Breaststroke

Front Crawl Backstroke Breaststroke Butterfly Tumble Turns Training Aids Breaststroke Legs

The great thing about breaststroke is that you can exercise as hard or as gently you want to (believe it, breaststroke can be exhausting if you want it to be). This is mainly because most people find the breathing much easier to master than front crawl and, unlike backstroke, you can see where you’re going in a public pool! Breaststroke is unlike the other strokes in several ways. The first is that it has natural dead spots which means that it lacks continuous propulsion. The minimization of the dead spots in breaststroke (i.e. getting the timing right) and ensuring the body is in a streamlined position during them are both crucial. At its best the motion derived from the pull is neatly followed by that generated from the kick which is then followed by a short streamlined glide with the arms out in front of the body before the cycle starts again. At it’s worst the arms pull back at the same time as the knees move far too far forwards. Both actions thus cancel each other out rendering the swimmer virtually stationery. For this reason breaststroke can be considered the easiest and hardest stroke to master at the same time! The other factor that sets breaststroke apart from the other strokes is its reliance on a strong leg kick.