#1 Most Important Skill for Swim Speed? Swimming Streamline!

March 23, 2026 • Stew smith

Streamline Glide Position, Stroke Technique, Conditioning (1,2,3)

Streamline glide, tight arm recovery, power kick and pull = speed

I train many athletes who have spent a lifetime on land as they prepare for military and special ops professions that require swimming, diving and other pool skills. It’s important for them to learn the sequence and timing of each stroke.

Are You "Swimming Like a Banana?"

Work on Your Shoulder Mobility

Why You Are Swimming Like a Banana /\ How to Fix It /\

Getting in swimming shape is really important, but learning how to properly streamline your body in the water is critical to making progress as you build speed and overall efficiency.

If I had to categorize the three most important abilities in the water, it would be streamline position, technique of the stroke, and swim conditioning that will lead to a candidate's success with military spec ops swimming. Of course water confidence is just as important as all three of the above.

However, a good streamline is simply the best body position during the stroke that will produce the least drag. Since water is hundreds of times more dense than air, the position your body holds in the water will make or break your ability to meet any military swimming program’s standards.

(see full article featured on Military.com)

It is NOT all CSS Swimming, you need treading, floating, and
water confidence skills as well.

Shoulder, hips, and ankle mobility seem to be the biggest culprits to performing a solid streamline position. Most of these are heavy lifting athletes that need to work on mobility and flexibility more often as part of their daily training regimen. You should also do a full training session focusing of the following cardio, flexibility, and swimming events:

Treading may be a Mobility Issue!

Mobility / Swim / Tread / Drown-proof Day

Here is how our "easy day" goes that will help you with these streamline positions in the water:

Repeat 5 times
5 min non-impact cardio (moderate pace)
5 min Stretching shoulders, back, chest, arms, legs, hips, ankles / feet.
(focus on your weaknesses each time / body sections each round)

Work on Those Shoulders to swim straighter and look more like a torpedo in the water, not a banana.

Stretch the chest / front delts too...

Swim 10 minute Warmup - Easy swim - loosen up.
Tread 10 minutes (with hands only and without hands) - this will work both hips and shoulders when practicing various movements to stay on the surface.
Dynamic Stretches 10 minutes in chest deep water - Everything you can think of while standing in the shallow end. (Ideas)

Drownproofing workout - see link - This is an important skill for spec ops candidates, but it is also a great way to work hip mobility. On Mobility Days, we will do this workout that mixes in some conditioning swims alongside challenging events of the drownproofing tests:

Swim and Drownproofing Events Workout
(tied hands / feet are simulated)

It's best if this is done in a 9-ft. deep pool with simulated tied hands for DP events in bold italics.