The Butterfly

In swimming there are four strokes; backstroke (a.k.a. back), breaststroke (a.k.a. breast), butterfly (a.k.a. fly), and freestyle (a.k.a. front crawl/free).  Each stroke has its own technique and rules for each race. Each swimmer has his/her own preference of which stroke they like best.  

 My personal favorite is the butterfly. A lot of swimmers think this is THE hardest stroke, I beg to differ. A swimmers’ hardest stroke depends on their style of swimming, coordination, and just in general, how long that swimmer has been swimming that stroke (personally, my worst stroke is by far back).

One of the most famous butterfly swimmers is none other than Michael Phelps. He won 8 Gold Medals in the Beijing Olympics, and more in the Athens Olympics as well.  

Anyway, back to fly. Fly is one of the harder strokes because it takes a lot of shoulder strength and coordination. It requires both arms to move forward at the same time and both legs to kick together while staying side by side. While swimming fly, the swimmer must keep both legs together at all times and both arms but come out of the water at the same time. While doing a turn for fly, the swimmer MUST touch the wall with both hands at the same time.

Butterfly is in many events. These events include; all of the medley relays, the 50, 100, and 200 meter (or yard, depending on the pool) fly, and the 100, 200, and 400 meter/yard individual medley (a.k.a. the IM).

Of all the strokes, fly is my favorite. I feel powerful and strong and accomplished. I feel proud to say that I am a butterflier.