About Pool Turns + Tutorial for the Perfect Turn

A few days ago I posted a video of a slow-mo DNF dynamic turn, which prompted some people to ask questions about different turn-styles and which one is the best for bifins, so I posted another video of the same turn done with bifins, just to illustrate its efficiency, since many think that this turn done with fins on is difficult and ineffective.

In the video you can see it both slow motion and real speed, and in one of the reps (by complete coincidence), the swimmer next to me is doing the same turn at the same time (albeit slightly less gracefully:).

I see lots of strong pool freedivers (including wold record holders) doing the other type of turn (without push off the wall – I call it the beginner turn because it is so much easier to teach to beginners!) and I even tried for a while to make friends with it, to see if it does save me some energy. But what can I say, I just hate it.

And then after I made this second post I remembered that some time ago I started to write a little “book” about freediving, which I wanted to publish as an e-book and then of course I never finished because life got in the way. So I just went back to pick up the short chapter I wrote on dynamic bifins turns and I’ll leave it here for your own amusement.

TURNS with BIFINS

Turns are especially important when doing dynamic in shorter pools, as double the number of turns are required in a 25m pool vs a 50m pool. A bad turn will make you lose time, relaxation, energy and can be mentally very taxing.

There are different techniques for turning with bifins, and each freediver will swear about the better efficiency of theirs. But in the end the most important thing is that whatever turn style you pick, you need to spend time doing repetitions and perfection it until you do it using the least possible amount of energy.

Mainly we have 2 different turns: with and without kicking off the wall.

It is not easy to describe them effectively in words and as the saying goes, a picture (or in this case a video) is worth more than a thousand words. Look at videos of turns on the internet and you will see a variety of turns that are slightly variations of these 2 styles. Watch them several times and next time you are in the pool try to repeat them and you will find out what works best for you. Also pay attention to what both arms do during the turn. Arms play a very important role in the turn: they will save you energy and give you stability.
You may also need to take into considerations some pool features before you can pick the best one for you, as factors such as pool depth and wall coating material also play a role. For example, a shallow pool will require you to do a more level turn rather than an upside down tumble; and rubberised walls tend to create a very annoying sucking effect when you push off the wall with fins blades.

I refused for the longest time to train long dynamics with long fins in the pool where I train because of the rubbery coat, and I ended up doing 175 meters with short rubber fins and I was unable to repeat this distance with long fins because I found turning so annoying and distracting. In the end I learned to push off more with the footpockets and less with the blades and that minimized the effect a bit.

I also add another video, which is a tutorial on how to learn and practice this particular turn style in 4 steps:

Step 1: (do this in the middle of the pool away from the wall) half turn on surface and end up standing on the bottom;

Step 2: Start with step 1 but instead of placing feet on the floor swipe them below your body and behind

Step 3: Now repeat step 2 but close to the wall.

Step 4: Now put your neckweight on and do this underwater.

Let me know if it works for you!