Most age-group triathletes leave 3–5 minutes on the table during the swim leg. Not because they're unfit — because they're fighting the water instead of working with it.

The biggest culprits:

1. Dropped elbows on the catch. You're pushing water down instead of back. This single fix can cut 10+ seconds per 100m.

2. Over-kicking. A 6-beat kick burns glycogen you need on the bike. Most triathletes should be using a 2-beat kick — and almost nobody teaches it properly.

3. Breathing disrupts your rotation. If your hips stall every time you breathe, you're creating drag on every single stroke cycle.

4. No open water strategy. Pool fitness ≠ race performance. Drafting, sighting, and pacing are skills — and they're trainable.

I built Swim Stroke Mastery for Triathletes to fix all of this. Six chapters covering freestyle mechanics, kick efficiency, bilateral breathing, and open water race tactics — with specific drills you can take to the pool this week.

If you're tired of being the last one out of the water, this is your playbook.