At any given practice, swimmers often get more than 100 chances to practice their flip turns. But they almost never get a chance to break down the movement to get BETTER at it. Here’s how we teach flip turns at summer swim camp. Thanks in advance to NCAA sprint champion and Olympic finalist Kristian Golomeev for the progression.

**Monday**

**Kristian Golomeev: Flip Turn Step #1**

Three-time Olympian Kristian Golomeev uses a 6-step progression to practice his flip turns. It begins with a simple pushoff, head first. Of course, there are details.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2265-flip-turn-step-1> 

0457 pushoff horizontal and on the surface

0650 maintain a horizontal bodyline

1649 push off with enough force to create resistance

2931 start the practice of having the palms facing down

**Tuesday**

**Kristian Golomeev: Flip Turn Step #2**

Step #2 is really simple, but pay attention to the fine points.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2266-flip-turn-step-2> 

0262 push off like you did in step one

0371 tuck the chin to expose the back of the head

0512 allow the water to take the body down

0732 continue the ride

1042 again push off with enough force to create resistance

1178 tuck the chin to expose the back of the head

1409 be patient

2437 exposed the back of the head and back

**Wednesday**

**Kristian Golomeev: Flip Turn Step #3**

The fine point in Step #3 is: DON’T WORK! The fine point is to explore how two simple moves – tucking the head and tucking the knees – can initiate enough momentum for a complete somersault.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2267-flip-turn-step-3> 

0768 reviewed step one

1828 review step two

2731 tuck the knees after you see them

3016 allow the body to flow over

3522 tuck the chin before you tucked the knees

4299 see how far Christian is before he starts tucking the knees

4444 not a complete tuck but close

**Thursday**

**Kristian Golomeev: Flip Turn Step #4**

Kristian’s flip-turn progression is all about the details. In Step #4, the focus is timing and control, rather than speed.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2268-flip-turn-step-4> 

0357 review step three

0931 now at the hands

1478 hand stay high until the knees are tucked

2289 Christian adds a very small dolphin

2420 the tuck of the chin and the resistance of the water get the torso down

2506 the tuck of the knees create a smaller ball

2567 the flick of hands gets the legs over

3038 momentum is your friend

3436 with momentum look how far he is through the turn

3447 now things are starting to come together

**Friday**

**Kristian Golomeev: Flip Turn Step #5**

Step #5 is all about how you come out of the somersault. Don’t rush the fine points: full-body streamline; hand lock; head lock; torso stable; toes pointed.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2269-flip-turn-step-5> 

0235 practice all the steps before you move forward

0268 tuck the chin

0294 tuck the knees

0313 push the hands

0376 get the hands in streamline

0416 extend to streamline position

0951 body should be parallel to the surface of the water

2329 body parallel to the surface of the water

**Saturday**

**Kristian Golomeev: Flip Turn Step #6**

The final step in Kristian’s progression is how you leave the wall. Aiming for timing and flow here.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2270-flip-turn-step-6> 

0422 step one

0476 step two

0566 step three

0599 step four

0750 step five

0888 step six

1975 body is starting to go down prior to the small dolphin

2131 Christian can see his knees

2252 the tuck of the knees and the flick of the hands are starting to coordinate

2827 streamline prior to push

3457 Watch how fast he turns the hands over

4258 at speed all the components are harder to see

4651 step one

4667 step two

4696 step three and four

4774 step five

5013 it’s all one movement

5915 at speed

10052 follow the last hand down

10211 Palms are facing down

10407 horizontal before push

10584 slightly downward exit

11136 parallel to the surface

**Sunday**

**Turn Drill: Eyes Down Flips**

Don’t spoil a beautifully executed and timed flip turn by looking for the wall. Here’s what to do instead.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2032-turns-eyes-down-flips> 

1585 looking at the wall

1630 looking at the wall

1711 Head is open and hand start before knees tuck

1741 hands too close to head

1765 slight upward orientation

1811 pushing off too high

2809 start learning the cross

3253 look for the deepest part of the line

4819 different at nearly every pool

5358 memorize the bottom and the wall

10129 look for the color change from the floor to the wall

11355 memorize these spots

12707 better eyes down approach

12817 better tuck of the chin

12849 hand still early but better

12928 a little bit better pushoff

20711 different head positions

21751 heading uphill or heading forward

21181 trying to position the swimmer at the same spot

23880 noticeable difference

**BONUS:**

**Turn Drill: Cord Flip Turns**

Here’s a quick trick that will help you stay low and tight on your flip turns.

<https://www.goswim.tv/lessons/2175-turns-cord-flip-turns> 

3732 place a cord in the right position so the swimmers head Hass to get under it

4944 he should get under the legs will go over

11056 after the legs push the cord down

11154 it will snap back in place

**LILI**

**0373 eyes slightly up**

0513 Head goes down

1165 Head follows the last stroke down

1552 ready for the push 

2275 eyes looking down

2487 momentum took the head and torso down

2510 combination of steps three and four

2906 step five thank you thank you


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July 16, 2024 - Summer Swim Camp Session 2: Flip Turns