What is the freestyle leg movement like?

Swimming has become a hobby for many people. When watching swimming competitions on TV, you will see many swimming styles. Among the various swimming styles, freestyle is the simplest one and it is also the first swimming style that people learn. But don’t underestimate it because it is simple. Many people always make mistakes when learning freestyle. So below we will teach you the correct leg movements for freestyle.

Freestyle leg movements:

1. Use a hoe to fetch water

Wrong action: Because the foot is hooked, the kicking action is like hoeing the ground, so it is also called hoe kicking; the main reason for this wrong action is because the ankle joint and foot are tense; another reason is the poor flexibility of the ankle joint, that is, the flexibility is not very good.

Hoe and feet hitting water

Correct movements: The soles of both feet should be straightened, and the feet should be inward-facing. Relax appropriately when kicking upwards, and be appropriately tense and exert force when kicking downwards.

Tighten your feet and toes

Improvement method: Through flexibility exercises on land, often press the ankles to improve ankle flexibility, then practice more imitation kicking exercises on land, master the key points of the movements, and then practice kicking exercises with the board in the water. After you are proficient, you can practice overall coordination and carefully experience the key points of pressing the ankles to kick the water.

Ankle press exercise on land

Keep your feet straight when practicing kicking on land

Practice kicking with the board to experience the action of stretching the sole of the foot straight down to press the water

2. Kick with your calves only

Wrong action: When first learning the crawl stroke, using only the calves to kick the water is a very common wrong action. This is because the key points of kicking action have not been mastered and the concept of kicking action is not very clear. The main reason is that the kicking force is only generated from the knee joint, and the knee is bent too much; the force is not generated from the hip, and the thigh drives the calf and ankle to perform the kicking action.

Calf kick

Correct movement: Understand the power of the hips, and use the thighs to drive the calves and ankles to perform the water-kicking movement; first ensure that the legs are straight and kicking, especially feel how the thighs drive the calves to kick the water, and emphasize lifting the straight legs. (See the published basic overview of the crawl leg movements)

Experience the leg-driven water-kicking action

Improvement method: Practice imitating kicking on land to experience the key points of using the thigh to drive the calf. Pay attention to kicking with straight legs when practicing, and make sure to lift up with straight legs. After becoming proficient, practice side-kicks, focusing on how the thigh drives the calf and ankle movements. After becoming proficient, practice board-kicks until you are proficient.

Imitation exercises on land to experience the thigh driving the calf

Side kick exercise

Kick with the board to experience the thigh driving the calf

3. Straight-leg kicking or stiff legs

Wrong action: When kicking water, the legs are stiff and straight-leg kicking is one of the wrong actions often made by those who are new to the front crawl. When swimming, the stiff and uncoordinated movements of the legs greatly affect the forward speed. The main reasons are that the essentials of the movements are not clear, the order of applying force is not mastered, and the legs are too tense.

Leg stiffness

Correct action: Understand the order of power generation in the front crawl kick, emphasize power generation from the hips, and use the thighs to drive the calves and ankles to perform the kicking action. When kicking, relax your leg muscles appropriately.

Proper muscle relaxation

Improvement method: Practice kicking in the water by holding the board. When practicing, pay attention to properly relaxing the leg muscles; feel the force of the hips, and use the thighs to drive the calves and ankles to complete the whip-like leg movements. After becoming proficient, practice overall coordination in the water until you become proficient.