Ways to master your flip turn in swimming

A flip turn is the FINA mandated method to turn from one lap to the next. It is a quick turn at the end of a lap. The swimmer pushes off the wall during a flip turn in order to continue at the same speed without losing momentum. Flip turns helps you to switch directions without having to slow down. A swimmer not only conserves energy but because of the flip turn, they actually move faster by pushing against the wall.

Swimming pools can be either 25m or 50m long. If you are a long distance swimmer, you will do many flip turns. However, even for shorter distance races such as the 100m and 200m, flip turns are extremely important. When sprinting in such a short duration, a flip turn can be the difference between you and your competitors.

Most competitive pools are 50m long, but rarely do you have sets less than 200m. Training requires you to do multiple laps as well. If you are in the practice of open turning, or touch and turning during your sets, you should switch to practicing flip turns. The more flip turns you do, the easier it becomes for you, and the faster you can turn in competition. This means that in races, you will not lose any speed to something as trivial as the end of one lap and the start of another.

If you are an open-water swimmer, flip turns are of course, unecesscary. But for most swimmers who practice in pool settings, a flip turn is extremely important. In my most important competitions, my flip turn was the only way I managed to create distance between myself and my competitors and swim faster than them,

Learning how to do a flip turn is very important for a competitive swimmer. Dives, flip turns and proper finish are as important as the swim race itself.

Swimmers have better timings in 25 m pool for a 50 m freestyle race than in a 50 m long course because of the flip turn.

Parts of a flip turn

Like the name suggests, a flip turn involves doing a somersault in the water, planting your feet on the wall, and then pushing off to start swimming in the opposite direction. The flip turn is only used for freestyle and backstroke, as breastroke and butterfly have seperate turning mechanisms. It is essential if you want to maximize speed and efficiency in the water.

Approaching the wall

This is the part before the flip

• Take a quick, large breath before you flip turn. In a flip turn, you need enough oxygen to flip, push off the wall and finish 10m of dolphin kick. This means that you have a long time before you actually get to breathe again. During a sprint, you will already be out of breath. The better you hold your breath, the faster your flip turn will be.
• Approach the wall with good speed. You want to have enough momentum to carry you through the turn. If you are swimming too slowly, you will have to exert extra enegry to turn all the way through, which will slow you down.
• As you approach the wall, tuck your chin to your chest to prepare for the flip. Use your arms to pull yourself into the flip and the rest of your body will follow through.

Doing the flip

• Contract your arms towards your body to help guide your momentum through the flip.
• Remember, a successful flip turn happens when you tuck tightly into a ball with your knees close to your chest, rotate quickly, and push off the wall with strong kick.
• Get your feet to the wall in the correct position. It should be inline with your body, down or up as when you push against the wall. If you do not push off correctly, you will move in the wrong direction, which loses time.

Pushing against the wall and follow-through

• Push off the wall: When your feet touch the wall, push off forcefully, using your legs to propel you forward.
• Streamline: Once you push off the wall, extend your arms above your head and streamline your body, keeping it as straight and narrow as possible.
• Once you have streamlined, start the dolphin kick. Your dolphin kick should carry you around 10m. Begin your stroke again and continue to swim until the next flip turn.

A proper touch and flip turn for each individual stroke is very important for competitive swimming

Challenges a swimmer face in performing a good flipturn

1. Visibility: Some swimmers are afraid of hitting the wall too hard or getting injured during the flip turn because they cannot see clearly in the water or their head is in the incorrect position. If you are practicing with other swimmers, it is difficult to flip turn as you might be afraid to crash into another swimmer. Fear stops them from concentrating to perform a good flip, but it is important to try regardless, as it becomes muscle memory.
2. Not enough speed: This is one of the most important components of a flip turn. To perform a proper flip turn, you need to have enough speed to carry you through the turn. If you don’t have enough speed, you may not complete the turn or may lose momentum.
3. Timing: If you start the turn too early or too late, your distance from the wall will not be right. You will not be able to push off the wall properly, and you will lose momentum.
4. Improper body position: To execute a flip turn correctly, you need to tuck your chin to your chest and roll in a tight ball with the knees as close to the chest as possible. An open somersault will not help you push against the wall strongly, and you will lose momentum to drag.
5. Correct planting: If you plant your feet too low, or too high on the wall you might push off in the wrong direction. You may swim too close to the bottom or surface of the water. This affects your underwater kick, and slows you down.
6. Practice: If you’re new to swimming or haven’t practiced flip turns, it may take some time to get the hang of it. You need to practice flip turns as often as possible so that it becomes ingrained in your muscle memory.
7. Core strength: If your core is weak, you may struggle to control your body during the turn.

Tricks to do flip turns better

• Perform flip turns in front of your coach. Your coach will understand where you need to work. Listen and take corrective actions.
• Practice regularly. This is what will help you master the flip turn. Concentrate on your body movement, understand what is going right or wrong and then adjust.
• There are not many drills to master a flip turn. One common drill that swimmers perform is by swimming freestyle. After 6 strokes of freestyle, perform a flip in the water. This helps the swimmer practice rotation. But not all swimmers are comfortable with this as they feel dizzy during the somersault.
• Journaling helps you understand your progress with every part of swimming. Write how you performed the flip turn and what you want to improve on.

How does the flip turn for backstroke differ from freestyle

Though the flips in backstroke are pretty similar, approaching the wall and follow through varies for flip turns. In backstroke, you need to turn from your back to your stomach in order to begin freestyle arm action before your flip. Turn onto your stomach, and then perform no more than two freestyle arms. After the turn, you will push off the wall into backstroke dolphin kick.

The biggest challenge to the backstroke flip turn is to understand your position and start the flip turn just in time. You need to count your strokes the moment you cross the flag and flip from the correct distance from the wall.

Overcoming these challenges takes time and practice. Swimmers can work on each aspect of the flip turn individually and gradually combine them to execute a proper flip turn.

Remember, the key to a successful flip turn is to tuck tightly into a ball, rotate quickly, and push off the wall with strong kicks. Practice these drills regularly to improve your flip turns and become a faster, more efficient swimmer.