Swim Coach Joao

I’m extremely biased on this one but there’s no place like LSU! Thank you LSU Swimming & Diving for always having me around and supporting everything I do in my coaching journey.

I was LUCKY enough to call this place HOME for a few years and I will never get tired of saying GEAUX TIGERS, Forever LSU!

This vlog will be special! Subscribe to my channel (link in bio)

Yesterday afternoon I got to come back to this pool where I swam one of my first dual meets ever back in 2014 and hang out with this AWESOME staff!!

Thank you Alabama Swimming & Diving for having me and showing me around one of the coolest athletic structures I’ve ever seen in my life (and letting me document it)!!

This one is going to be an awesome vlog! Subscribe to my channel now so you don’t miss out! Link in bio!!

This morning I got to hang out with this crew and got a tour of one of the most traditional elite swimming programs in the world.

🇧🇷A lot of Brazilian history written on these walls and it was really cool to see it all in person.

🦅Auburn used to be my dream school while I was getting recruited, and it was the pool where I swam my first ever SEC championship and went 19 for the first time. Lot of cool stuff.

🙌🏼Thank you coaches for having me and letting me document a little more about the Tigers!

Vlog will be out soon! (Link in bio) 🐯

One thing I always emphasize when teaching breaststroke is that it’s never just about having a good kick or a strong pull—it’s about how well those pieces work together.

Breaststroke is the most timing-dependent stroke in swimming. You can have an incredible kick and a powerful pull, but if they’re out of sync, you’ll spend more time slowing down than moving forward.

When I teach breaststroke, I like to break it down into a few key concepts:

• Kick – Finish the kick by snapping the legs together and pointing the toes to maximize propulsion.

• Pull – Keep the hands patient, the elbows in a strong position, and avoid pulling too wide.

• Timing – The rhythm of the stroke is everything. Pull, recover, kick, glide. Learning when to apply force is just as important as learning how.

From there, we dive into the smaller details:

• Maintaining a quality glide without over-gliding.
• Finding the best hand position to set up an effective catch.
• Keeping the head movement controlled so it complements the body line instead of disrupting it.
• Driving the hips forward and up to reduce drag and keep momentum moving through the stroke.
• Understanding where the dead spot occurs and learning how to minimize it by connecting each phase of the stroke together.

I love using the whiteboard before we ever get in the water because when athletes understand why something works, they’re able to make better adjustments on every repetition.

Breaststroke isn’t about making one phase of the stroke better. It’s about connecting every phase together so the swimmer is always carrying momentum instead of constantly stopping and starting. That’s where the biggest improvements happen. 🏊‍♂️

Before we ever chase reaction time or distance, I like to break the start down into a few key concepts:

• Legs – Creating force into the block.
• Hips – Driving explosive hip extension and transferring power.
• Torso, shoulders, and neck – Staying connected so no energy leaks through the body.
• Arms – Finishing the movement aggressively and setting up a strong streamline.

When all of those pieces work together, the athlete can produce what we call triple extension—power through the ankles, knees, and hips while maintaining a long, rigid line from the fingertips all the way to the toes.

The goal isn’t to just “jump farther.” It’s to create one connected movement where every segment contributes to producing as much velocity as possible before entering the water.

I love drawing these concepts out on the whiteboard because once athletes understand why they’re doing something, they become much better at feeling it and reproducing it consistently.

Starts are won by details, and the little details often make the biggest difference. 🚀

Always the best time when I get to hang out with my Wolfpack family and do what I love! 🫶🏼

Thank you Wolfpack Elite Swimming RedWhite Swim Camps NC State Swimming & Diving for having me the past week❤️

Seems like I have to make my way back to the west… but where should I stop? 👀