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Butterfly Drills – Hand-Lead Body Dolphin Drill

The purpose of the Hand-Lead Body Dolphin Drill is to practice your undulation while your arms are extended forward rather than resting at the sides. This drill may involve the Head-Lead Body Dolphin as well so you need to be very patient and avoid skipping ahead.
  • Push yourself off from the wall in a horizontal position with your face facing downward.
  • Your arms should be extended forward and a shoulder width apart from each other.
  • Make sure to push your muscles and head down in the water. This will involve contracting your abdominal muscles prior to releasing pressure.
  • When you release the pressure, the buoyancy of your lungs should be able to push your upper body upward.
  • The legs should follow along with the hips in its up and down movements.
  • Move forward in the water by using undulated movements.
  • The body undulation is equivalent to the wave that moves in a downward direction from your arms down to your legs.

You may do a few pulses without incorporating breathing and then pause to catch your breath. You may also use a swimmer’s snorkel if you want to avoid pauses to breathe. It is also important to note that you need to add breathing progressively which means, you may stop to take a breath after completing five body undulations, then four, three and so on.

When kicking, keep your kicks relaxed and supple. Remember, when swimming the butterfly stroke, the body undulation drives the dolphin kick. Mastering body undulation is important when aiming to get better at butterfly stroke.

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