Tips for learning the four swimming strokes

Learners

Learning the four swimming strokes comes after you have mastered the basic skills of
swimming.

If you have reached this point then we have collated some tips below to help you learn
the four swimming strokes: front crawl, breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly.

Tips for learning the four swimming strokes

Front Crawl
 Float on your front with your face in the water, stretching your body as long as
possible.

 Keep your legs long with toes pointed. Kick your legs up and down (alternating)
making your ankles as floppy as possible, using your feet like flippers. Kick your
legs fast and continuously.

 Start with your arms stretched out long in front of your head. Pull one arm under
your body all the way to the thigh. Bring your arm out of the water and sweep it
over the water stretching it ready to enter the water in front of your head. Keep
pulling your arms in a continuous movement so that as one arm enters, the other
is ready to exit at the thigh.
  Turn your head to the side to breathe in. Turn as one arm is stretched in front
and one at the thigh. Try to keep one ear in the water as you turn your head. As
the arm sweeps over the water return your face back into the water and breathe
out.

Breaststroke
 Float on your front with your face in the water, stretching your body as long as
possible. Keep your hands together.

 Keep your legs long and stretch your toes. Bend your knees slowly and bring
your feet towards your bottom. Bend at the ankles to point your feet outwards
then kick back and slightly downwards and snap your feet together.

 Keep your head in the water and stretch your arms out in front. Turn your hands
so that the thumbs point down with both hands pressing out and round. Turn your
hands so the thumbs point up and draw the hands together in a small circular
action in front of the shoulders.

 Lift your head to breathe in as the arms start to come together, stretch your arms
out and return your head to the water to breathe out. Breath every stroke: “Pull,
Breathe, Kick, Glide”.

Backstroke
 Float on your back, with your ears just in the water and eyes looking up; stretch
your body as long as possible.

 Keep your legs long with pointed toes; kick your legs up and down (alternating)
making your ankles as floppy as possible, using your feet like flippers. Knees
should be kept under the water with your toes making a small splash. Kick your
legs fast and continuously.

 Start with your arms stretched down the side of your body. Your arm should be
kept straight bringing it out of the water over the top in an arc action. Enter your
hands into the water with your little fingers first, keeping your arm straight. Pull
your arm under the water all the way to the thigh. Keep pulling your arms in a
continuous movement as one arm enters, the other is ready to exit at the thigh.

 A breath is taken regularly as and when required and at least once during the
stroke.

Butterfly
  Float on your front with your face in the water, stretching your body as long as
possible.

 Undulate your body from head to toes, in a whipping motion, bending and
straightening your knees. Keeping your legs and feet close together, push down
on the water with the top of your feet and keep your feet just under the surface of
the water.

 Enter both hands in the water at the same time, in line with your shoulders. Pull
your arms under the body through to your hips. Recover your arms over the
water surface ready to begin again.

 Push your chin forward to take a breath; the breath should be taken towards the
end of the pull. As your arm sweeps over the water return your face back into the
water and breathe out. Perform two kicks to each arm cycle, kicking at the start
of the arm pull and towards the end of the pull “Kick your arms in, kick your arms
out”.

For advanced technique on learning the four swimming strokes head over to the
swimming.org Masters Hub here.