Kick Variety Warm-Up
Widths of front crawl, backstroke, breaststroke and dolphin kick with a float or in streamline – wakes the legs up and checks kick technique.
- Stages
- Swimming – Stage 8, Swimming – Stage 9
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Skills
- Front Kick, Back Kick, Breaststroke Kick, Dolphin Kick
- Equipment
- Float, Short Fins
- Age
- 8–99 years
- Group size
- 1–20 swimmers
- Time
- About 5 minutes
- In a lesson
- Introduction / Warm-up
- Shared by
- SwimShare Resource
Safety notes
- Swimmers with heads down must look up regularly or follow a lane line.
What it develops
- Front crawl: long body line with breathing timed to the pull
- Breaststroke: symmetrical kick with a controlled glide
How to run it
- Width 1: front crawl kick with a float.
- Width 2: backstroke kick with arms by the sides.
- Width 3: breaststroke kick with a float.
- Width 4: dolphin kick on the front or side.
- Repeat in streamline without floats if swimmers are confident.
Teaching cues
- Kick from the hips.
- Steady breathing.
- Different kick, same long body.
Make it easier
- Use short fins (if your pool allows) for dolphin kick.
Make it harder
- Kick on the side for front crawl and dolphin kick.
- Streamline arms throughout.
Common faults
- Bending at the knees on flutter kicks.
- Asymmetrical breaststroke kick.
Corrections
- 'Long legs, floppy feet.'
- 'Both feet turn out together.'
Assistant / L1 role
- Hand out and collect floats between widths so the warm-up keeps moving.