10 Best Dryland Exercises To Swim Faster

Finding workouts that will help an athlete during a competition by supplementing the training that is part of the sport itself is an essential element of an athlete's training routine.

Cross-training activities will strengthen and develop important muscle groups using workouts that are distinct from those used in their activity.

This is why many athletes participate in numerous sports, dancing classes, yoga, and other activities. Creating a workout plan for swimmers is similar, except that their activity takes place in water, and their cross-training falls under the category of "dryland training."

What is Dryland Training?

Dryland training takes place on dry land, as the name implies. The objective is to enhance power, mobility, and flexibility via strength and conditioning activities. For swimmers, this implies being more explosive in the water, increasing speed and stroke rate, and increasing distance per stroke. This sort of exercise is also intended to minimize injury risk.

What Are the Best Dryland Exercises for Swimmers?

Exercises that strengthen and stretch the muscles utilized in swimming, notably the core, arms, and legs, are included in the finest dryland training for swimmers.

Tip: To avoid injury, always warm up your muscles before commencing an exercise and stretch completely. In your next workout, try any of the following dryland workouts for swimmers.

Stretch Cord Pulls

Stretch cords help swimmers mimic the swimming stroke you're trying to achieve out of the water. By using higher resistance bands you can make the exercise more difficult and build strength. Stretch cords are also a great tool to clean out strokes and change unwanted unnecessary stroke movements.

Planks (variations)

Planks are a great way to build core strength, improve balance and coordination. Planks help swimmers build the core strength they need to swim fast and engage the muscles to propel them efficiently. There are dozens of challenging plan variations you can try and they will all be challenging in their own way!

Static Push-Ups

Push-Ups are incredibly beneficial when it comes to building upper body strength. You’ll engage your triceps, pectoral muscles, and shoulders. If you do pushups with the right technique they can help you strengthen the lower back and core by engaging the abdominal muscles. They are a very effective exercise for building strength.

Dynamic Burpees

Burpees turn your body into a fat-burning furnace. Burpees burn a lot of calories since they are a high-intensity full-body workout.

Walking Lunges

The lateral lunge strengthens the groin and helps avoid groin strains, which are prevalent among breaststroke swimmers. Why should you do it? It stretches the groin and hip muscles, enhancing hip rotation, which is important in swimming.

Dead Bugs

Medicine Ball throws

Leg Lifts

Pullups

Jump Squats

Jump Rope

Flutter Kicks

Building a strong core is crucial

Swimmers are all well-known to have a strong core, there’s little surprise there. Propulsion your weight in the water and coordinating the mechanics of each stroke requires great core strength. Your core helps combine and propel the chain movement of your swim.

Incorporating lots of core exercises such as planks, sit-ups, Russian twists, and dynamic medicine ball throws will help you build a strong and responsive core that will help you generate more power in the water.

Important tips

Perform all exercises with proper technique and form. When exercises are poorly performed they can cause injuries and provide a reverse effect. If you’re unsure about a specific movement, seek help and correction from a qualified strength coach.

Closing Thoughts

Whether you’re an age group swimmer or an elite swimmer, dryland training is essential to making you a better swimmer. Building strength through resistance training and bodyweight exercises is highly effective and can help you generate more speed during your swim.