The Bottom Line
These are not like traditional paddles. The Techpaddles are not about pushing on the water, not about force. They are about arm position. Use them and they will help you develop better swimming technique - and that will help you become a better swimmer.
Pros
- Moves a swimmer's arm into the proper catch position
- Any swimming stroke will benefit from a better catch
- Easy to include in a swim training program
- Included Techpaddle Tips DVD is excellent
- Velcro-adujustable forearm strap
Cons
- The paddles focus on catch, but take away from entry and extension
- Swimming slowly is required to develop proper habit - not always easy to do
- Slightly large and hard plastic, might chip or crack if dropped - but OK so far
Description
- A true swimming technique training tool, aimed at developing a swimmer's high elbow catch position
- Plastic forearm swim paddle with a hand grip, and a soft nylon forearm retaining strap
- DVD with swimming tips on Techpaddle use and integration into a swimmer's training program
- Nylon mesh storage bag to keep things neat and let them dry
- The Techpaddle's swimming benefits are almost automatic, with no intense swimming effort required
- These are not like traditional paddles, you have to use swim slowly when you use them
- Techpaddles are not about pushing on the water, not about force
Guide Review - The Techpaddle Early Vertical Forearm Trainer for Swimmers
Several swimmers (including me) have been swimming a portion of our workouts with the Techpaddles for a few weeks, not long enough to develop any of the benefits claimed by the Techpaddle, at least according to the Techpaddle directions. But all of us feel a difference already. We are more aware of our forearm position. We all feel like we have a better kinesthetic sense of where we should catch water, how to hold it better, and hold it longer.
The biggest feedback we get is when we take the Techpaddle off and swim without it. We maintain the arm position used when the paddle was on our arm. We have a high elbow (the Early Vertical Forearm) as claimed. We hold water longer, better, and with less need to focus on that technique element. It seems to be happening without effort (well, almost - swimming will always take effort!).
When the Techpaddles are on, it takes time to get used to swimming slow and having your arm pressed into a catch position by the paddles. But time spent swimming with them is worth the results if that result is better swimming, and that is what happens.
