Core strength in the dolphin kick

Sharks, fish, dolphins have no arms or legs, they just swim with their core body.  We have arms and legs and so we think we can swim fast if we use them.... ah, yes, if we use them in coordination with our whole body.  We often talk about using the biggest muscles in our body nearest our core, our shoulders and back muscles instead of our biceps, our hips instead of our feet.

Here's Lenny Krayzelburg talking about the Underwater dolphin kick.... notice how still he keeps his upper body, generating power from his core and flowing through his legs.


And here's a video showing Hill Taylor, who is just kicking underwater, kicking 50 meters in 23.10 seconds, compared to backstroke swimmers on top of the water.



This video below is from the 2011 European Paralympian Championships.  It is the mens S4 50m butterfly event. S4 is the disability classification (the lower the numbers, the more severe the disabilities).  Athletes won't have the same disabilities but those of "equivalent" physical disabilities race against each other in classifications ranging from 1-10.  Blind and visually impaired swimmers compete in categories 11,12 and 13.  Swimmers with mental disabilities compete in 14.