Is it better to take a full breaststroke pullout in the IM or just dolphin kick and up?

This is a great question and one we are trying to figure out for each swimmer. Surprisingly, we have found nearly all of the swimmers we have tested (more than 10) are just as fast to 12 meters with a dolphin and up as they are with full pullout. Many are faster. I like this concept/technique particularly for teaching younger swimmers (12 and under) to do a fast crossover transition with a dolphin and up. They don’t have the aerobic capacity yet to stay down for a good breaststroke pullout. For older swimmers, we are evaluating on an individual basis. Some have better pullouts than other. Some have faster breaststroke swims than others. Some have better aerobic conditioning than others. All of these factors weigh in.