my pull sets harder by breathing at less intervals and also by lowering stroke count. I get lovely feel of the water!!!!! and glide along!!! Bliss - I usually do a pull set when I am tired and need more of a recovery session. I will do a pull set tonight!:p

[mammamedley]

By the way - Aldershot Garrison Pool lets you pull with paddles and use flippers in a public swim session - thats cos nobody is ever there!!!!! :cheers: afterwards!!

[swimmer]

i used to like using paddles a lot, but then i got some speedo power paddles size 2 (Meadium) they r huge and prob too big for a teenage female but the size smaller (small) were tiny! they were fine for a white - infact they were brill, but recently i hvae been getting really bad and sometimes sharp pains in my shoulders, top arms and neck, as soon as a start using them. (on f/c) does ne1 know why this is happening?

[Kate]

Be careful using these big paddles at too young an age. My daughter has had big problems with swimmer's shoulder and the verdict from two sports physios that have been treating her is that age-group swimmers should not be using them.