Swimming has always been one of my favorite sports since I was little. I self taught myself most of the skills, but as I started competitive swimming, I got a coach out of school so I can improve. I’ve always been participating in swim meets or other activities, and I think having a group of people who share the same interests as me is what helps me continue what I enjoy.
Many people including me consider Butterfly as one of the hardest strokes in swimming. This is because you need more strength than other strokes and you also get no ‘breaks’ between each pull. While swimming butterfly, your legs move together to kick as both of your arms glide through the water.
Backstroke is the only stroke where you stay on your back the whole time unless you are doing a flip turn, which is when you turn to your stomach and flip underwater to kick off the wall. Backstroke is a popular stroke to swim amongst swimmers. However, it is one of the easiest strokes to get disqualified in. This is because even if you do more than one pull on your side or stomach, it is an automatic disqualification, meaning that your race would not count.
When you swim breaststroke, you use your legs in a circular motion while using your arms to pull the water away and ‘shooting’ it back in. Breaststroke is not only my favorite stroke, but it is my major stroke too. Although breaststroke is slower than other strokes, it uses a lot of energy because it gets most affected by the resistance in the water.
There are four strokes in swimming, and freestyle is the most basic, and common stroke. When you swim freestyle you keep a streamline position while kicking continuously and rotating your arms to breathe on your side. Freestyle is usually the fastest stroke for many swimmers because the way you move your body helps you go further without using much energy.
Diving is a skill which needs a lot of practice. When you dive, you usually start from a block. You place one of your feet at the back while the other is at the front. Your hands hold the front of the block, and when the race begins, your legs will push off the block while your hands form a streamline position. Diving is very important in swimming because it’ll help you glide through the water, which will eventually make you faster.