How the Swim Smooth GURU Helped Improve My Stroke
A Swimmer’s Journey with the Swim Smooth GURU and Swim Smooth Coach, Lucy Lloyd-Roach
Hey Swimmers,
One of the most interesting aspects of modern swim training is how technology can complement great coaching.
Recently, Joanna shared a thoughtful piece of feedback about her experience using the Swim Smooth GURU alongside regular video analysis sessions with Swim Smooth Coach Lucy Lloyd-Roach in Manchester. Her story is a great example of how these two approaches can work together to help swimmers make meaningful progress between coaching sessions.
The Challenge Identified on Video
Over the past few years, Joanna has been attending regular sessions with Lucy, including periodic video analysis. During a session in early 2025, Lucy identified two key areas for improvement in Joanna’s stroke. The main issues were the position of her left arm and the timing of the stroke.
In particular, Joanna had developed a noticeable pause at the front of the stroke with her left arm. This pause was linked to over-rotation to the right when breathing, which disrupted the rhythm of the stroke and caused the arm to linger too long out in front.
As Joanna herself put it:
“Last year, key areas identified included the position of my left arm and stroke timing, where I had a significant pause at the front of the stroke with the left arm due to over-rotating to my right on the breathing stroke.”
Like many swimmers, Joanna often attends coached sessions where the structure of the workout is guided but the coach cannot always watch every length closely. The focus is on completing the session, reporting how it felt, and then moving on to the next one.
That structure works well for building training consistency, but it can mean that stroke feedback isn’t always immediate.
Bridging the Gap with the GURU
Curious to see whether the Swim Smooth GURU could help bridge that gap between video analysis sessions, Joanna began using the app to monitor her stroke metrics.
At the time of her 2025 video analysis, the GURU data clearly reflected the issues Lucy had identified. Metrics around pull-through and stroke timing highlighted a difference between the left and right sides, and the data also suggested a thumb-first entry on the left hand.
Initially, Joanna tried to make some adjustments but didn’t see obvious improvement.
“To be honest, it felt like I was swimming with my hand in the right place, but the watch didn’t agree.”
Through the summer months she focused more on open water swimming and longer distances. Then later in the year she made a conscious decision to try something different.
…using the Apple Watch or Garmin device you likely already own…
Trusting the Process
In Joanna’s words, she had a rare moment where she decided to simply trust the feedback the GURU was giving her.
“In a rare moment I handed over control to the Guru App and decided to just trust the Guru!”
This meant deliberately changing her hand position to something that initially felt very unnatural.
“I consciously changed my hand position to one which felt very wrong, but the Guru said it was better. After a while, I was able to feel that it was better.”
Gradually the movement started to feel more natural, and the stroke metrics began to improve.
By January 2026 the GURU data was showing noticeable improvements across several of the previously flagged areas.
When the Data Meets the Eye
The real test came during Joanna’s most recent annual video analysis session with Lucy.
Comparing the new footage with the previous year, the changes were clear. The left arm position had improved both during normal strokes and while breathing. The pause at the front of the stroke had reduced, and Joanna was rolling back more effectively after breathing to the right.
In other words, the improvements that the GURU had been detecting in the data were now clearly visible in the video analysis too.
Of course, as with any swimmer, new areas for improvement quickly emerged. That’s simply part of the ongoing process of refining technique.
But for Joanna, the most satisfying part was confirming that the progress measured by the GURU was real.
It’s a powerful reminder that when great coaching and smart technology work together, swimmers can receive meaningful feedback not just during occasional analysis sessions, but throughout their everyday training.
And often, that steady stream of feedback is exactly what helps swimmers turn small changes into lasting improvements.
🙏 Thanks again to Joanna for sharing such thoughtful feedback with us.
And don’t forget, only Swim Smooth Certified Coaches have the power to gift their 1-to-1 Video Analysis & Stroke Correction swimmers with up to 90 days of free access to the Swim Smooth GURU and it’s patented Stroke Insights technology - ensuring maximum development of your stroke technique between sessions. To book a session with a Swim Smooth coach, head to:
Thanks for reading, your coach Paul.
