Most coaches talk about “high elbows” and “catch,” but almost no one systematically uses hand postures (hand shape and orientation) as a deliberate tool in training.

 

This guide shows you how to use hand postures to:

 

• Improve feel for the water 

• Develop better forearm use and effective catch 

• Clean up common pulling errors without endless verbal cueing

 

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Who This Is For

 

This guide is for coaches who:

 

• Want more than “just pull harder” when it comes to improving propulsion 

• Are interested in subtle but powerful constraints that change how swimmers interact with the water 

• Want specific ways to use hand postures in drills and full‑stroke swimming

• Coach swimmers who look fine in drills but lose their catch when they go fast

 

If you’ve ever wished your swimmers could “feel” the water better and hold more effective pulling positions, this is for you.

 

What You’ll Learn

 

Inside How To Use Hand Postures, you’ll learn:

 

• How different hand postures (closed fist, paddle grip variations, finger spread, etc.) change:

  • Surface area 

  • Pressure feel 

  • How the forearm is used

  • How easily swimmers can “slip” or “hold” water

• Ways to use hand postures to:

  • Encourage forearm engagement 

  • Reduce excessive sculling and slipping 

  • Expose pulling faults that are hard to see or feel otherwise

• How to integrate hand postures into drill work and full‑stroke sets without destroying rhythm

 

What You Get

 

1. Strategy Manual (PDF)

 

You’ll get:

 

• A breakdown of the key hand postures and what each one does 

• When to use each posture (and when not to) 

• How to combine hand postures with other tools (stroke counts, resistance, training aids) for maximum effect

 

2. ~75 Example Sets – With 1 Video Per Set

 

You also get roughly 65 example sets that show you how to use hand postures across:

 

• All four strokes 

• Drill sets and full‑stroke swimming 

• Different ages and ability levels

 

For every set, you get:

 

• The written set 

• A short ~90‑second video walkthrough (mp4 + YouTube) where I explain:

  • Why that hand posture is being used 

  • What it’s supposed to teach 

 

You can:

 

• Run the sets exactly as written, or 

• Use them as patterns to design your own hand‑posture progressions

 

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Pricing & Best Value

 

• How To Use Hand Postures (this volume): $69 

• Best value: get all six Strategy volumes (Stroke Counts, Drills, Resistance, Stroke Rates, Training Aids, Hand Postures) – including this one – plus ~450 sets and videos in the Skill Development Strategies Collection for $197 during launch (or $297 afterward).

 

If you want a complete toolbox for skill development, you’re almost always better off with the full collection.

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