The butterfly stroke is a swimming technique that showcases gracefulness and power. It requires strength, coordination, and proper form, making it one of the most challenging strokes as it utilizes every muscle in the body. However, learning it can be incredibly fulfilling, and teaching your child the butterfly stroke can be a rewarding experience for both of you.
If you’re thinking of learning this technique or teaching it to your child, here’s how to swim the butterfly stroke for beginners, including basic drills for those looking to practice.
The Starting Point: How to Do the Butterfly Stroke for Beginners
Body Position and Movement
Every stroke begins with a specific body position that aligns with the stroke’s movement. A good body position for the butterfly stroke starts with the swimmer facing down in the water, their body in a horizontal position. Keeping the body near the water’s surface is essential, so refrain from dropping your hips to avoid sinking and slowing down.
When teaching the butterfly stroke to young children, emphasize the importance of keeping their heads in a neutral position, with their eyes facing down toward the pool floor. The head leads the body, so a relaxed and neutral head will help keep the body afloat and maintain a streamlined position. Demonstrating and practicing this position with them in short intervals can make it easier for children to grasp the concept.
Arm Movement
The arm movement in the butterfly stroke consists of a simultaneous and symmetrical motion of both arms. The action starts with the arms extended forward, led by the thumbs, reaching into the water. The hands enter the water shoulder-width apart, with the elbows bent slightly higher than the hands.
When teaching your children the butterfly stroke, break down the arm movement into simple, easy-to-follow steps. They must understand the importance of starting with arms extended forward and keeping the motion symmetrical.
Show them how to sweep their arms outwards and downwards in a circular motion, maintaining high elbows to create powerful momentum through the water. You must also encourage them to bring their hands together beneath their body before lifting them out of the water and extending forward for the next stroke cycle.
Leg Movement
The leg movement in the butterfly stroke is also known as the “dolphin kick. ” It is characterized by a powerful and rhythmic kick that involves keeping both legs and feet side by side throughout the motion with toes pointed straight back.
When teaching the butterfly stroke to kids, it’s vital to ensure the leg action originates from the hips, not the legs. You can demonstrate how to perform two kicks per arm stroke: a forceful downward kick to push water with your legs and feet, followed by an upward kick that enhances forward propulsion. Encourage your children to keep their feet close together during the kicks, with legs straight and toes pointed.
You can also use visual aids or demonstrations to show them how to time their kicks to coincide with their arm movements, maximizing forward momentum. Practicing the dolphin kick separately before integrating it with the arm movements can help young swimmers develop a strong foundation in the butterfly stroke.
Breathing Technique
Establishing a proper breathing technique is crucial for mastering the butterfly stroke. This stroke requires swimmers to find the right breathing pattern to make it faster and more efficient, a method known as “butterfly breathing.”
When teaching the butterfly stroke to young children and beginners, it’s beneficial to use a breathing technique similar to the one used in the breaststroke, which involves breathing to the front. This approach simplifies the learning process and helps build a strong foundation.
Explain that inhalation for the butterfly stroke should occur during the arm recovery phase when the arms are out of the water. Exhalation follows while the face is in the water during the arm pull phase. The most challenging part of butterfly breathing is coordinating it with the rhythm of the arm and leg movements.
Basic Butterfly Stroke Drills for Beginners
For beginners looking to improve their butterfly stroke, a variety of drills and exercises can help develop the necessary strength, coordination, and technique.
Horizontal Float Position Drill
Swimmers often underestimate the importance of good body position, so it’s important to have a drill that focuses on maintaining the proper body position for the butterfly stroke.
The horizontal float position drill starts with the body in a Superman position and then floating completely horizontally. The hands, shoulders, head, back, legs, and feet should all be on the surface of the water. Moving the hands slowly from side to side helps to hold the position and avoid kicking.
For beginners, we recommend using a pull buoy between the thighs to provide extra buoyancy and reinforce a better body position. A snorkel may also be helpful for those who are still practicing their breathing.
Butterfly Kick Drill
A simple yet effective drill is the “butterfly kick drill,” which involves holding onto the pool’s edge and practicing the butterfly kick motion while keeping a good body position. Swimmers can also use a kickboard to do this drill by grabbing the kickboard firmly while practicing the butterfly kick.
Butterfly Arms Drill
The one-arm butterfly drill is a good starter drill for beginners who want to practice arm movement. This drill involves using only one arm while doing the butterfly stroke, letting the other arm extend in front or along the side.
Using one arm per cycle will allow the body to slowly get used to the arm action of the butterfly stroke. A kickboard can also come in handy for this drill, maintaining buoyancy and stability as swimmers isolate their arm movement.
Butterfly Stroke For Beginners Made Easy With Bear Paddle
As challenging as it can be, the butterfly stroke is a rewarding swimming technique that most swimmers aim to master. It involves high dedication, practice, and power to learn the butterfly stroke. However, with enough practice and grit, it’s possible!
By learning the basics and practicing a few butterfly stroke drills for beginners, any enthusiastic swimmer can perfect this technique with the help of a coach, a training program, and a good set of gear.
At Bear Paddle, we make swimming fun, easy, and convenient. Kickstart your swimming journey and learn the butterfly stroke with us at Bear Paddle.