Why 50 Freestylers Hold Their Breath (and Should You?)
Watch a world class 50 free: Gkolomeev, Dressel, Proud and you’ll notice the same thing: they hold their breath the entire way. No breaths. No breaks. Just full-send power for 20–21 seconds.
This isn’t a stylistic choice. It’s a race critical strategy backed by physiology, biomechanics, and hard earned experience.
But why does it matter so much?
The 50 Freestyle: A Power Sprint, Not an Endurance Swim
The 50 is a unique event. It operates almost exclusively on the ATP-PC system, which provides explosive energy through stored adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and phosphocreatine (PCr). This system fuels efforts lasting up to 10 seconds, with a rapid drop off after that.
But because sprint swimmers rely on maximum neural drive and high rate cyclic motion, the ATP-PC system stretches just enough to cover most of the race, with anaerobic glycolysis kicking in slightly toward the end.
Key point: oxygen availability isn’t the limiting factor. Your body doesn’t need to breathe mid-race. What it needs is to maintain mechanical precision and stroke integrity.
Biomechanical Consequences of Breathing
Every time you rotate to breathe, three things happen:
Streamline is broken: The head tilt causes increased frontal drag. Even small changes in head angle create turbulence that slows velocity.
Stroke rhythm is disrupted: A breath introduces asymmetry, shortening the stroke on one side and altering the timing of your pull.
Neuromuscular efficiency drops: High-rate coordination is key in sprinting. Breathing mid-race forces a split-second readjustment that costs momentum.
It’s not just about the time the breath takes. It’s about the disruption to force production and rhythm over the rest of the lap.
Hydrodynamics: Breath Equals Drag
Holding your breath allows you to maintain:
A neutral head position
Full body alignment
Unbroken kinetic chain from hands to feet
A higher stroke rate with better intra-cycle timing
A breath adds rotational torque, reduces effective power output, and limits stroke rate ceiling. In a race decided by hundredths, this is a deal breaker.
Lung Volume and Buoyancy
There’s also a lesser discussed benefit: static lung volume.
When you inhale and hold your breath, your lungs are full, and your chest becomes more buoyant. This helps keep your upper body riding high on the surface, reducing drag even further.
This "pre-inhale buoyancy" gives you a better body line during the breakout and across the full sprint cycle.
But Is It Safe?
Breath holding during racing is fine, if trained properly. But breath holding in practice can be dangerous when misapplied.
Shallow water blackout is real. It happens when carbon dioxide drops too low (from over-breathing before a rep) and the brain doesn’t trigger the urge to breathe until it’s too late.
Safety guidelines:
Never do extended hypoxic training alone
Avoid hyperventilation before reps
Progress gradually with supervision
Stop immediately if dizziness, tunnel vision, or confusion occur
My Story: From Asthma to Olympic Finalist
I did come from a water loving family in Australia. However, I was in and out of hospitals as a kid with severe asthma. I couldn’t run, let alone swim. I didn’t properly learn to swim until I was 11, and I was terrified to put my face in the water.
But I kept showing up. I learned to breathe less. I built trust in my body. Eventually, I went from a kid who couldn’t exhale underwater to an Olympic finalist who sprinted 50 meters without a single breath.
Not because I was fearless, but because I trained for it.
Should You Hold Your Breath in the 50?
If you’re a sprint swimmer racing the 50 LCM:
Yes. But only if you’re ready.
Train it in controlled sets
Condition your nervous system to tolerate CO₂ buildup
Practice clean breakouts, stable head position, and rhythmic stroke under breath-hold conditions
This isn’t about being tough, it’s about being efficient.
Benefits of Holding Your Breath in Sprint Butterfly
In sprint butterfly, especially the 50, the same principles apply, but the payoff might be even greater. Breathing in butterfly disrupts the undulating body line, forcing the head up and breaking the wave-like rhythm that drives propulsion.
Holding your breath preserves forward momentum, hip-driven snap, and stroke timing, allowing for a more connected, high-rate sprint. It also minimizes vertical oscillation and frontal drag, which are magnified in butterfly due to the double-arm recovery and kick pattern.
For elite-level 50 fly, a no-breath approach helps maintain stroke length and speed through the finish.
Practical Training Applications
15m & 25m max sprints with no breath
Power tower reps with no breath
Short, Underwater kick work with Power Sox
Dive 25s to breakout targets
Suit up once a week and race like it’s finals, no breath allowed
Train the race the way you intend to swim it.
Final Word
Holding your breath in the 50 isn’t a flex. It’s a skill. A performance enhancer based in physiology and hydrodynamics. If you want to win at the elite level, you need to eliminate drag, hold form, and maintain rhythm.
Train it. Master it. Execute it.
— Brett
