If you want to learn how to swim freestyle faster, you need the right technique, lots of strength and stamina, tremendous energy levels, minimal body fat, and lots of willpower.
Learning freestyle is something that can be done by improving the swimming technique and one's stamina level. There are a lot of people who know how to swim freestyle properly, yet at some level every one lacks the skill to implement the technique optimally. To learn to do this, one must read about the correct posturing and body positioning, and then physically apply this knowledge. All the Olympic swimmers have been practicing these techniques for many years. To master this art, you need to show a lot of sincerity, dedication, and commitment, as this art is not something that can be picked up easily. When the right technique is coupled with proper nutrition, regular exercise, and adequate rest, learning how to swim faster becomes simpler.
Kicking Patterns
A series of quick succession of movements with the feet will aid in faster movement in the water. The feet should be slightly submerged in the water, keeping them slightly bent to the rest of the body. The toes should be stretched out, which helps in maintaining the posture of the body, and the hips centered. When you are swimming, it is your feet that are doing the paddling. So, it goes without saying that this needs to be carried out in the right manner. With the proper kicking technique, you can easily swim freestyle faster and improve your clocked timing by a considerable margin. Learn to use your entire leg to kick, and time your kicks based on the distance that you need to cover. Do not bend your knees excessively, as this will hamper the free movement. Once you have figured out the rhythm of the kicks, try not to break that pattern.
Arm Patterns
Your arms are what you use in order to propel yourself forward. The longer the strokes that you take with your arm, the further each rhythmic movement will carry you. You must remember to swing your arm completely while keeping them as straight as possible. Complete the circular movements under the surface of the water and equate the rhythm of the arms with the rhythm of your paddling legs. When instructors teach people how to swim freestyle correctly, this is the first thing that they focus on. Without proper movement of the arms, you will be unable to achieve a smooth streamline movement.
Breathing Patterns
It is recommended that you keep your head under the water during a freestyle run. This will help you achieve faster speed and improve the shape of your body to give you enhanced movement. If you can manage the time intervals for your breathing properly, you will quickly learn, as this is the one area that people usually take a long time to master. Inhale with your mouth and exhale with your nose, take short powerful breaths, and take a breath every 4-7 seconds. Following these tips will enable you to swim faster, and will also show you how to swim freestyle efficiently.
Training
It goes without saying that you need to train regularly. Practice your stroke and routine at least 4 times a week, and with each subsequent training session, increase your speed and the distance covered. You need good lung power and stamina in order to swim well, and this can only be achieved with proper hard work. If you are skipping training sessions at an alarming rate, you will never be able to learn. The pace of learning must be admissibly slow and steady for efficient progress.
Apart from these factors, there are a few more considerations for you to keep in mind. Wearing the right swimming gear is very important, it reduces the resistance considerably and allows you to swim faster at the expense of same efforts. Mix up your training by including speed drills and endurance drills on alternate days. Also, remember to follow a healthy diet, as swimming tends to make one very hungry. You need to maintain a high amount of energy, and this can only be achieved by eating right.
At the end of the day, you need a lot of willpower to swim faster. A lot of hard work needs to go into correcting one's technique, and this can only be mastered with regular practice.