Streamlines and breakouts comprise components four and five of your turning sequence. Keep in mind that the more efficient you are with the first three components, the better opportunity you have for a great component four and five.

Another way to look at the streamline is underwater travel. So, the question becomes, ‘how can I maximize my underwater travel so that I go farhter, and do it faster, than my opponent?’ By using the following tips in practice, you will make this a reality.

1. Body alignment and body balance are essential tools for an effective streamline. Think of your body as an arrow- elongate your neck and spine and slightly round out your upper back. use the weight from your head to balance the weight of your hips, and your legs.

2. Keep your core tight! The tighter, the better.

3. Too much stretching with your arms, however, will be counter-productive as this will tend to throw your balance off a bit. Your arms hang naturally from your shoulders (when standing) at a slight bend. This is the bend you want for your streamline.

4. Every swimmer has an ideal depth with which they travel the furthest, and fastest. To find yours, you must experiment with various body depth off of your walls. Try coming off very shallow (not too good!) Then, try coming off the wall very deeply. (probably not too great either). Now that you know your ideal depth is somewhere in between shallow and deep, you can play around with it. Be sure to maintain proper balance, alignment and core tightness each time, and feel (and see) how you have an advantage on the swimmer in the lane next to you!