Eyes to the Ceiling, Eyes on the Prize: How to Set and Achieve Backstroke Performance Goals
Backstroke is the rebel of the competitive swimming family. It is the only stroke swum face-up, meaning you cannot see the wall, you cannot see your competitors, and you cannot see your own technique. It requires a unique blend of spatial awareness, relentless core stability, and blind trust.
Because of these unique challenges, simply "swimming hard" won't make you faster. To drop time in the 50m, 100m, or 200m backstroke, you need a strategic roadmap.
Whether you are aiming to qualify for a championship, break a personal best, or simply master the stroke, here is a comprehensive guide on how to set, structure, and achieve your backstroke performance goals.
🎯 Part 1: The Art of Setting Backstroke Goals
A goal without a plan is just a wish. In swimming, the biggest mistake athletes make is only focusing on the final time. To build a resilient and effective goal-setting strategy, you must use the Goal-Setting Hierarchy.
1. The Outcome Goal (The Destination)
This is the ultimate result: "I want to swim a 1:05.00 in the 100m backstroke by the end of the season."
The Catch: You cannot fully control outcome goals. You can swim the race of your life, but if the swimmer next to you swims out of their mind, you might still place second. Use outcome goals for motivation, but don't let them dictate your daily self-worth.
2. The Performance Goal (The Benchmark)
These are measurable metrics that are entirely within your control, regardless of what your competitors do.
Example: "I want to drop my second 50m split from 34.5 to 33.8," or "I want to reduce my stroke count from 18 to 16 per length."
3. The Process Goal (The Daily Execution)
This is the most critical tier. Process goals are the specific technical and mental cues you focus on during every single practice.
Example: "I will keep my head perfectly still like a statue during every turn," or "I will ensure my pinky finger enters the water first on every stroke."
The Strategy: Set one Outcome Goal, two Performance Goals, and three Process Goals. Focus 90% of your mental energy on the Process Goals. If you execute the process, the performance and outcome will take care of themselves.
🔍 Part 2: Identifying Your "Time Leaks"
To achieve your goals, you must know exactly where you are losing time. Backstroke time is usually lost in one of four areas. Analyse your last race or ask your coach to identify your primary "leak":
The Underwater Phase: Are you breaking out past 10 metres? Are your dolphin kicks slow or lacking core drive? (Fix: This is the easiest place to drop time. Commit to 4–6 powerful underwater kicks off every wall, up to the 15m limit).
Body Position & Drag: Are your hips sinking? Is your head lifting when you breathe or pull? (Fix: Press your chest slightly down, engage your core, and keep your ears submerged. Your head should lead the rotation, not lift out of the water).
The Catch: Are you crossing the midline? Are you slipping water at the front of the stroke? (Fix: Enter with the pinky finger, keep the arm straight but relaxed, and bend the elbow early to "catch" the water before pulling).
The Kick: Is your kick inconsistent, or do your knees break the surface? (Fix: The backstroke kick is the metronome of the stroke. It must be a relentless, hip-driven six-beat kick with loose, floppy ankles).
🏋️♂️ Part 3: Training Strategies to Achieve the Goals
Once you know what you need to fix, you must design your training to target those specific areas. Here is how to structure your pool work to hit your performance goals.
1. Pace and Split Training
If your goal is to improve your back 100m, you cannot just swim endless 100s. You need to break it down to build speed endurance.
Broken 100s: Swim 4 x 50m backstroke at your goal 100m pace, with 10 seconds rest between each 50m. Add the times together. This simulates the race while allowing micro-recoveries.
Drop Sets: Swim 3 x 50m. Rep 1 at 80% effort, Rep 2 at 90%, Rep 3 at 100% (race pace). Focus on increasing stroke rate while maintaining Distance Per Stroke (DPS) on the final rep.
2. Technique and Drill Work
Dedicate the first 15–20 minutes of every practice to process goals.
Head-Lead Rotation: Place a small, soft object (like a beanbag or a sponge) on your forehead. Swim backstroke, focusing on rotating your body without letting the object fall off. This trains a quiet, stable head position.
6-Kick Switch: Swim backstroke, but pause with one arm extended forward and the other by your hip. Take 6 rapid flutter kicks in this position, then switch arms. This builds balance and a strong, continuous kick.
Pinky-Entry Drill: Swim backstroke focusing exclusively on the recovery. Ensure the pinky finger enters the water first, straight ahead of the shoulder, without splashing.
3. Dryland and Core Conditioning
Backstroke requires immense rotational power and posterior chain strength.
Medicine Ball Rotations: Build the explosive oblique power needed for a fast catch and turn.
Glute Bridges and Superman Holds: Strengthen the lower back and glutes to keep your hips high and prevent your lower back from arching (which sinks the legs).
🧠 Part 4: The Mental Game of Swimming Blind
Because you cannot see the wall, backstroke is as much a mental sport as a physical one. Achieving your goals requires mastering the psychological elements of the stroke.
Master the Flags: The backstroke flags (5 metres from the wall) are your best friends. You must know exactly how many strokes it takes you from the flags to the wall. Count your strokes from the flags in every warm-up. When you hit your number in a race, you know exactly when to initiate your final, uninterrupted stroke into the wall.
Trust Your Stroke Count: If your goal is to hold 16 strokes per length, do not panic and start windmilling if you feel tired. Trust your technique, hold your water, and rely on your stroke count to keep you grounded.
Embrace the Discomfort: In the last 15 metres of a backstroke race, your lats will burn, and your face will be splashed with water. Visualise this discomfort in practice. When it happens in a race, you won't panic; you'll just execute your process goals through the pain.
💧 The Final Lap
Achieving a backstroke performance goal is a marathon of sprints. It requires the patience to drill the tiny details—like the angle of your pinky finger or the depth of your dolphin kick—long before you see the results on the scoreboard.
Write down your Outcome, Performance, and Process goals. Tape them to your locker or write them on your kickboard. When the training gets tough and the times aren't dropping immediately, look at your Process Goals.
You can't see where you are going when you swim backstroke, but if you set the right goals and trust your technique, you will inevitably arrive exactly where you want to be. Touch the wall, look at the scoreboard, and smile.
Comments