Excessive Body Roll During Freestyle Breathing: Corrective Training for Bilateral Breathing

Introduction

Breathing is one of the most technically demanding aspects of freestyle. Many swimmers roll their bodies excessively when breathing, breaking their streamline and even causing the entire stroke to fall apart. More commonly, because swimmers habitually breathe to one side, the technical quality on each side develops unevenly, ultimately affecting overall speed and energy distribution. This article will explore the causes of excessive body roll and provide a systematic training approach for bilateral breathing.

What Is “Excessive Roll”?

Body roll in freestyle is a normal and necessary technical movement, with an ideal roll angle of approximately 30-45 degrees (measured from the horizontal plane). Exceeding this range—especially rolling past 70 degrees when breathing—enters the realm of “excessive roll.”

Item	Normal Roll	Excessive Roll
Roll angle	30-45 degrees	70 degrees or more
Breathing method	Mouth clears the water at the side of the body	Entire face turns upward
Opposite arm	Maintains forward extension after entry	Sculls outward or sinks
Stroke rhythm	Remains steady	Noticeable pause

Causes of Excessive Roll

Compensation from Breathing Anxiety

Worried about not getting enough air, swimmers try to get their mouths as far from the water as possible, which naturally triggers excessive roll. This is the most common psychological cause.

Insufficient Core and Hip Control

When the core is weak, the rotational movement triggered by breathing becomes “uncontrolled”—the body doesn’t just rotate at the shoulders; the hips and legs follow with a large roll as well.

Solidified One-Sided Breathing Habits

Swimmers who have long trained breathing to only one side often become overly dependent on that side, making each breathing motion more exaggerated than necessary to ensure they “safely get air.”

Consequences of Excessive Roll

• Opposite arm entry drifts off course: When the body rolls heavily toward the breathing side, the opposite hand’s entry position easily deviates from the correct track.
• Reduced kicking efficiency: When the body rolls excessively, the feet follow the sideways rotation, dispersing kicking power.
• Disrupted speed and rhythm: Excessive roll creates a noticeable pause, breaking the overall stroke rhythm.

Bilateral Breathing Training Plan

Why Do You Need Bilateral Breathing?

Bilateral breathing means breathing every three strokes (the 3-1-3 pattern), allowing the body to alternate breathing to both sides. Benefits include:

• Forcing balanced technical development on both sides, eliminating left-right asymmetry
• Limiting breathing frequency, preventing the technical looseness that comes from “breathing becoming a habitual action”
• Making it easier to read opponents’ movements during races

Step 1: Slow One-Sided Confirmation

Start on your preferred breathing side, deliberately slowing down the stroke to confirm that your roll angle is moderate when breathing (the side of your body faces up, not your entire face). Use video to confirm before moving to the next step.

Step 2: Non-Dominant Side Practice

Switch to the unfamiliar breathing side and practice slowly at the same pace. Initially, it may feel very awkward, and you might even fail to get air. This is normal. The key points are:

• Keep the head rotation angle consistent with your dominant side
• Return the head to the water immediately after breathing; don’t linger at the surface
• Accept occasional water intake early on—it’s part of the learning process

Step 3: 3-Stroke, 1-Breath Drill

The formal bilateral breathing drill: take 3 strokes, then 1 breath, alternating sides. It’s recommended to start with this pattern for the first 200 meters of each session, then expand the proportion once you’ve adapted.

Practice Recommendation Table

Week	Bilateral Breathing Proportion	Focus
Weeks 1-2	First 200m of practice	Adapt to the non-dominant side
Weeks 3-4	50% of each session	Build bilateral coordination
Weeks 5-6	80% or more	Solidify the bilateral habit

Core Techniques for Correcting Excessive Roll

• “Bite the water” technique: At the moment your mouth opens to breathe, imagine there is always a bit of water at the corner of your mouth (meaning your mouth hasn’t lifted too far from the surface), controlling the roll amplitude.
• Eyes look sideways when breathing: When breathing, direct your gaze toward the side wall of the pool, not toward the ceiling. Gaze direction is the most intuitive cue for roll angle.
• Stabilize the opposite arm’s extension: When breathing, the opposite (non-breathing) arm maintains forward extension and doesn’t start the pull too early. This “anchor point” helps the body control the roll angle.

Practical Advice

• Practice bilateral breathing at least twice a week: A one-off session won’t change long-term habits; consistent accumulation is required.
• Start with short distances: Practicing 25-meter repeats maintains movement quality better than swimming longer distances.
• Combine with core training: Do land-based core strengthening (see the previous article) in parallel to fundamentally improve rotational control.
• You can return to your dominant side for races: Bilateral breathing during training is a technical tool; in competition, decide your breathing rhythm based on actual needs.

Conclusion

Excessive roll when breathing and establishing a bilateral breathing habit are key milestones in advancing freestyle technique. Through systematic bilateral training, you can not only correct the roll problem but also develop balanced technique on both sides, laying a solid foundation for long-distance racing. Starting today, give yourself six weeks to seriously practice bilateral breathing, and you’ll discover a whole new side to your freestyle.

Related Reading

• Freestyle Flip-Turn Breathing: Breathing-Side Deflection Angle and Drag-Minimization Technique
• Head Movement in Breathing: The Destructive Impact of Lifting the Head Too High
• Freestyle Breathing Technique: Bilateral Breathing Training Methods and Race Applications
• Learning Bilateral Breathing in Freestyle: Methods, Pros, and Cons