UNIT 4 -Week (11-13)

Swimming Strokes
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILO)

At the end of the unit, you are expected to:

1. differentiate common types of swimming strokes;

2. distinguish body movements, arm movement, kicking
rhythm, and breathing style of different swimming strokes;
3. demonstrate common types of swimming strokes.

Introduction (ILO-1-2)

As new to swimming sometimes we wonder or ask ourselves “what

moves or swimming style should I master to be able to swim fast?”
Swimming typically consists of repeating a specific body motion or swimming
stroke to propel that body forward. Learning different swimming strokes
comes after learning the basic skills
This unit will focus on the different swimming strokes, how each differs
from one another and how to do it.
Please proceed immediately to the “Unlocking of Difficulties” part since
the first lesson is also definition of essential terms.

Unlocking of Difficulties

To attend the following intended learning outcomes for the 2nd lesson
of the course, you need to fully understand the following essential
knowledge that will be laid down in the succeeding pages. Please note that
you are not limited to exclusively refer to these resources. Thus, you are
expected to utilize other books, research articles and other resources that
are available in the library in the internet

Key Terms

 Freestyle stroke - also known as front crawl, is the fastest and most
efficient of the swimming strokes used in competition

 Side stroke - sidestroke is a swim stroke swum on the sides. It is not

used in competitions and therefore less known nowadays.
  Breast stroke - is swum with the body facing down. The arms perform
semi-circular movements, and the legs perform a frog kick.

 Back stroke - or back crawl, uses alternating and opposite arm

movements. The legs perform a flutter kick, similar to the one used in
the front crawl.

 Butterfly stroke - butterfly stroke is the second-fastest swimming

stroke and is quite exhausting.

Lecture Notes

Common Swimming Strokes/Styles

 1. FREESTYLE STROKE
Christopher Keller (2019) of enjoyswimming.com describe freestyle
stroke as the fastest and most efficient of the swimming strokes used in
competition. It is also known as front crawl.

https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/freestyle-stroke.html

Allamericanswim.com Contributors states that freestyle, favored by

long-distance swimmers, is considered the most efficient stroke.
Freestyle takes you farther than other strokes without expending more
energy. If you like to set your swimming workouts to a lap count, this will
help you reach your goal faster.

Freestyle also gives you a full body workout. It works the muscles in your
arms, legs, core and back. If you are looking for a particular swimming
stroke to tone your back muscles, freestyle is definitely the way to go.
 While freestyle has multiple benefits, keep in mind that this stroke can
be more difficult to master than other options, such as breaststroke.

 FREESTYLE STROKE - BODY MOVEMENT/POSITION

To know more about Freestyle stroke Keller (2019) added that to swim
front crawl / freestyle with the greatest efficiency and prevent neck
injuries, you need to properly position your head and roll your body.

o Use a Neutral Head Position

In the past, it was often advised to lift the head up and to look forward
while swimming front crawl.

The idea is that by lifting the head higher up in the water, less drag is
created resulting in faster swimming times.

However, there are two problems with that approach:

1) Your hips and legs often have the tendency to drop when you lift your
head up. As a consequence, you create more drag instead of less.
Furthermore, you need to kick harder to keep your hips and legs up.

2) If you look forward at all times while swimming front crawl, you put
your neck in an awkward position which can lead to neck injuries over
the course of several years.

o Be Balanced and Roll Your Body

While you swim front crawl, you should aim to keep your body as
horizontal as possible in the water. This is called being balanced.

When you are balanced you will create the least amount of drag. And as
explained above, a correct head position has a big influence on your
balance.

When you swim front crawl, you should let your body roll freely from
side to side, following the movements of your arms.

Swimmers often have the tendency to roll too little rather than too
much.

Rolling from side to side allows you to engage large muscle groups (chest,
back, abs in addition to shoulders and legs) and to consequently improve
your propulsion.
 While your body rolls from side to side, your head should remain static,
looking straight down, except when breathing, as described next.

o Roll to Breathe
To breathe in, you roll farther on your side than during the non-breathing
arm strokes.

Your head simply follows along your body then rolls a little bit farther
until your mouth clears the water so you can inhale.

You should roll your head as little as is needed because rolling too much
can also disrupt balance and strain your neck.

In fact, if you watch the pros swim, you will see that they inhale with
their mouth slightly to the side and in the trough of the bow wave
created by their head, so that they need to rotate their head as little as
possible.

While they do this, typically one lens of their swimming goggles is

underwater and one lens above water. However, being able to do this
takes a lot of practice.

A common error less experienced swimmers do is that they lift their head
first before they roll on their side to breathe.

As explained above, this disrupts balance and causes their hips and legs
to drop, increasing drag.

 FREESTYLE STROKE - ARM MOVEMENT

https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/how-to-swim-freestyle.html

The arm stroke accounts for as much as 90% of the propulsion in the
front crawl, while the flutter kick only accounts for 10%. Therefore, it is
important to use the correct technique for the arm movements. The
different phases of the arm stroke that one can observe in good front
crawl swimmers follow:

1. Downsweep
To begin, we should imagine that one of the arms is extended forward
underwater at the end of its recovery. The other arm has started its
propulsive phase. The body is rotated downward on the side of the
extended forward arm.

The wrist is slightly bent to start the downsweep. The elbow bends but
is kept high in the water. As a result, the forearm moves down and
backward until the underside of the forearm and the palm face
backward. The upper arm moves a little bit outward, which makes it
easier to keep the elbow high in the water.
The downsweep should be performed quickly. However, you should not
exert any force with your arm during this phase, as this only pushes
water downwards, wasting energy and creating resistance.

2. Catch
At the end of the downsweep, the shoulder, elbow, and hand are
positioned on the same vertical plane. The shoulder is at the top while
the hand is at the bottom, between 20-28 inches (50-70 cm) deep.

The elbow is bent about 90° and maintains this angle during the
subsequent propulsive phases of the arm stroke. The underside of the
forearm and the palm are now facing backward and slightly outward.
This is the so-called high elbow catch.

3. Insweep
The insweep is the first
propulsive phase of the arm
stroke. Once the arm is
positioned at the catch, the
upper arm is moved in
toward the rib cage while
the elbow maintains its
angle, and no rotation takes
place in the forearm. The
arm is moved as a single
unit like a large paddle. This swimmer uses a high elbow position for his arm stroke to
improve propulsion.
https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/how-to-swim-freestyle.html

As a result, the forearm and palm move inward, upward, and backward
due to the adduction of the upper arm.
The body rotates upward to the side of the arm sweeping in.
The insweep ends once the upper arm is close to the rib cage, and the
hand is below the chest and close the midline of the body.

4. Upsweep
This is the second and most propulsive phase of the arm stroke, during
which the direction of the arm movement changes.
At the beginning of the upsweep, the forearm rotates so that the
underside of the forearm and the palm now face backward, upward, and
outward. The hand then moves from below the chest backward, upward,
and outward toward the hip. The elbow remains slightly flexed so that
the palm and forearm remain facing backward as long as possible.

5. Release
No force should be applied at the end of the upsweep, as the forearm
and hand move primarily upward. Otherwise, water would be pushed
up, which increases drag and pushes the hips down. The shoulder, upper
arm, and elbow exit the water in this order, followed by the forearm and
hand with the palm turned inward to minimize drag.
 6. Recovery
The arm is brought forward over water, with the elbow leading and the
forearm relaxed and dangling. The recovery should be compact, meaning
that the hand hovers above the water and slides close past the rib cage.

During arm recovery, the arm should be kept relatively relaxed.

However, the momentum built up during the upsweep should be used
to bring the arm forward quickly.

7. Entry and Extension Forward

Once the hand has passed the head, it enters the water with the
fingertips first. The rest of the arm moves through the hole opened by
the hand in the water and continues to move forward underwater until
it is fully extended.

The arm stroke cycle can then begin anew. Ideally, the forearm is held in
a neutral position, neither turned outwards nor inwards during the entry
into the water. This causes less tension in the shoulder and means that
all fingers except the thumb enter the water at about the same time.

 FREESTYLE STROKE - KICK RHYTHM

Allamericanswim.com Contributors (2020) denote that while your

arms pull you forward through the water, your legs will be hard at
work too. You will use the flutter kick to complete the freestyle stroke
technique.
The flutter kick is achieved by constantly moving your legs in a tight,
scissor-like movement beneath the water. Your knees will bend
slightly, but your legs will remain relatively parallel to the surface
beneath you at all times. You can adjust the number of kicks per
complete cycle of arm movement depending on how quickly you want
to swim. Your legs are an important part of freestyle, but keep in mind
that they provide just about 10 percent propulsion in the bodies of
practiced swimmers.

 FREESTYLE STROKE - BREATHING

The breathing technique used in the front crawl stroke:
1) During an arm recovery with breathing, you roll more on your side
than during an arm recovery without breathing. This allows your face and
mouth to clear the water and so you can inhale.

2) You start inhaling as soon as your mouth clears the water at the end
of the upsweep.(As a reminder, the upsweep occurs while your hand
moves from below the chest
toward the hip during the
propulsive phase of the arm
stroke).
Inhalation continues during
the first half of the arm
recovery on the breathing
side. In front crawl,
breathing begins as soon In front crawl, breathing begins as soon as the mouth clears
the water.
as the mouth clears the https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/how-to-swim-freestyle.html
water.

3) The second phase of the recovery lasts from the moment your
recovering hand passes the head above water to the moment it is fully
extended forward underwater.
During this phase, the shoulder and hence the body on the recovering
side will roll downward while the other side of the body will roll upward.

Your head will simply follow along, and your face will turn downward.

4) As a consequence, you should start to exhale as soon as the face turns

downward again. This prevents you from getting water into your mouth
and nose. You should then exhale slowly and continuously until you roll
your body on the side for the next arm recovery with breathing.
Exhalation starts as soon as the head rolls back in the water and
continues for the rest of the stroke cycle.
 https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/crawl-stroke.html

5) You should forcefully expel the remaining air from your lungs while
rolling on your side to breathe so that you can inhale fresh air as soon as
your mouth clears the water.

Breathing Patterns
The most common breathing patterns in front crawl are unilateral
breathing and bilateral breathing.

In unilateral breathing, you breathe in every other arm stroke. As a

consequence, you always breathe in on the same side. This gives you
plenty of oxygen and is especially useful in short distance races. Your
swim stroke can become lopsided however if you use this breathing
pattern all the time, for example, while training.

In bilateral breathing, you breathe in every third arm stroke. As a

consequence, you alternate your breathing sides .This pattern is
symmetrical and improves your balance as it forces you to become used
to breathe on both sides. Long distance and fitness swimmers commonly
use this pattern.

 2. SIDESTROKE
Just like the name suggests, you will swim this stroke on your side. Begin
by positioning your body on one side in the water. You may be less
familiar with this stroke because it is not used during competitive events.

While not a competitive stroke, sidestroke is often used by lifeguards to

perform in-water rescues. So, knowing how to swim sidestroke can come
in handy if you are ever in an emergency situation. You will use your arm
 and leg muscles to propel you forward, while you will work your core
muscles to maintain a smooth, horizontal position in the water.

 SIDESTROKE – BODY MOVEMENT/ POSITION

For the initial body position, consider you pushed off the wall and are
floating on your side. Your legs are straight. Your bottom arm is extended
forward underwater, and your top arm rests flat on the side of your body.

https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/wp-content/uploads/sidestroke-under-water-1.jpg

You maintain this sideways position during the whole stroke cycle. Your
legs are straight. Your bottom arm is extended forward underwater, and
your top arm rests flat on the side of your body.
You maintain this sideways position during the whole stroke cycle.

Your head should be in line with your spine and turned sideways and
slightly upwards. In fact, one cheek and ear should be in the water, the
rest of the face being above water. It’s a little bit like resting your head
sideways on a pillow. This allows you to breathe easily and to have good
visibility to the side.

 SIDESTROKE – ARM MOVEMENT

Both of your arms will move during sidestroke. The arm stretched out in
front of you is referred to as your lead arm.
 Your lead arm and the arm resting on
the side of your body will both sweep
downwards through the water, bent
at the elbow. Your hands will come
toward one another in front of your
chest and then sweep upwards back
to the straight, starting position.

Arm Movement and Kick Rhythm of Sidestroke

https://3rn7ez18fsfq1kf6kr1o3bpm-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2016/06/SIDE.png

 SIDESTROKE – KICK RHYTHM

During sidestroke, most of your forward momentum will come from your
legs.
You will move your legs using a scissor kick, which means your legs move
back and forth beneath the water in an alternating motion.
As you kick, your arms will move toward one another and then back to a
straight position.

 SIDESTROKE – BREATHING
Rest your head on the arm stretched out straight in front of you. Your
head will not move from this position the entire time you swim
sidestroke. Since your face does not enter the water, you will not have
to worry about your breathing technique.

 3. BREASTSTROKE
Like freestyle, breaststroke involves separate movements for your arms
and legs. Your body is in the same horizontal position as it is during
 freestyle, but you will use different motions to propel yourself through
the water. The breaststroke is swum with the body facing down. The
arms perform semi-circular movements, and the legs perform a frog kick.

Breaststroke is the slowest swimming stroke, which may be a con for

people who prefer speed. Yet, this can be considered positive. Because
it is so slow, breaststroke can be done for longer periods of time, serving
as an endurance workout.

 BREASTROKE – BODY MOVEMENT/POSITION

In breaststroke, the body position changes continuously during the
stroke cycle. It moves from a horizontal position during the glide phase
to an inclined position during the arm pull.

https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/breast-stroke.html

Assume that the starting position is at the end of the glide phase when
the body is horizontal and streamlined, the arms extended forward, and
the legs straight and held together.

Now, when the arms pull backward in the water, the body moves to an
inclined position, with the torso assuming a 45-degree position above
the water at the end of the arm pull while the hips and legs remain in the
water.

The body returns to a horizontal position when the arms are extended
forward during the arm recovery and subsequent glide phase.

The head remains in alignment with the body. During the horizontal glide
phase, the head is in a neutral position, facing down.During the arm
pulling phase, the head remains in a neutral position.
 After the arm pulling phase, when the body is inclined at 45 degrees, the
face is directed downwards and slightly forward, the eyes are fixed at a
point about 3-6 feet ahead.

A common mistake is to look towards the end of the lane instead of

looking down and slightly forward.

 BREASTSTROKE – ARM MOVEMENT

In breaststroke, the arms perform synchronous semicircular movements.

Let us assume again that the starting position is at the end of the glide
phase when the body is horizontal, and the arms are extended forward.

https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/breast-stroke.html
When the arms begin to pull, they first move outwards, backward and
downwards until the arms are bent 90 degrees, the elbows are at
shoulder level, and the upper arms and hands are in line and pointing
downwards.

In the second phase of the arm pull, the arms move further back. The
upper arms move to the sides of the body, while the hands move towards
each other under the chest.

At the same time, the upper body rises out of the water until it is inclined
at 45 degrees.
 When the hands meet under the chest, the arms are extended forward
in a line to return to the starting position. At the same time, the body
returns to a horizontal position.

 BREASTROKE – KICK RHYTHM

As your arms move in this rhythm, your legs will be busily pushing you
forward with a technique known as the whip kick or the frog kick. When
executing this kick, your legs should be behind you approximately hip-
distance apart.

Frog Kick
https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/breast-stroke.html

With your knees bent and your feet flexed, kick your legs apart and then
sweep them together again to form one smooth line. Repeat this motion
in concert with the arm movement. The optimal rhythm allows your arms
to rest while you kick and vice versa.

 BREASTSTTROKE – BREATHING
The final piece of breaststroke is your breathing. It is possible to
complete the arm and leg motions of this stroke with your head
completely above water.
If you want to add in the breathing technique to complete the stroke,
you will duck your head beneath the water each cycle of the stroke. Use
your shoulders to lift your head out of the water and take a breath. As
your arms sweep forward in the water, all your shoulders to drop and
take your head under the water once again.

 4. BACKSTROKE

Unlike with most other swimming strokes, your face will not be in the
water during the backstroke. Instead, you will be on your back in the
 water, just as the name suggests. In terms of speed, it is slower than the
front crawl and butterfly but faster than the breaststroke.

Backstroke offers plenty of benefits distinct from other strokes. For

example, backstroke can help improve your posture since your muscles
need to work to keep your back straight in the water. It can also help
improve your hip flexibility. Just like other swimming strokes, it will also
work your arm, leg and core muscles.

 BACSTROKE – BODY MOVEMENT

The backstroke is
swum in a horizontal
position on the back.
However, the body
rolls a little from side
to side, following the
arm movements.

https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/backstroke.html
As a consequence, the shoulder of the arm that is currently pulling back
in the water is lower than the shoulder of the arm that is recovering
forward above water.

The position of your head is one small downside of backstroke to

consider. Since your line of sight is directed upwards, rather than in front
of you, some people feel slightly nervous not being able to see where
they are going in the water. You can overcome this by counting how
many strokes it takes to complete a lap.

 BACSTROKE- ARM MOVEMENT

Your arms will propel you forward with a windmill-like motion. One arm
will come up out of the water and go overhead, while the other sweeps
forward beneath you in the water.
 You will move by alternating this motion — one arm comes up and the
other goes down. Keep your arms
close to your ears as they come back
down into the water.

Additionally, you will want to keep

your arms as straight as possible and
your fingers close together to
minimize resistance. Try to keep your
hips from dropping into the water.
Too much sag in your hips will slow
your forward momentum.

 BACKSTROKE – KICK RHYTHM

As your arms pull you through the
water, your legs will be using the same
flutter kick performed during
freestyle. The backstroke uses a
flutter kick. The legs perform
alternating and opposite movements.
While one leg moves up, the other leg
moves down, and vice versa.

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Andrew_Cosgarea/publication/231215678/figure/fig4/AS:203216160595981@142546
1916490/Backstroke-cycle-pull-through-and-recovery-of-the-right-arm-Used-with-permission-from.png

The legs are moved up and down in quick succession with compact
movements. The feet are stretched while the hips and knees bend
slightly.In backstroke swimming, a six-beat kicking pattern is used almost
universally, with each foot kicking three times per stroke cycle, for a total
of six kicks.

The flutter kick provides some propulsion in addition to the propulsion

generated by the arms. The kick also helps to stabilize the body in
relation to the arm movements.

 BACKSTROKE – BREATHING
Breathing is not restricted when swimming backstroke, because you are
on your back and your face is above the water. However, this requires
that you have a relatively good balance in the horizontal position on your
 back. Otherwise, it is possible that the head will submerge, which, of
course, leads to problems.

It is also possible for water to splash into the face during the recovery of
the arm stroke. Therefore, it makes sense to synchronize breathing with
the movement of the arms.

For example, you can always inhale on one arm while exhaling on the
other arm if it is always the same arm that splashes water in your face.

Or inhale during the ascending part of the arm recovery and exhale
during the descending part of the arm recovery.

 5. BUTTERFLY STROKE
Of all the different swimming
strokes, the butterfly is
probably the most challenging.
Butterfly requires a great deal
of strength and coordination
that takes time to develop.

https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/butterfly-stroke.html
This stroke is an excellent option for combining core and upper body
training. During this stroke, you challenge your core muscles to keep your
body stable as your arms and legs move simultaneously.

You also work your arm, chest and upper back muscles to raise both of
your arms up out of the water and over your head. Your body's position
during the butterfly also helps improve overall flexibility.

 BUTTERFLY STROKE – BODY MOVEMENT / POSITION

Learning proper butterfly swimming technique requires that you first
master the wave-like body movements. Once this body undulation has
been mastered, the dolphin kick and arm stroke often fall into place quite
naturally.
 The undulating movements of the body drive the butterfly stroke
https://www.enjoy-swimming.com/butterfly-swimming.html

For initial position consider the following:

1. You are floating horizontally in the water on your chest.

2. Your head is in a neutral position, and your face is in the water.
3. Your arms are extended forward.
4. Your legs are extended and held together, and the feet are pointed.

Once you obtain the initial position you now start the wave-like body
movements. To do this consider the following steps:

1. Press your chest a few inches downwards into the water, then release
it.
2. As you release your chest, start to press your hips downwards into the
water.
3. Then release your hips and press your chest downwards again.
4. Repeat

 BUTTERFLY STROKE – ARM MOVEMENT

The butterfly is named for the way a swimmer's arms move while
swimming this stroke.
 Your arms arch up and out of the water together, looking like a pair of
wings. Your body is in the same horizontal position as required by
freestyle and breaststroke.
STEPS:
1. You begin by placing your arms out in front of you, your thumbs
facing down toward the water.
2. Sweep your arms down and out with your elbows slightly bent. Your
arms should form a Y-shape in front of your body.
3. Pull your arms back through the water, parallel to your body.
4. Next, you will pull them back up out of the water and begin the cycle
again.

 BUTTERFLY STROKE –
KICK RHYTHM
As your arms move through
this cycle, your legs will be
continuously moving using a
technique known as dolphin
kick. During dolphin kick,
your legs remain zipped
together in one smooth line.

The legs move up and down

together, pushing you
forward in the water. The
heels and soles of your feet
will break the surface of the
water as you kick upward.
You will kick down as your
arms reenter the water and
sweep down.

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Andrew_Cosgarea/publication/231215678/figure/fig3/AS:20321616059
5977@1425461916460/Butterfly-stroke-cycle-pull-through-and-recovery-Used-with-permission-from-Colwin-
CM.png
 BUTTERFLY STROKE – BREATHING

The breathing technique for butterfly is similar to that of breaststroke.

You will use your shoulder muscles to bob your head up out of the water
and back down. You should come up to breathe as your arms are
recovering and preparing to sweep back up again.