10 Swim Drills for Triathletes That Actually Work (2026 Guide)

From Lotte: The swim intimidated me more than anything else when I started, right up to my Ironman — and it was drills, not just grinding out more laps, that finally made it feel manageable. A few focused minutes each session did more for my confidence than any amount of extra distance.

The 10 most effective drills, in priority order: 1) Kick on side, 2) Superman glide, 3) 6-3-6 (six kicks, three strokes), 4) Catch-up, 5) Single-arm freestyle, 6) Sculling, 7) Doggy paddle, 8) Fingertip drag, 9) Zipper drill, 10) Breathing every 3/5. Do 2–3 drills per session, 4×25 m each, with easy 25 m freestyle between sets. Body-position drills (1–3) come first; catch drills (4–7) come next; refinement drills (8–10) come last. Film yourself every 4 weeks to track changes.

Most triathletes swim 2–3 times per week for 1 hour. That's 90,000–150,000 m per year — a fraction of what swimmers do. You will not out-yard a swimmer. You can only out-technique your past self.

Drills isolate one piece of the freestyle stroke so your brain and body can learn it without the distraction of full-stroke coordination. Done well, 10 minutes of drills per session can knock 1–3 minutes off a sprint swim split and 5–10 minutes off a 70.3 swim within 8 weeks.

The rule: pick 2–3 drills per session, repeat them for 3–4 weeks, then re-test with a video. Random drill-of-the-day swimming wastes water time.

If you're brand new to freestyle, start with our improve your triathlon swim guide first, then come back here for the drill library.

Body position is the highest-leverage thing in freestyle. A flat, streamlined body cuts drag by 30–50%.

1. Kick on side — Push off on your side, bottom arm extended, top arm at your hip. Kick for 10–15 m. Switch sides. Goal: feel your hips ride high near the surface. Reps: 6×25 m. Fixes: low hips, dragging legs.

2. Superman glide — Push off the wall, both arms extended, face down. Just glide. Hold streamline for as long as the glide carries you. Reps: 8×15 m. Fixes: head position too high, kicking from the knees.

3. 6-3-6 drill — Six kicks on your right side, three full strokes, six kicks on your left side, three strokes. Reps: 4×50 m. Fixes: poor rotation, breathing only on one side.

Do these first. Spend 3–4 weeks here before adding catch drills.

Once your body is flat and rotating, you can work on the part of the stroke that actually moves you forward.

4. Catch-up drill — Each hand waits at full extension until the other hand 'taps' it before pulling. Slows the stroke down so you can feel each phase. Reps: 4×50 m. Fixes: rushed stroke, no glide phase.

5. Single-arm freestyle — One arm extended in front the whole time. The working arm completes a full stroke. Breathe to the side of the working arm. Reps: 4×50 m (alternate arms each 25). Fixes: weak catch, lopsided pull.

6. Sculling — Face down, arms out front, palms angled in then out like spreading butter on toast. Forearm vertical. Reps: 4×25 m. Fixes: no feel for the water, dropping the elbow in the catch.

7. Doggy paddle — Freestyle pull pattern but underwater, no recovery. Forces a high-elbow catch. Reps: 4×25 m. Fixes: 'windmill' pull, pushing water down instead of back.

Once the basics are locked in, these drills polish the details that separate a 1:50/100 m swimmer from a 1:30/100 m swimmer.

8. Fingertip drag — During the recovery, drag your fingertips along the surface of the water. Reps: 4×50 m. Fixes: low elbow on recovery, crossing over the midline.

9. Zipper drill — Slide your thumb up your side from hip to armpit during recovery, as if pulling up a zipper. Reps: 4×50 m. Fixes: dropped elbow recovery, shoulder strain.

10. Breathing every 3 / every 5 — Force yourself to breathe on alternating sides. Builds the bilateral breathing you need in open water chop. Reps: 4×100 m, alternating breath patterns by length (3-5-3-5). Fixes: one-sided breathing, panic in open water.

Drop this into any pool session after your warm-up, before your main set.

Week	Focus	Drills (10 min total)
1	Body position	Kick on side 6×25 + Superman 6×15
2	Body position + rotation	6-3-6 4×50 + Kick on side 4×25
3	Catch	Catch-up 4×50 + Single-arm 4×50
4	Catch + refinement	Doggy paddle 4×25 + Sculling 4×25 + Fingertip drag 4×50

After 4 weeks, re-film yourself swimming 50 m freestyle from the side and from below (a friend with a phone in a waterproof case works). Compare to your week-1 video. You should see flatter hips, a higher elbow, and a longer stroke.

Then restart the progression with whichever flaw is still most obvious — usually catch refinement or breathing rhythm.

Worth buying:

• A snorkel (front-mounted) — lets you focus on body position without breaking rhythm to breathe.
• A pull buoy for occasional pull sets, especially when learning catch drills.
• Fins (short, training fins) — only for kick-on-side and 6-3-6 if your kick is very weak.

Skip or use sparingly:

• Paddles — risk shoulder injury without good technique first.
• Tempo trainer — useful at advanced level, distracting for beginners.
• Tech swimsuits — won't fix a stroke flaw.

For a full gear breakdown, see our triathlon swim gear essentials guide.

Three measurable signs of progress, in order of importance:

1. Stroke count — count strokes per 25 m. A reduction of 2–4 strokes in 4 weeks = real progress. Most beginners are at 22–28 per 25 m; competent triathletes are at 16–20.
2. CSS / 400 m time — test your critical swim speed every 6 weeks. Drills should drop your pace 3–8 seconds per 100 m within 3 months.
3. Effort at the same pace — your 100 m at 1:45 should feel easier in 8 weeks. Heart rate at race pace will drop 5–10 bpm.

If none of these three move after 6 weeks of consistent drill work, the drills probably aren't being done correctly. Hire a coach for 1–2 sessions or post a video in a triathlon community for feedback. Pair with our open water sighting and breathing techniques once your pool stroke is solid.

Some popular drills cause more harm than good for triathletes:

• Closed-fist swimming — overrated. Most triathletes already pull poorly; closing the fist just reinforces the bad pattern.
• Tarzan / heads-up freestyle — useful for open-water sighting practice but ruins body position if done as a regular drill.
• One-arm with both hands held back — confusing, easy to do wrong, no clear focus.
• Heavy paddle work — high shoulder injury rate. Skip until you have a stable, efficient stroke.

When in doubt, simpler is better. Five reps of a drill done with intent beats twenty reps done sloppily.