With the paddles you will make literally forced clean arm pulls - otherwise you have no propulsion. The speed increases due to the higher displacement naturally, but at the expense of power. One should not give a beginner the same if you "floored" feels after 500 meters, practice makes perfect;)
If one then takes off the paddles and even floats a round without, you glide through the water with his hands, like the hot knife through cold butter.