Stroke-rate coaching cannot use the same playbook for every stroke. Freestyle and backstroke are alternating strokes — one arm moves while the other recovers, so propulsion is nearly continuous. Breaststroke and butterfly are symmetric strokes — both arms move together, which creates a natural glide-and-surge rhythm with built-in dead spots. Coach them the same way and you’ll misread what’s actually happening.
In alternating strokes, raising stroke rate usually means asking for quicker arm turnover without losing distance per stroke. Because one side is always driving, small increases in cadence translate fairly directly into speed, as long as the catch stays effective. This is why freestyle and backstroke swimmers can often hold a slightly higher rate across a race without their technique falling apart.
Symmetric strokes behave differently. In breaststroke and butterfly, stroke rate is tied to the glide phase. Push the rate up too aggressively and you shorten the glide, which often costs more distance per stroke than the extra cadence gains back. For these strokes, the coaching conversation needs to center on timing the kick-glide-pull sequence, not just “stroking faster.”
What the research says about the stroke-rate trade-off
Craig, Skehan, Pawelczyk, and Boomer’s 1985 study of U.S. Olympic Trials swimmers backs this up. Across 1976 to 1984, speed gains in 8 of 12 events came from swimming farther per stroke, not from a faster stroke rate — stroke rate actually dropped in those events as swimmers got faster.
But two events broke that pattern entirely: women’s 100m butterfly and women’s 100m backstroke, where all the speed improvement came from a higher stroke rate. That split is the whole point. There’s no universal “ideal” stroke rate approach — it depends on the stroke, the event, and even the swimmer’s sex, based on this data.
The same study found that finalists usually covered more distance per stroke than swimmers who were 3-7% slower, but women relied more on stroke rate to stay competitive than men did. That’s a strong argument against applying one blanket stroke-rate target across your whole roster.
Where dropoff fits into stroke-rate coaching
The research also found that as fatigue hit in 200m+ events, distance per stroke fell for everyone. The difference was what happened to stroke rate. Faster swimmers held their rate steady, or even raised it, to offset the shorter stroke. Slower swimmers let their stroke rate fall too, and lost more time as a result.
That’s a trainable skill, not just something that happens to a swimmer under fatigue. It also means dropoff and stroke rate need to be watched together, lap by lap, not just at the finish.
This is exactly where AIM Systems earns its keep. The system tracks stroke rate and dropoff continuously through a swim, with every individual stroke marked on the speed graph. A coach can see precisely where a breaststroker’s glide shortens under fatigue, or where a freestyler’s stroke rate climbs to compensate for a dropping distance per stroke — instead of guessing from the pool deck.
Because AIM Systems runs on a fixed camera installation at your facility, this data comes from every timed swim automatically, without extra setup per session. You can then compare a swimmer’s stroke rate and dropoff pattern against their own past personal bests, or against a teammate, to see exactly where the rate strategy needs adjusting.
If you want to see how this looks with your own swimmers’ data, get in touch with AIM Systems — no pressure, just a conversation about your pool.
Frequently asked questions
Should breaststroke and freestyle swimmers train the same stroke rate?
No — breaststroke and butterfly depend on glide timing, while freestyle and backstroke rely on continuous alternating propulsion, so each needs its own stroke-rate approach.
Does a higher stroke rate always mean a faster swim?
Not necessarily — research by Craig et al. (1985) found most speed gains at the elite level came from covering more distance per stroke, not stroking faster, though a few events like women’s 100m fly and backstroke were the opposite.
How does AIM Systems measure stroke rate and dropoff?
AIM Systems’ fixed camera installation tracks stroke rate continuously through every lap and marks each individual stroke on the speed graph, so coaches can see exactly where dropoff occurs.
Sources
- Craig, A.B., Skehan, P.L., Pawelczyk, J.A., & Boomer, W.L. (1985). Velocity, stroke rate, and distance per stroke during elite swimming competition. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 17(6), 625-634. https://doi.org/10.1249/00005768-198512000-00001
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