Does Katie Ledecky Swim with TI Technique?

19 year old swimming legend Katie Ledecky

 

66 year old TI Founder Terry Laughlin

 

We often hear the question: “Does [insert the name of a prominent elite swimmer] swim with TI Technique?”

We always answer: “We take no credit for the technique of [prominent elite swimmer]. They learned it from their various coaches and developed it over many years . . .

However: We strive continuously to refine TI technique and ensure that it’s on the cutting edge. We spend much time studying the strokes of the best swimmers in the world looking for aspects of their form that are not limited to those with youth or special athletic gifts, but are learnable by everyone.

In this screenshot taken from one of 19 y.o. Katie Ledecky’s impressive races, we can identify points of technique that are precisely the same as we teach. Moving from front to rear, they are

Her sloped leading arm with a flexed wrist, and hand below the deepest part of the body as she applies initial pressure on the water.
Her ‘hidden’ (mostly submerged) head, aligned with her spine.
Her left arm forward of her head, poised to enter the water, while right hand is still forward of her head.
Her upper torso rotated OFF her stomach (not ON her side).
Her left hip poised to drive down and propel her past her right-hand-grip.

Now compare with the screenshot of  66 y.o. TI Head Coach Terry Laughlin and ask yourself “Does Katie Ledecky swim with TI technique.”

We teach all of these techniques in our 1.0 Effortless Endurance and 2.0 Freestyle Mastery downloadable Self Coaching Courses and Workshops.

 

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