SwimmingOpen Water

Open Water Swimming Technique: What Pool Swimmers Get Wrong

The 5 technique adjustments pool swimmers need for open water including sighting, drafting, bilateral breathing, wetsuit swimming, and wave navigation.

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Triathlete Magazine Open Water Swimming Guide (archived)

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Key Points
Essential information covered in this guide
  • •Sighting every 6-8 strokes adds only 2-3% to swim time but prevents major course deviations
  • •Drafting behind another swimmer reduces energy cost by 20-25%
  • •Bilateral breathing is essential in open water for navigation and wave management
  • •Wetsuit swimming requires a higher body position and different kick pattern
  • •Wave navigation requires timing the breath to the wave cycle
  • •AI form analysis can identify pool technique habits that need adjustment for open water
Apps & Solutions Compared
Platforms and tools discussed in this guide

SportsReflector

MySwimPro

Garmin Connect

Triathlete Magazine App

Research Findings
Evidence-backed insights

A 2024 analysis of 1,200 triathlon swim splits found that athletes who practiced open water-specific technique were 4.2 minutes faster on a 1.5km swim compared to athletes with equivalent pool fitness who had not practiced open water technique.

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