At any time prior to the first Breaststroke kick after the start and after each turn a single butterfly kick is permitted. The feet retract to the bottom without moving the thigh, thus reducing resistance. There are eight common distances swum in competitive breaststroke swimming, four in yards and four in meters. The initial position of breaststroke is to keep your body level with the surface of the water. Breaststroke Steps / Technique: Step 1 - Leg Movement: From the initial position move your feet and legs together, like a frog would. 3. Early research on advanced kinematic analysis proved that the leg kick is the largest propulsive force of the stroke and that it occurs as the third propulsive force in the breaststroke movement cycle (Mason et al., 1989). The leg action of the breaststroke may have originated by imitating the swimming action of frogs. A special feature of competitive breaststroke is the underwater pullout. In about the mid-1960s, the rules changed to prevent the arm stroke from going beyond the hip line, except during the first stroke after the start and after each turn. Drag due to a wake is Newtonian drag, increasing with the square of the velocity. In 1774, following a series of drownings, English physician John Zehr of the Society for the Recovery of Persons Apparently Drowned began giving public speeches and demonstrations to teach proper swimming technique. When the swimmer's elbows have reached the line of his eye and have begun to rise, his head starts to lift. In the recovery phase the lower leg and the feet are in the wake of the upper leg, and the feet are pointed to the rear. However, a Japanese swimmer, Masaru Furukawa, circumvented the rule by not surfacing at all after the start, but swimming as much of the length underwater as possible before breaking the surface. Depictions of a variant of breaststroke are found in Babylonian bas-relief and Assyrian wall drawings. Start doing it now! A strong and efficient arm pull will allow you to move through the water faster. 4. We’ll also provide a free downloadable chart ‘The major muscles used for breaststroke’. The breaststroke arm action begins with your body in a horizontal position and your arms extended out in front of your head with your hands close together and your palms facing outwards at an angle of approximately 40°. The gliding phase is also longer during the underwater stroke after the start and each turn. 1928 was the start of the scientific study of swimming by David Armbruster, coach at the University of Iowa, who filmed swimmers from underwater. During this time it’s very important for the legs to remain straight and motionless. So, all you breaststrokers out there, do not worry if you struggle with the other strokes: it is because you are “special”. The leg movement, colloquially known as the "frog kick" or "whip kick", consists of two phases: bringing the feet into position for the thrust phase and the insweep phase. One breaststroke problem Armbruster researched was that the swimmer was slowed down significantly while bringing the arms forward underwater. Then the swimmer kicks and presses on their chest, undulating a little underwater, and squeezing the gluteus maximus to prevent the legs and feet from rising out of the water. Now that you know which muscle groups to … By Christophe / August 3, 2015 August 11, 2019 / Breaststroke, Breaststroke Technique The breaststroke kick is the kick used by the breaststroke swimmers. His goal was not to promote exercise, but rather to reduce the dangers of drowning. Are you looking for the perfect swimsuit for your training? In 1938, almost every breaststroke swimmer was using this butterfly style, yet this stroke was considered a variant of the breaststroke until 1952, when it was accepted as a separate style with its own set of rules. A scissors, flutter or downward butterfly kick is not permitted except as in SW 7.1. In the pre-Olympic era, competitive swimming in Europe started around 1800, mostly using breaststroke. The finish is similar to the touching of the wall during a turn. Luckily, a better breast is possible with limited hip range of motion. The pullout at the start and after the turns contributes significantly to the swimming times. Breaststroke can be swum faster if submerged completely, but FINA requires the head to break the surface once per cycle except for the first cycle after the start and each turn. The hands shall not be brought back beyond the hip line, except during the first stroke after the start and each turn. The 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis, Missouri, were the first Olympics to feature a separate breaststroke competition, over a distance of 440 yards (402 m). Therefore, training involves getting flexible in addition to fitness and precision. He is said to have helped to popularize breaststroke, noting the ease with which it could be learned and swum.. The elbows stay in the horizontal plane through the shoulders. However, at the competitive level, swimming breaststroke at speed requires comparable endurance and strength to other strokes. In 1696, the French author and poet Melchisédech Thévenot wrote The Art of Swimming, describing a breaststroke very similar to the modern breaststroke. Breaking the surface of the water with the feet is allowed unless followed by a downward butterfly kick. From the initial position with the legs stretched out backward, the feet are moved together towards the posterior, while the knees stay together. The legs move in a whip-like action, where the tendons are first stretched and then recoiled at high speeds. He used breaststroke, swimming 21.26 miles (34.21 km) in 21 hours and 45 minutes. There was a controversy at the 2004 Summer Olympics at Athens after Japan's Kosuke Kitajima won the gold medal in the 100 m breaststroke race over American Brendan Hansen, the world-record-holder. You will be the first to hear any news and find out about exclusive deals for members only. Amanda Beard), and few people have the flexibility to accomplish it. As we have already seen, most forward momentum when swimming the breaststroke comes from leg kick and the arms do not really have a thrust phase. Your body should be flat in the water, arms straight out in front with hands together, and legs straight back with feet together. Twenty-five meter or 50 meter pool distances. Breaking the water surface increases drag, reducing speed; swimming underwater increases speed. Next step: Learn to swim - 9.2. The undulating style is usually swum by extremely flexible swimmers, (e.g. The breaststroke starts with the swimmer lying in the water face down, arms extended straight forward and legs extended straight to the back. Since then, the development of breaststroke has gone hand-in-hand with the FINA rules. Full WEST breaststroke with motion separation; Open your hands, lift your head. The right time to perform the leg kick is at the end of the breathing cycle. Therefore, one way to improve swimming times is to focus on the start and the turns. The history of breaststroke goes back to the Stone Age, as for example pictures in the Cave of Swimmers near Wadi Sora in the southwestern part of Egypt near Libya. This is known as the pull-out. The body is often at a steep angle to the forward movement, which slows down the swimmer more than any other style. SW 7.5 The feet must be turned outwards during the propulsive part of the kick. Video from underwater cameras showed Kitajima using a dolphin kick at the start and at some of the turns. However, FINA allows this stroke only for the first stroke after the start and each turn. Professional breaststrokers use abdominal muscles and hips to add extra power to the kick, although most do not perfect this technique until the collegiate level. From the streamline position, the palms turn out and the hands separate to slightly past shoulder width. As a variant, some swimmers experiment with a flip over turn similar to front crawl. A fit adult creates a wake. After the stroke the body is kept in the initial position for some time to utilize the gliding phase. ARMS. Moving both knee and foot outwards like a real frog avoids the extreme rotation in the lower leg. The breaststroke is unique in that it is the only one of the four competitive swim strokes where the recovery (that is, the non-propulsive setup part of the stroke) takes place underwater. When the leg movement is done, wait in arrow position for 3 seconds. It is the most popular recreational style due to the swimmer's head being out of the water a large portion of the time, and that it can be swum comfortably at slow speeds. The right time to perform the leg kick is at the end of the breathing cycle. You ensure the legs work as one large fin for the best propulsion. After a gliding phase, an underwater pull-out is done, followed by another gliding phase and then regular swimming. Later on, swimmers were also allowed to break the water with parts of the body other than the head. Ad. The knees should not sink too low, as this increases the drag. Before 1987, the head had to be kept above the water surface during the entire stroke. Swimming requires your arms and legs to remain in motion in order to stay afloat and propel yourself backward or forward. Over to you! Aim to make one leg lick less during the next lap compared to previous laps. This is followed by the recovery of the arms to the streamline position once more with a breaststroke kick. The head may be submerged after the last arm pull prior to the touch, provided it breaks the surface of the water at some point during the last complete or incomplete cycle preceding the touch. Leg Movement. For competitive swimming it is important that the wall at the end of the lane is always touched by both hands (known as a "Two-Hand Touch") at the same time due to FINA regulations. The goal is to produce maximum thrust during the insweep phase, and minimum drag during the recovery phase. The movement starts in the initial position with the body completely straight. SW 7.6 At each turn and at the finish of the race, the touch shall be made with both hands simultaneously at, above, or below the water level. Breaststroke an overview. , Breaststroke is the slowest of the four official styles in competitive swimming. This led to a controversy at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, when six swimmers were disqualified, as they repeatedly swam long distances underwater. Sign up for the newsletter. Breaststroke can also be swum with the dolphin kick in butterfly, but this also violates the FINA rules. One kick is allowed, however, at the start and at the turn, providing that it is part of the body's natural movement. Usually the gliding phase is shorter during sprints than during long-distance swimming. Make sure your legs move simultaneously during both the catch and outsweep phases. This exercise allows you to work on flexing your feet during breaststroke. Breaststroke: it’s all about the leg kick, 10 drills all budding backstroke swimmers should try, 10 drills that will improve your butterfly, Top 10 exercises to improve your breaststroke, Butterfly: the importance of the leg kick, 6 mistakes to avoid if you want to improve your breaststroke. This led to a variant of the stroke in which the arms are brought together as usual under the body after the pull but then are thrown forward over the water from under the chin until the arms are completely extended. Let us assume, again, that the swimmer is in the starting position, i.e., he lies horizontally in the water. The high elbows creates the leverage for the powerful torso and abdominal muscles to assist in the stroke. Breaststroke is also part of the medley over the following distances: Occasionally other distances are swum on an ad hoc, unofficial basis (such as 400 yd breaststroke in some college dual meets). Breaststroke uses the regular start for swimming. As the swimmer sinks, they arch their back, and kick. If the choice is between drilling with limited leg movement or stop breaststroke training altogether, the choice should be obvious. Again, the goal is to produce maximum thrust during the insweep phase, and minimise drag during the recovery phase. Some swimming teachers believe that learning the front crawl first gives a higher risk of an incorrect scissor kick when learning breaststroke afterwards. In late 2005, FINA has also introduced a new rule which permits a single downward kick after the push off the wall. Then the swimmer shrugs their shoulders and throws their arms and shoulders forward, lunging cat-like back into the water (though the emphasis is to go forward, not down). The legs move slower while bringing the legs into position for the thrust phase, and move very fast during the thrust phase. SW 7.3 The hands shall be pushed forward together from the breast on, under, or over the water. The wave-style was swum and made famous by Mike Barrowman when he set a world record using it, and is now commonly swum by Olympians, though Australian swimmers, most prominently Leisel Jones, generally seem to shun it. In the scissor kick, one leg moves as described above, but the other leg does not form an elliptical movement but merely an up-down movement similar to the flutter kick of front crawl. Non-simultaneous movement. In most swimming classes, beginners learn either the breaststroke or the freestyle (front crawl) first. Strong, flexible calves create the correct angle for the feet and point the toes into a streamlined position at the end of the propulsive phase of the leg kick. How to Swim 9/20 Breaststroke. Breathing is usually done during the beginning of the insweep phase of the arms, and the swimmer breathes in ideally through the mouth. As a variant, some swimmers move the knees apart during the preparation phase and keep them apart until almost the end of the thrust phase. In this course, Swimming Instructors Rotem Agame and Olga Tzinker give 14 easy video lessons on How to Swim the Breaststroke. Swimming teachers put a great effort into steering the students away from the scissor kick. The swimmer breathes out through mouth and nose during the recovery and gliding phase. Leg Movement — Breaststroke Kick. Breaststroke is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on their chest and the torso does not rotate. The movement starts with the outsweep. Humans have strong muscles in the legs and would need swim fins (like a frog) to bring all their power into the water and stand with the sole of the feet on the water. Breaststroke - Technique - Leg Movement. Before the kick the knee is maximally bent and the upper leg is rotating along its axis to its extreme outer position and the lower leg is twisted to extreme, at the end of the kick the ankles are maximally turned to the inside so that the soles clap together to achieve a nozzle effect like in a jelly fish. 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Olympics in Berlin for the butterfly kick, the main leg movement your level! Each turn shall be pushed forward together from the breast on, were... Move through the shoulders 1 ] [ 2 ], breaststroke leg movement is believed to be kept the. The gliding phase varies significantly to the initial position for some time to perform the kick!: a Drill to Develop Race Tempo breaststroke teachers believe that learning front!
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