Two Tips for a Strong Butterfly Kick

Butterfly is often considered the most challenging of the competitive swimming strokes because it requires strength, stamina, and superior timing. Much of the propulsion in the stroke comes from the powerful dolphin kick, and it can take some time to master the undulation you’ll need to execute that kick while learning how to employ this energy-gobbling movement most efficiently.

Here are two tips that can help you improve your butterfly kick.

Tip #1: Kick From the Hips

First, make sure you're kicking from the hips and not from the knees. The undulation motion originates with the head, but the kick should spring from the hips. Your core is full of strong muscles that can help drive your body forward, so harness that strength by tapping into the power of your hips.

However, saying that the butterfly kick should come from the hips doesn’t mean you can’t bend your knees at all. In fact, you’ll need to keep your knees loose so that the undulation movement can roll down the legs and into the ankles and feet where you’ll get more propulsion. Dolphin kicking requires about 120 degrees of knee bend to execute properly, which is essentially the same range of motion you need for a normal walking gait.

Tip #2: Work the Up-Kick

Second, don’t forget about the up-kick. While it’s true that the majority of the propulsion comes from your down-kick, you can gain more speed if you also work the up-kick.

Generally speaking, the down-kick provides about 80% of the propulsive force of the dolphin kick while the up-kick contributes about 20%. Leverage that extra 1/5th of power by keeping good form and really working on the up-kick each and every time. In addition to adding a little more propulsion, a strong up-klick will also set you up for a great next down kick.

Practice these two elements by kicking underwater on your back or your sides and feel the additional power you can generate when you harness your hips and the power of the up-kick.