Follow the Rules! You'll Like it!

Not only is swimming a relaxing and enjoyable sport, but it also can be very technical. Once you have learned the important strokes, such as freestyle, backstroke, breast stroke and butterfly, you can begin to work on your technique to make the time you spend in the pool even more worthwhile.

By learning proper strokes, which can be done by taking private, or group lessons, or even watching a video and practicing, you can avoid frustration and perhaps even join a swimming club or team.

The rules of competition can be used to make swimming even more enjoyable.

Breast Stroke

This is the slowest competitive stroke. When you are learning, make sure to do it slow and methodically, to ensure that you are doing it properly.

Swimmers should be faced down, extending the arms out in front of them and into a Y position. The arms then sweep in and the hands meet under the face before returning to a forward extension. Elbows must be under the water during the pull and hands are not allowed to pull past the waist.

When performing the frog-like kick, the legs are not allowed to break the surface of the water.
Arms are required to be synchronized.

The head must break the surface of the water each time. This is usually when the swimmer takes a breath.

When arriving to the wall, the swimmer must perform an open turn and touch both hands to the side of the pool at the same time. They must then rotate and push off the wall belly-down.

Butterfly

The butterfly became an Olympic event in 1956.

Swimmers must be belly-down and perform their arm pull simultaneously. The arm movements are similar to the front crawl, but both arms move at the same time.
Both legs must move in coordination with each other in a dolphin-like kick. The kick is similar to freestyle, but legs must be moved together. Breast stroke kicks are not allowed.
Though there is no regulation on breath, like the breast stoke, the breath is taken with the head forward only when necessary.

The swimmer must make a forward start off the block. A few dolphin kicks may be performed prior to surfacing to begin arm strokes.

When reaching the side of the pool, the swimmer performs an open turn by touching the wall with both hands simultaneously, like the breast stroke.

After take off, the swimmer’s head must break the surface of the water within 15 meters from start and after each turn.

As with all exercises performed at CROSSFIT 619, by following the rules of your exercise, you will actually find it to be more enjoyable. Proper form and concentration will help avoid frustration and injury.