
The Effortless Swimming Podcast
Faster times and better technique aren't a guarantee when you train hard. What really makes a difference to your speed and efficiency in the water? The Effortless Swimming podcast helps make a complex sport really simple to better your swimming. We cover open water swimming, triathlon swimming and pool swimming. Hosted by Australian National swimmer and coach Brenton Ford.
Latest episodes

Mar 14, 2023 • 17min
#274 : Swim Softer To Go Faster with Brant Best (Part 3 of 3)
Welcome to the third and final part of this three-part podcast with Brant Best. We worked together on a product called SwimBETTER by EO, which helps athletes swim faster. Tune in now! 02:50 More isn't BETTER 05:27 Elbow is too high for too long 10:43 Extreme high elbow catch 13:17 "Ladder" cue 16:28 More episode with Brant coming soon!

Mar 10, 2023 • 24min
#273 : Swim Softer To Go Faster with Brant Best (Part 2 of 3)
Brant Best will be joining us for a three-part podcast. We worked together on a product called SwimBETTER by EO, which helps athletes swim faster. This episode will discuss how it's valuable to be able to quantify data and drills that he loves and hate. 00:33 Do you have a standard process when looking at the data? 08:38 Force Field 12:14 Should you have more power on one arm if you're just breathing every two? 13:20 I'm not a big fan of breathing three 14:12 I'ts super valuable to be able to quantify data 17:01 Drill that I love and hate! 20:31 Thumb Drag Drill

Mar 7, 2023 • 20min
#272 : Swim Softer To Go Faster with Brant Best (Part 1 of 3)
Brant Best will be joining us for a three-part podcast. We worked together on a product called SwimBETTER by EO, which helps athletes swim faster. This episode will discuss what he learned from working with elite athletes. Watch out for the next episodes!! 00:58 Canberra Camp 02:27 How To Swim A Good 100 Freestyle At The Elite Level? 05:40 Kyle Chalmers Is A Beast 06:12 Tension Needs To Be Optimal Rather Than Maximal 10:59 EO Swim Better 13:01 Soften Up, To Go Quicker. 16:00 Putting Too Much Force On The Water 19:14 What Is It That We Should Be Focusing On?

Mar 2, 2023 • 12min
#271 : The 'Single Point Of Failure' In Your Stroke
What is stopping you from getting any faster? Tune in to this episode now! 1:52 How You Hold Your Body 3:12 Head Position 3:45 Kick 4:40 Breathing In The Right Position 7:08 Building A House 7:21 Tension 8:41 Not Sighting In The Right Way 10:32 The 5 Core Principles Of Fast Freestyle

Feb 22, 2023 • 36min
#270 : Taking On The Cook Strait with John Hancock
I've got John Hancock to join me again on the podcast. He recently returned from having a successful crossing of the Cook Straight and is here today to share his experience and some of the preparations he did for the swim. 00:57 Where did this goal come from? 04:28 What are the preparation that you did? 09:33 17 hours of swimming in one week 12:46 How many Ks a week were you doing? 12:33 It's a very tidal crossing 17:59 Grateful to have a team of people supporting you 19:51 Covering yourself with grease 21:40 "If the swells on your side then surf across" 26:24 Was there anything that surprised you about the swim? 28:35 All about preparation and execution. 29:10 Surround yourself with people who want you to be successful 29:54 Do you feel like your achievement changed you as a person? 34:14 What's next for John?

Feb 15, 2023 • 28min
#269 : Stop 'Hauling' Yourself Through The Water & Swim With Ease with Carl Reader
Carl joins us again on the podcast. He has a background in Exercise Physiology and Pilates but primarily in Functional Movement. In this episode, we will talk about how Carl has helped many swimmers with their pain and injury and understand the root cause of some of the injuries that they're having. 01:26 What Injuries Do You Usually See Among Swimmers 05:16 Working On The Posture 07:55 Getting Blood Flow To The Injured Part Of Your Body 10:41 "Voltage Is Healing" 12:27 From Hauling To Floating 14:39 Trying Too Hard Puts Tension In The Body 16:17 Swim From Inside Out 18:20 Learn How To Hold Your Body Correctly 18:42 Squatting 20:36 Don't Brace Too Much In The Pool 24:00 Connection Improves The Whole Mobility 26:29 Get In Touch With Carl Read

Feb 9, 2023 • 14min
#268 : Pool Toys - The Good, Bad and Ugly
In today's episode, I will talk about the equipment and pool toys that I recommend to the athletes that I coach. 00:41 Have A Good Pair Of Fins 03:38 Paddles 05:51 Pull Bouy 06:45 Kickboard 07:20 Snorkel 08:15 Noseclip 08:38 Goggles 10:56 Heart Rate Monitor 11:50 Powermeter/Analysis

Feb 1, 2023 • 51min
#267 : How To Adapt Your Stroke For Triathlons with 70.3 World Champion Tim Reed
My guest today is Tim Reed, an Australian coach, and triathlete, who has had multiple Ironman and IM70.3 wins. I wanted to get Tim's perspective regarding swimming and coaching and discuss the struggles of transitioning from a professional athlete to a full-time coach. 01:15 Biggest Success In Racing 03:30 There Was No Overnight Success 04:51 Connecting With Athletes 06:38 A Powerful Combination 11:02 Pulling Back From Squad 14:13 Having The Evidence/Data 16:50 You Don't Need To Look Pretty 20:14 Stop Swimming Like Ian Thorpe 27:07 Correct One Thing At A Time 28:00 Swim Like No One Is Watching 29:17 Differences In Technique For People Getting Into A Wetsuit 32:02 Open Water Skills 35:13 Surrounded By Other Swimmers 37:27 Transitioning To A Full-time Coach 43:48 Training Sessions 47:55 What's Next? 50:02 Get In Touch With Tim

Jan 25, 2023 • 43min
#266 : Enjoy Pain And Uncovering What Really Motivates You with Dr Jim Taylor
In today's episode, we have Dr. Jim Taylor, a sports psychologist and author of Train Your Mind for Athletic Success. We will talk about the strategies for dealing with pain and figuring out what your motivations are. Tune in to this episode now. 00:58 Competed In The Super Sprint And Olympic Distance Triathlon 03:03 Strategies For Dealing With Pain 06:02 Exertion Pain And Injury Pain 08:51 Identity Plays A Role In How You Manage Pain 14:32 Discomfort VS Pain And Suffering 17:13 Associating Negative Emotions With Pain 18:51 Pride And Inspiration 21:51 What's Real Suffering? 23:38 Key Phrase: Long And Loose 26:11 Do A Long Warm-up 28:27 Distractions 30:28 Motivation: Less Ra Ra, More Insight 36:36 Constantly Remind Yourself Of What Your Goals Are 37:11 90% Of Success Is Just Showing Up 39:59 Don't Look At The End Of The Workout 41:57 Get In Touch with Dr. Jim Taylor

Jan 18, 2023 • 16min
#265 : Which Coaching Program Is Right For Me?
I want to have this episode to direct and help people determine what course will help them get better as a swimmer going forwards. 01:13 5-Day Catch Challenge 02:53 The Beginner Freestyle Course 04:25 8-Week Faster Freestyle Cours 8:15 Video Membership 09:08 Monthly Live Call 10:17 Stroke Analysis Membership 13:02 The Swim Camp