The inhalation during front crawl swimming is associated with a cycle of arm movements. To inhale, the swimmer begins to turn his head at the moment when one hand, towards which the inhalation is made, completes the effective part of the stroke. About 0.15 seconds later, when the swimmer’s mouth is higher on the surface of the water, inhalation begins. Around the swimmer’s mouth, due to the fact that he exposes his cheek to the oncoming flow, a hole is formed that facilitates inhalation. The duration of inspiration when swimming in front crawl is 0.35-0.4 seconds. During inhalation, the hand towards which the inhalation takes place passes over the water. Turning the body around the longitudinal axis facilitates inhalation. By the time the inhalation ends, the hand completes the movement on the surface. Then it goes away for about 0.15 seconds. For professional swimmers, the entry of the hand into the water is most often accompanied by the completion of the turn of the head to the initial position. The other hand, opposite to the one towards which the breath is taken, performs the influx, the supporting part and approximately half of the main part of the stroke. Exhalation begins after a short pause and lasts until the head turns until the next breath.

When swimming in front crawl for short distances, the swimmer tries to inhale in the shortest possible time. What is needed in order to reduce the negative phenomena that occur when turning the head and performing a breath, which affect the rhythm of movements, balance and symmetry. When swimming front crawl over long distances, when the work is mainly due to aerobic energy productivity, inhalation should be performed more fully. Pulmonary ventilation reaches 140 liters per minute, and oxygen consumption reaches 5 liters per minute. In this case, the inspiratory time can be increased (even due to a slight asymmetry of movements), because the pace of movements is less, and the duration of the cycle is longer.

Understand the breathing technique well, as your swimming speed largely depends on how well you know it.