Easy Freestyle Swimming by Terry Laughlin

A few weeks ago, a friend convinced me to do a sprint triathlon with him in a few months. Soon thereafter, I decided to go to my gym's pool to see how far I could swim, just to gauge how much work lay ahead. I already knew *how* to swim (via years of lessons at the Y) but figured I needed to work on my fitness level. To my shock, at the end of maybe 75 yds, I had to stop. I was exhuasted, gasping, and had a heart rate through the roof. Even though I'm in decent shape, i figured I must be out of shape for swimming. So to the gym I went, faithfully churning out lap after exhausting lap, trying to kick and splash my way to fitness. But part of me knew there was something wrong. I would see the 65 year old guys doing lap after effortless lap and thought there must be a better way. Well, THIS is that better way. The TI system was recommended in Joe Friel's "Your first Triathlon" and his highly regarded "The Triathlete's Trainig Bible" as well as in "Chi Running".
Now there's nothing magical or mysterious about the TI system. Some of it is just sound swimming technique known by others for a long time (eg looking down, body rotation, streamlining, etc). But there are other aspects that seem to be unique to TI. Where the system really shines is in the step-wise approach and skill-specific drills to building a smoother and more efficient stroke. It's broken down so logically and systematically that one can't help but to improve one's freestyle stroke by simply trying to execute its lessons.
The DVD itself is of decent quality, more than adequate to accomplish its goal. While a couple of the video sequences look as though the camera operator was drunk, it is mostly well-filmed and it is easy to see the details of the drill that is being explained. They are shot both above and below the water and from multiple angles, sometimes even using split screens to enhance understanding. The music and graphics are a little cheap but who really cares. Before a pool session, I usually watch a chapter while taking notes. Then I bring my notes with me to the pool (in a ziplock bag) to jog my memory of the important points I need to keep in mind. This really works but it's not magic. You'll have to drill, be patient, and get to the pool regularly.
While the DVD itself will be sure to improve your stroke, I think the weekend TI workshop is extremely helpful in making sure you're doing the drills properly. Until you see underwater video of yourself, it's really hard to get an accurate sense of how efficient your stroke really is.
All in all, an extremely useful DVD for anyone (especially triathletes) who wants to improve their freestyle. Highly recommended!

I am training for a triathlon with a 1.5 mile swim and even though I already "know" how to swim (I took an intermediate swim class in college), I know there is a lot of room for improvement in my stroke.

The Total Immersion company puts on two day workshops to teach you how to swim, but they are pretty pricey at $500-700 if I remember correctly. I opted to buy the Total Immersion book for $11 instead. While the book was quite helpful and insightful, it didn't cut my strokes and effort levels nearly as dramatically as many raving fans had experienced. The book also contains some seriously bad drawings that you are left to interpret then try to imitate in the pool (while guessing what your form looks like). Since that wasn't the best, I figured I'd give it another chance by buying this DVD ($20-something if you go with one of the non-Amazon sellers like I did).

This DVD was very helpful for me. I instantly discovered that I had been doing some of the drills from the book incorrectly by watching the swim technique in action. While there are some inconsistencies with the book (different drills at least), overall it was very helpful at reinforcing what I learned and taking me to the next level. I finally had my moment in the pool where I dropped a significant number of strokes off each length while simultaneously feeling like I was using less effort to get across the pool! I am very excited to use what I have learned during my triathlon.

You probably won't become Michael Phelps by watching this video, but if you want to take your game to the next level as a recreational swimmer or triathlete, I would highly recommend this video.

I have read the total immersion book and previously seen Terry's Easy Freestyle DVD, but still had some questions about technique and how to breath rythmically. I decided I would invest in this new release and I am glad I did. The DVD is well produced and shows many more drills that really help to increase your technique.

Buy it, it is well worth the price and time.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 33 reviews  4.8 out of 5 stars