The Effortless Swimming Podcast

• #387 : Does 1960's swim technique still work? with Brenton Ford

  Do freestyle tips from the 1960s still hold up today? In this episode, I’m diving into some notes I took from a DVD created by 1960 Olympic gold medalist in the 1500m freestyle, John Conrad. About ten years ago, I was deep into studying freestyle technique—trying to learn everything I could—and John and I actually had a few back-and-forth discussions about our different approaches. We didn’t always agree, and today I want to revisit some of his ideas, share what I took away from his teachings, and talk about where I see things differently. If you’re working on improving your own freestyle technique, I’ve also put together a free checklist to guide you step-by-step—you’ll find the link in the show notes. Let’s dive in!   00:49-Apply Energy Only When Needed 01:29-Swim At Floatation Depth 02:18-Anxiety Is Number 1 Priority 02:48-As You Relax, Your Body Increases In Volume 03:22-Swimming Efficiently Means You're Relaxed And Loose 03:49-Look Forward When Learning. Look Down When More Comfortable 04:39-Pivot Your Body 05:08-Relax Your Kick. It Is Not Worth The Effort 05:44-Kick On Your Back Instead Of Your Front 06:36-Both Arms Don't Go At The Same Speed 07:19-Delay The Pull 08:01-Learn By Exageration 09:12-The First Component Of Swimming Is Relaxing. The Second Is Catch Up. The Third Is Almost Catch Up 10:16-Don't Confuse Arm Speed With Swim Speed 11:05-Don't Rush The Breath 11:49-Exhale All The Time From The Nose And Mouth 12:45-Breathe Every 2 But Change Every 25 Meters Or So 13:26-Kicking On The Side Is Good For Developing Your Breathing To The Opposite Side 14:05-Keep Your Hand Loose In The Recovery 14:41-Use Body Roll To Bring Your Elbow Through The Recovery 15:25-Pull Harder Not Sooner To Go Faster 16:36-Don't Pull Too Early, Extend And Push Down Slightly Grab the freestyle checklist here:  https://effortlessswimming.com/freestyle-checklist/ Work with us (stroke analysis coaching): https://effortlessswimming.com/es-training-and-membership-page/ Join a camp: https://effortlessswimming.com/camps/

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• #386 : 10 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Started Swimming with Brenton Ford

  In today’s episode, I’m sharing 10 things I wish I knew when I first started swimming. Whether you’re just beginning or have been in the water for a while, these lessons can help you take your swimming to the next level. Let’s face it—most beginners train too hard, focus on the wrong details, and waste a lot of time and energy. That not only slows progress but can lead to frustrating plateaus or even injuries like shoulder pain. These 10 key insights will help you avoid those common mistakes. We’ll break down what truly matters when it comes to gear, technique, training, and mindset—so you can swim smarter, stay injury-free, and start seeing real improvement in the pool. 2:00 Essential gear only 3:24 Basics first 4:56 Training 6:40 Open-water challenges 8:09 Interval training works 11:56 More Than The Pool 12:56 Drills Equals Fast Swimming 13:57 Staying Consistent 15:02 Persistence pays off 16:13 The Real Reward

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• #385 : Most Swimmers Take Years To Learn This with Brenton Ford

  In this episode, we’ll break down that key insight—how chasing speed can hold you back, why real progress comes from subtle adjustments, and the shift in perspective that turns resistance into flow. If your stroke has ever felt more like a struggle than a rhythm, this episode is for you. 1:10 Progress Isn't Linear 2:18 Video Yourself Early 3:12 Control The Mental Side 4:23 Consistency 5:52 The Clock 6:49 Your Stroke Does Not Have To Look Like The Pros 9:26 Comfortable Gear Matters More Than Fancy Gear 10:24 Have A Goal Even A Small One 12:05 How To Stay Calm In the Chaos 13:37 Swimming Beyond The Pool

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• #384 : How To Go From 2:30 to 1:15/100m with Brenton Ford

  In this episode, I'll give you the exact issues that hold swimmers back at each pace from beginner swimmers at two 30 per hundred or slower, all the way to advanced swimmers at one 15 per hundred for a kilometer. And I'll also give you actionable drills and strategies to help you progress to the next level. 02:10 – Drill 1: Horizontal body posture 03:30 – Drill 2: Balanced tempo 05:00 – Drill 3: Efficient breathing 06:20 – Drill 4: Catch & pull mechanics 08:00 – Kit/gear suggestions 09:30 – Putting it all together 11:00 – Programming & progression 12:30 – Real-life example 14:00 – Summary & tips to keep improving

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• #383 : The Fastest (And Easiest Way) To Draft In Open Water

  Hey, Brenton here. If you ever find yourself uncomfortable in the open water and not feeling that calm when you've got other people around and not knowing where to sit or where to draft off people to be most effective at it. This episode's for you. I joined the Low Tide Boys, Chip and Chris on a podcast, and they asked me all about the science of drafting. So on this episode, I get stuck into that so you know exactly where to sit. In a pack or with other people around to maximize the draft, as well as how to prepare for this stuff if you don't have much access to the open water. So I hope you enjoy this episode. There's a lot of value for anyone who's training for open water swims or doing any sort of triathlon racing. This episode is filled with things that will help you maximize your next open water race. Just to give you a heads up, we've added some dates for our 2026 camps for the Maldives and also for Thailand. I haven't released this anywhere else yet, but I'm just giving you the heads up on the podcast. If you wanna join me next year on one of those camps to work on your swimming, then there's a few dates that we've [email protected] slash camps. 02:57 General Consideration Around Open water Swimming 05:58 Sighting In Open water 12:58 Optimal Way To Draft 18:06 The Closer The Better 21:01 Keep It Tidy 22:16 Mindset For People Who Is Leading The Swim 29:03 Overtaking In Open water 33:11 Surging In Open water 36:59 Gears When Swimming  

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