Best Pool Drills to Improve Swimming Skills and Fitness

Taking Your Swimming Workout to the Next Level with Drills

Swimming is a fantastic full-body workout that challenges your cardio, strength, and flexibility unlike many other exercises. Adding specific drills to your pool sessions can further enhance your fitness gains and swimming skills.

How Can Drills Improve Your Swimming?

Drills isolate certain movements to help you:

• Perfect your swimming technique for more efficiency and power
• Build strength in specific muscle groups
• Increase aerobic capacity for endurance
• Hone body position and alignment in the water

Read on for the best pool drills to take your swimming and fitness to the next level.

Kicking Drills for Leg Strength

Your kick provides forward momentum and stability in the water. Kicking drills bolster leg power for faster laps.

Flutter Kick

Works hips, glutes, quads, hamstrings, core

• Use a kickboard or keep head above water
• Continuously kick from the hips with legs straight and toes pointed
• Focus on power from your core and steady hips

Scissors Kick

Targets hip adductors and inner thighs for strength

• Kick one leg up and other leg down, alternating
• Do it rapidly while streamlined, holding kickboard or not
• Keep legs straight, ankles flexed

Vertical Flutter Kick

Challenging drill for core and legs

• Kick up and down quickly with both legs in vertical position
• Use your core to keep hips up and stationary
• for 30 seconds to 1 minute intervals

Arm Drills to Improve Stroke Technique

Refine your pulling motion, build upper body endurance, and enhance body position with these drills.

Fingertip Drag

Lengthens strokes and builds arm endurance

• Extend arm overhead, keeping hand aligned with your head/neck
• Reach forward with fingertips barely breaking the surface
• Push arm forward until its straight and repeat drill for time/distance

Fist Drill

Engages lats and shoulders

• Make a loose fist, thumb side down
• Keep wrist firm and punch arm forward, finishing stroke past hip
• Help rotate your body and isolate pull muscles

Catch Up

Coordinates breathing pattern and bilateral movement

• Stroke with one arm at a time, pausing between arm cycles
• Time your breaths with the pauses as each arm recovers overhead

All-Around Conditioning Drills

Mix up elements or go all out to push your limits.

Vertical Kicking with Arms

Ultimate full body toner

• Tread water or float vertically
• Perform flutter kick as you pull with arms
• Keep elbows high, engage core, stabilize hips

Treading Water

Elevates heart rate while working balance and coordination

• Use just legs in whip kick or rotate between whip and scissor kick
• Push chest up tall, keep head stable and hips high
• Builds endurance treading for time rounds

Sprint Intervals

Turbocharges cardio fitness

• Swim laps alternating sprint lengths (high intensity) with recovery lengths (low intensity)
• Tailor distances and intervals to your current fitness
• Use: kickboard, fins, paddles or no equipment

How to Design Your Drill Workout

Warm Up First

Always warm up muscles before intense drilling with easy laps and joint mobility moves.

Focus Each Session

Choose 1-2 specific drills targeting areas you want to improve.

Include Aerobic Sets

Build cardio stamina with longer intervals between drills like 300-500 meters.

Monitor Intensity

Start slow by gauging rate of perceived effort. Advance difficulty and duration gradually over time.

Add Equipment for Variety

Fins, paddles, kickboards, and pull buoys change resistance and positioning.

Get ready to step up your pool fitness routine with these drilling moves. Be sure to actively rest between intervals and modify all exercises as needed.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.