Swimming is an excellent workout for the entire body that can be performed by all age groups and ability levels. Swimming workouts can be designed to fit a variety of fitness levels and needs, whether for a beginner swimming for pleasure and exercise or a master swimmer competing on a regular basis.
Basics
There are four basic strokes involved in swimming: Freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly. With proper technique, these can be used together as a comprehensive swimming workout that provides a full-body workout. Mastering the form of the four basic strokes leads to increased comfort in the water, efficiency and speed.
Freestyle
Freestyle is the simplest of the four strokes and also is referred to as the front crawl and Australian crawl, a nod to its Australian creator. As the name implies, this is the most flexible of the strokes in terms of form, although there are some specific points to remember. The body is relatively streamlined in this stroke and the arms and legs operate in an alternating motion. Arms come out of the water and then re-enter in a windmill fashion as the feet engage in a flutter kick. Breathing should be performed by rotating the head to the side until the mouth clears the water. This breathing pattern should cause as little upset to the position of the body as possible.
Breaststroke
According to swim-teach.com, the breaststroke is the oldest and slowest of the four strokes. Breaststroke is an extremely technical stroke that must follow several rules to be performed correctly. Shoulders must be kept in line with the water and arm and leg movements should be pushed forward together. Legs move in a frog kick motion while arms sweep outward. When turning and finishing in competition, both hands must touch the wall in unison. During the breaststroke, the face is clear of the water and allows for better perception in terms of position. The stroke provides a natural lift for the body, which provides an ideal situation for breathing.
Backstroke
The backstroke is similar to freestyle except that it is performed with the swimmer on his back. The body is again in a streamlined position similar to freestyle and arms and legs operate in an alternating fashion. As is true with the other strokes, the swimmer is only allowed to swim underwater for a length of 15 meters at the beginning of the swim and after each turn. As of 1991, swimmers are not required to touch the wall with their hand during a turn, which allows for much faster turning.
Butterfly
According to Topend Sports, the butterfly stroke was developed through experimentation with the breaststroke. This stroke was not recognized as an actual stroke until 1953 and was not included in the Olympics until 1956. When performing the butterfly, swimmers are not allowed to swim underwater except for the first stroke and after eacthe h turn. As with breaststroke, both hands must touch the wall when turning during the butterfly. Arm and leg movements must be made together and shoulders have to be kept in line with the water surface. This particular stroke requires a great deal of upper body strength, is very physically demanding and takes practice to master.
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