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?
Haha.. no way. I'm an older geezer. I just do it to maybe live a little longer. I just started doing the butterfly stroke more because it's more advanced and also because the technique of it allows you to move/swim faster than others, because of the synchronous push/pull of both arms and legs.
I guess swimming would be a good activity to get in to if you're older since it's low impact, right?
Yeah, you're absolutely right. Helped me with my knee and hip pain, since there was no punishment on them when doing it. That contributes to it being one of the top public recreational activities. Heck, some countries even make it compulsory for you to have swimming lessons and make it a part of your education.
That is great they make it part of your education, although I dont know how I would feel being in my bathing suit around my classmates. I guess when you're young it doesn't matter though
Yeah, sometimes it seems a little rigid, too. Like a lot of countries have an actual defined swimming level that children need to have met by the end of their primary education. But I guess the upside is it helps with preventing infant drowning, since a lot of these lessons start even before the age of 4.