Dry Land That Carries Into the Lane

How resistance training choices shape front crawl speed

Resistance training for swimmers is strength or power work on land or in water where muscles contract against external load to improve force production and movement speed. A Frontiers in Physiology systematic review and meta-analysis examined which resistance training methods best improve short to medium front crawl performance and why the gains show up in the stroke.¹

The pull of this paper is not just that it says lifting can help swimmers. Many coaches already believe that. The real pull is the word methodology. It asks a more uncomfortable question. If two swimmers both “do strength,” why does one get faster in the pool while the other only gets stronger in the weight room. The authors treat that gap as a design problem, not a mystery, and they organize the evidence around what actually transfers into front crawl speed.¹

The Stopwatch Moment

Performance makes you notice what training hides

The spark for awareness usually hits in a place every competitive swimmer knows. You finish a hard set, your lungs feel ready for more, and the times still refuse to drop. You are not out of shape. You are out of leverage. Your body has the engine, but the stroke is not turning that engine into forward speed at the rate you want.

This paper lives right inside that frustration. It is a systematic review and meta-analysis that pulled together thirteen studies and a total of two hundred sixty seven competitive swimmers to test a clear performance story. Does resistance training improve upper limb maximum strength and short to medium front crawl race times when compared with habitual aquatic training.¹

The broad answer was yes. Across the included studies, resistance training significantly improved maximum upper limb strength and improved front crawl performance across sprint and middle distances.¹ The paper also gives an important nuance for real coaching. The strongest evidence quality was reported for the fifty meter front crawl outcome, while other distances were supported by lower quality evidence, which is a reminder to use the findings as guidance rather than a guarantee for every swimmer in every context.¹

Then comes the detail that makes coaches lean forward. The authors suggest the performance gains may be explained mainly by changes in stroke rate rather than stroke length. In plain words, many swimmers got faster by turning over faster, not by stretching each stroke longer.¹ That does not mean stroke length does not matter. It means the most common pathway seen across these studies leaned toward stroke rate adaptation.

The other performance punchline is that not all resistance training looked equal once the authors split studies by method. Their subgroup analysis found that concurrent resistance training and power training were the standout approaches most clearly linked with improved swimming performance through improved maximum upper limb strength.¹ That is the kind of conclusion that changes how a season is built.

1. The evidence favors resistance work that connects to the water rather than strength work that lives only on land.¹
2. The most common technical pathway points toward stroke rate changes more than stroke length changes.¹
3. The choice of resistance training style is part of the performance plan, not an optional add on.¹

If you have ever wondered why your dry land strength training improved your numbers in the gym but not your front crawl sprint performance, this paper gives you a cleaner way to ask the question. Not did I lift. Which lifting method did I use, and did it match what my stroke needs.

The Evidence Thread

Four science grounded benefits and the guardrails that keep them honest

The intention to explore this work gets stronger when you realize it does something rare. It compares resistance training methods instead of treating all strength work as the same. That matters because swimmers do not need generic strength. They need swim specific resistance training that transfers into propulsion, body position, and clean speed under fatigue.

Below are four science-backed benefits you can take from this paper, supported and sometimes challenged by other peer reviewed research. The goal is not to cherry pick. The goal is to build a training decision you can defend.

Faster front crawl through stronger upper limbs

The first benefit is the most direct. This meta-analysis found resistance training significantly improved maximum strength in the upper limbs and improved front crawl race performance across multiple distances in competitive swimmers.¹ A separate systematic review in Sports Medicine also examined how resistance training transfers to swimming performance and technical aspects of swimming, reinforcing that structured resistance work can improve swim outcomes when applied well.²

What this means at deck level is simple. Upper-body maximal strength is not just a vanity metric. It can be part of the performance chain, especially in events where propulsion and speed changes are decisive. The paper’s message is not that strength replaces technique. It is that strength can support technique by lowering the relative load of each stroke and helping swimmers maintain high-quality movement at higher speeds.¹

Power focused work tends to travel better than slow grinding

The second benefit is about speed of force, not just force. In the subgroup analysis, power training improved maximum upper limb strength and improved front crawl performance in the studies that fit this category.¹ The Sports Medicine review on resistance training transfer also discusses how different resistance training modalities relate to swimming performance and technique outcomes, which supports the idea that the style of resistance work matters, not just the fact that it exists.²

This is where the term strength and conditioning for swimmers becomes more than a buzz phrase. Power training is a way to teach the nervous system to produce force fast. That can match the tempo of sprint swimming better than strength work that is always slow and heavy. It also fits a practical reality. Swimmers already have a lot of volume in the water. Land work that produces large fatigue without clear transfer can be a bad trade. The paper notes that fatigue and training volume are possible reasons some dry-land approaches do not always translate as cleanly as expected.¹

Blending land and water resistance can sharpen transfer

The third benefit is the clearest coaching signal in the study. Concurrent resistance training, described as a periodised integration of dry land resistance and aquatic resistance, significantly improved sprint performance outcomes and key parameters like stroke rate and velocity in the subgroup findings where it was evaluated.¹ A randomized controlled trial on concurrent resistance training using dry land work paired with in-water resistance tools such as a water parachute and hand paddles reported improvements in upper body strength and sprint swimming performance along with kinematic variables compared with usual training.³

This is a powerful design idea. If you want the land work to show up in the pool, you build a bridge. Concurrent programs can act like that bridge because the swimmer learns to express the new strength in a water context where rhythm, body line, and timing still rule. It is also aligned with a training specificity mindset, which the meta-analysis discusses when it explains why test outcomes may track more closely to training movements that resemble the tests.¹

Stroke rate often moves before stroke length

The fourth benefit is a technical lens that helps you coach smarter. The meta-analysis suggests improvements in swimming performance may result mainly from increased stroke rate rather than stroke length, and the subgroup analysis found no resistance training form significantly improved stroke length in the pooled results.¹ A separate systematic review and meta-analysis focused on biomechanical outcomes of strength and conditioning programs in swimmers also found that resistance training had positive effects on stroke rate and that many training programs benefited sprint front crawl performance and stroke biomechanics.⁷

At the same time, the research does not pretend the story is perfectly uniform. Some studies report different pathways, and the Frontiers paper itself notes controversy in whether dry land training affects stroke rate or stroke length more in certain settings.¹ This is why the best move is measurement. If your stroke length collapses when you raise stroke rate, you do not chase turnover blindly. You build the ability to hold distance per stroke while you speed up the cycle.

One last guardrail matters. The paper highlights that aquatic resistance training alone did not significantly improve strength or performance outcomes compared with habitual training in the subgroup analysis, and it cites examples like a hand paddle intervention that did not significantly improve fifty meter front crawl performance.¹⁶ That does not mean paddles are useless. It means resistance tools are not automatically a performance upgrade. They are a tool that must be programmed.

The Athlete Build

Personalizing the method without losing the science

The motivation for personalization is baked into the findings. Resistance training improved performance overall, but the subgroup results suggest the pathway depends on the training method, the metrics tracked, and likely the way fatigue and skill interact for each swimmer.¹ That is why the smartest takeaway is not a single program. It is a decision framework.

Start with your event. A pure sprint swimmer often benefits from methods that raise power and help maintain speed late in the race. A middle distance swimmer may need strength that supports repeatability and technique stability under longer exposure. Then look at your bottleneck. Are you limited by the ceiling of your stroke rate, or by your ability to hold stroke length when you turn it over. The paper suggests stroke rate often changes first, which means many swimmers will experience speed gains through turnover, but you still want to protect efficiency if your stroke length drops too far.¹

Here is a simple way to personalize without inventing new claims. Choose one dry land target and one water target. Dry land target could be a clear upper body strength marker tied to your program. Water target could be a technical marker like stroke rate, distance per stroke, or how your tempo holds in the last part of a sprint. Then run a short block where the method stays stable long enough to learn something.

If you want a clean place to capture the work, log your dry land sessions in Training. If you want to connect strength gains to pool outcomes, track your strength to speed story in P☲WER. Those two steps make it easier to personalize with evidence rather than vibe.

Use the prompts below as a way to increase engagement and keep your thinking practical. Each prompt is designed to turn the paper’s conclusions into a plan you can actually execute.

Act as my swim strength coach. Ask me about my main front crawl event, my weekly swim volume, and what breaks first in a race. Then recommend whether I should emphasize concurrent resistance training, power training, or a simpler dry land approach, and explain the choice using the idea that method selection changes transfer into performance.¹

Help me build a feedback loop that does not overcomplicate things. I will share my last two weeks of swim times and how the stroke felt. Identify whether my gains are more likely coming from stroke rate changes or stroke length changes, then give me one cue to protect the weaker side of that tradeoff.¹⁷

Design a concurrent resistance training week that fits my pool schedule. Keep the land work short and targeted, and include one in-water resistance element that does not wreck my technique. Give me clear goals for each session and a simple way to judge whether transfer is happening.¹³

I feel stronger on land but not faster in the pool. Ask me about fatigue, soreness, and where my stroke falls apart. Then suggest one adjustment that improves transfer, such as changing the resistance training style or reducing land fatigue so I can express speed in the water.²¹

If you run prompts like these, you are not just “getting stronger.” You are building dry land strength training that supports swim specific resistance training transfer. You are tracking upper-body maximal strength, watching for stroke rate adaptation, and connecting it all back to front crawl sprint performance without guessing.

The Loop That Stays Fun

Making performance a lifestyle through art, science, technology, and design

The customizable purpose of this paper is not to convince every swimmer to lift the same way. It is to help you pick a method that fits your body, your event, and your season, while staying anchored to evidence. When you treat training like good design, you choose a clear objective, select the simplest tool that can achieve it, and measure the result without drama.

Here are lifestyle takeaways that keep the performance loop sustainable and human while still respecting the science.

• Create a studio ritual for strength days. Pick one movement that builds propulsion strength and one movement that builds speed of force, then finish with a quick mobility reset so the next pool session still feels fluid. Treat the session like craftsmanship, not punishment.²
• Use technology as a mirror, not a judge. Film a short sprint set once in a while and track only a couple of markers like stroke rate and how well you hold it through the finish. This keeps measurement honest and prevents you from chasing the wrong signal.¹⁷
• Design recovery like it is part of the plan. If land work makes you too tired to swim with quality, adjust the method. The paper’s method comparisons exist for a reason, because transfer and fatigue are linked.¹

When you combine these habits with the paper’s main message, you get a loop that can last. You do resistance training with a reason. You choose a method that transfers. You measure what changes in the stroke. And you keep enough joy in the process that the work does not collapse under its own seriousness.

FAQ

Do swimmers need resistance training if they already swim a lot

The evidence in this meta-analysis suggests that adding resistance training to habitual aquatic training can improve upper limb strength and front crawl performance in competitive swimmers, though the strength of evidence varies by outcome and distance. The key is not more training for its own sake. The key is selecting a method that transfers into swimming performance.¹

Which resistance training style is most likely to help front crawl speed

In the subgroup analysis, concurrent resistance training and power training were the approaches most clearly linked with improved swimming performance through improved maximum upper limb strength. Other approaches may still help some swimmers, but this paper highlights that methodology can change the likelihood of transfer.¹³

Why would stroke rate improve but stroke length stay the same

The pooled findings suggest performance gains may be explained mainly by increased stroke rate rather than stroke length, and the subgroup results did not show significant improvements in stroke length. Other reviews also report that resistance training often influences stroke rate. The practical response is to track both and decide which one you are trying to move without breaking the other.¹⁷

References

¹ Jin G, Jin Y, Zhang H, Fu X, Yang Y, Lin S. The methodology of resistance training is crucial for improving short-medium distance front crawl performance in competitive swimmers. Frontiers in Physiology. Two thousand twenty four.

² Crowley E, Harrison A, Lyons M. The impact of resistance training on swimming performance, a systematic review. Sports Medicine. Two thousand seventeen.

³ Amara S, et al. The effect of concurrent resistance training on upper body strength, sprint swimming performance and kinematics in competitive swimmers, a randomized controlled trial. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Two thousand twenty one.

⁴ Amara S, et al. Effect of concurrent resistance training on lower body strength, leg kick swimming and sport-specific performance in competitive swimmers. Biology. Two thousand twenty two.

⁵ Girold S, et al. Effects of dry-land vs resisted and assisted sprint exercises on swimming sprint performances. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. Two thousand seven.

⁶ Barbosa A, et al. Does a training period with hand paddles affect front crawl swimming performance. Journal of Sports Sciences. Two thousand twenty.

⁷ Kwok W, et al. A systematic review and meta-analysis of biomechanical evaluation of strength and conditioning trainings on swimming performance. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine. Two thousand twenty one.