Many swimmers find the butterfly stroke the hardest to master. When swum correctly, this strenuous stroke burns more calories than any other competitive swimming stroke, at a rate of about 150 calories per 10 minutes, according to the "Daily Mail." Learn to master the basic movements of the stroke first, then progress to streamlining your body and improving your time.
Basics
The butterfly stroke combines an overhead arm pull with a dolphin kick. Unlike the freestyle, the butterfly requires you to move your arms together at the same time rather than in an alternating motion. You must also move your legs and feet together. To begin the stroke, reach your arms out in front of you and put your hands in the water. Bend your elbows slightly and pull your hands toward your legs until they reach your thighs. Then pull your hands out of the water and reach out in front of you again to begin the next pull. As you make these arm pulls, kick up and down with your legs in a dolphin-kick motion. Kick your feet down as you place your hands in the water in front of you, then up again as you pull your arms through the water. Kick your feet down again when you bring your hands out of the water behind you.
Breathing
Your breathing should not interfere with the rhythm of your stroke. Keep your head face down in the water and under its surface throughout the stroke except when you need to breathe. Tuck your chin into your chest to streamline your body. To prepare to take a breath, move your chin forward as you pull your arms through the water, then lift your mouth above the water to inhale as your arms reach your thighs. Return your head to the water before you begin the next arm pull. Exhale just before you lift your mouth to take a breath.
Hand and Foot Positioning
Once you have mastered the basic movements involved in the butterfly stroke, you can tweak the positioning of your hands and feet to improve your speed. Keep your legs and feet together, but not pressed together as if glued. Keep your legs apart just enough so that you can turn your feet inward, making a shape that resembles a dolphin's fin. When you place your hands in the water to begin an arm pull, focus on keeping your palms facing outward. Your thumbs should enter the water first. This hand position allows for the most powerful pull through the water. As you move your hands through the water, imagine tracing the shape of a keyhole. Your hands should travel outward and in again as they reach your thighs. Keep your hands above the surface of the water but as close to it as possible when you move them forward to begin the next pull.
Hips
Many beginning butterfly swimmers focus on the arm pull and leg kick as separate entities. The movement of the hips should unite these two elements of the stroke, allowing the kick to propel the arms out of the water. Instead of powering your kick solely with your knees and feet, allow your hips to roll with the natural rhythm of the kicks.
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