Who should swim breaststroke and who should swim freestyle?

Anyone who steps into the pool must have hesitated between two choices - whether to swim breaststroke or freestyle, the two most popular swimming styles for amateurs.

Many people believe that only freestyle swimming is really good - Photo: TN

Both breaststroke and freestyle swimming are valuable for health and fitness, but have specific values ​​for different groups of people. Choosing the right swimming style will help optimize training efficiency and avoid unnecessary risk of injury.

Who should swim breaststroke, and who should avoid it?

Breaststroke is a swimming style chosen by many beginners because it is easy to learn and creates a sense of safety. When swimming breaststroke, the head is usually kept above the water surface, helping the swimmer to observe easily and not have to breathe in the water like other swimming styles.

According to Dr. David Tanner, a sports physiologist from Indiana University (USA), breaststroke is a suitable choice for those who need good breath control, slow movement, and need gentle exercise.

Breaststroke is suitable for middle-aged people - Photo: XH

This is an ideal swimming style for the elderly, people recovering from illness or people with average health.

Additionally, breaststroke is recommended for people recovering from minor shoulder or back injuries. The slow arm stroke, without the need for constant rotation, helps reduce pressure on the shoulder joint.

However, not everyone should choose to swim breaststroke. People with a history of knee degeneration or injury should pay special attention, because the kicking motion of the legs in breaststroke puts a lot of pressure on the ligaments and joints.

A 2014 study from the Journal of Sports Sciences found that breaststroke is the swimming style that puts the most stress on the knee joints compared to other swimming styles.

Breaststroke is also not suitable for those who want to lose weight quickly or train at high intensity.

Although it's a full-body workout, breaststroke only burns about 500-600 calories per hour for adults, much lower than freestyle.

Therefore, people who need to exercise vigorously, increase cardiovascular strength or burn fat will not achieve the desired results if they only focus on swimming the breaststroke.

Freestyle swimming, suitable for improving body shape

In contrast, freestyle swimming is a more athletic and physically demanding swimming style. It is the fastest of the basic swimming techniques, using alternating arms and legs to propel the body forward at maximum speed.

According to Professor Jane Katz, author of “Swimming for Total Fitness” and lecturer at City University of New York, freestyle swimming activates almost all major muscle groups in the body and is the optimal choice for improving cardiovascular endurance, losing weight and increasing total-body strength.

Freestyle swimming is suitable for young and healthy people, people who want to improve their shape, train their cardiovascular system or practice for professional competitions.

With the ability to burn about 700-750 calories per hour, this is the top energy-burning exercise among swimming styles. In addition, thanks to the characteristics of continuous kicking and alternating breathing, freestyle swimming helps increase VO₂max and improve lung capacity quickly.

A 2017 study from the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports found that freestyle swimming is one of the most effective ways to improve your body's ability to absorb oxygen.

Freestyle swimming is suitable for improving body shape and burning fat - Photo: TN

However, freestyle swimming is not suitable for everyone. People with shoulder problems, especially tendinitis or rotator cuff injuries, should avoid freestyle swimming until they have fully recovered.

The constant swinging of the arms over the head and twisting of the body while swimming can cause re-injury. In addition, the breathing technique in freestyle swimming is relatively complex, requiring the learner to practice controlling the breathing rhythm with the rhythm of the arms, which is often difficult for beginners.

In contrast to breaststroke, people with a history of knee pain are encouraged to choose freestyle swimming.

The kicking motion along the body axis of the freestyle does not create horizontal force on the knee joint, helping to minimize the risk of pain or damage to the cartilage. According to recommendations from Harvard Medical School, people over 50 years old with signs of osteoarthritis should avoid the breaststroke and instead swim freestyle or backstroke to maintain safe movement.

HUY DANG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ai-nen-boi-ech-ai-nen-boi-sai-20250630104032052.htm