I've been practicing swimming more often now because I'm trying to get healthier. I've utilized the butterfly stroke a lot, and it's been one of my favorites. Just a simple stroke where you swim on the chest, using both of your arms moving symmetrically, and then pairing it with what's called a dolphin kick.. It makes me feel so athletic.
That looks like a hard swimming stroke to master. You must have been working really hard. How many laps do you swim at a time?
It varies, since I do other exercises on different days, and can only do so much on some days. I usually aim for 30 laps overall, which actually isn't that many. But you're right, the butterfly is one of the more difficult strokes because of the necessary detail concerning good technique, and you also need to have built up stronger muscles. It did take me a while to get good at it. I had to start with the breaststroke and the front crawl, and sometimes the backstroke, since they're more geared for beginners.
Do you think you'll ever swim competitively, like in the Olympics?
Speed and ergonomics.
The peak speed of the butterfly is faster than that of the front crawl, or freestyle due to the synchronous pull/push with both arms and legs, which is done quite fast. Yet since speed drops significantly during the recovery phase, it is overall slightly slower than front crawl, especially over longer distances. Another reason it is slower is because of the extremely different physical exertion it puts on the swimmer compared to the freestyle. Its name was taken from the butterfly.
The breaststroke,
Butterfly stroke
The butterfly (colloquially shortened to fly) is a swimming stroke swum on the chest, with both arms moving symmetrically, accompanied by the butterfly kick (also known as the "dolphin kick"). While other styles like the breaststroke, front crawl, or backstroke can be swum adequately by beginners, the butterfly is a more difficult stroke that requires good technique as well as strong muscles. It is the newest swimming style swum in competition, first swum in 1933 and originating out of the breaststroke.