Best Swim Stroke to Make You Lean? Butterfly is an Incredible Fat Burner

The butterfly swimming stroke is downright the best one for losing belly fat. As one of the most demanding swimming techniques, it demands a combination of almost all muscle groups, including the core, thus helping to burn belly fat in large numbers. It is so good that a 150-pound person swimming the butterfly stroke for 30 minutes can burn up to 600 calories!

Swimming has many health benefits, and people no longer swim just for recreational fun. Today, when you get to the pool, it is because you want to stay fit, and strong.

If you have belly fat, well, you will be happy to know that swimming can help you burn it. A flatter tummy is one of the results of swimming daily for a month.

Stubborn belly fat can be a frustrating hurdle on your fitness journey. While spot reduction isn’t possible, certain activities, like swimming, can help you achieve overall fat loss, leading to a flatter stomach.

How does swimming make you leaner?

Swimming engages numerous muscle groups while offering low-impact cardio. This is what makes it a powerhouse for burning calories and building endurance.

It strengthens your core, back, glutes, legs, and arms, contributing to a boosted metabolism and increased calorie expenditure even at rest.

This, in turn, can contribute to fat loss across your body, including the belly area. There is no way that you can spot-lose fat in the belly. Therefore, you are better off engaging in workouts for the core and other muscles.

Swimming is perfect for giving you a full-body workout. If you watch your calorie intake and swim regularly, you will experience a lot of weight loss.

Once you remember that your body mobilizes and burns fat holistically, you will know how to choose the perfect workout. Also, where it comes from depends on various factors like genetics, overall fitness level, and diet.

While certain strokes engage specific muscle groups more, aiming solely for the “highest calorie burner” might not be the most effective strategy.

How different swim strokes burn calories

Of course, it is unfair to expect that you will swim using only one stroke. You will vary between two or three, you know, to break the monotony. However, once you know the main calorie burner of a stroke, use it more often than others.

Please watch this video of the four swimming strokes that every swimmer must master:

1. Butterfly swimming technique: best calorie burner

Often touted as the top calorie burner (around 450 calories in 30 minutes for a 155-pound person), the butterfly demands significant technical skill and upper-body strength.

It engages major muscle groups, such as your core, chest, back, and arms, simultaneously.

However, this intensity might not be sustainable for beginners, potentially leading to improper form and injuries.

How to perform the butterfly stroke

There are a few ways to master this incredible swimming stroke, but it will take time. However, you can follow the tips below, and you will build on it. Most of the time, when you master the arm movement and kick, you will be good to go.

Arm movement

• To start, extend your arms above your head, shoulder-width apart
• With your palms facing outward, pull your hands toward your body in a semicircular motion. Try to keep your elbows higher than your hands when making the pull.
• After the pull, push your palms backward along your sides and past your hips. This quick movement creates momentum.
• In your mind, you fancy making a large keyhole underwater. The pull is the wide top part, and the push is the narrow bottom part.
• Complete the stroke by returning your hands to your thighs. Drag your thumbs on your thighs to ensure proper positioning.
• Sweep the arms out of the water simultaneously and throw them forward into the starting position, with the palms facing outward.

Perfect your dolphin kick

The dolphin kick complements the arm movement. Picture kicking your legs like a dolphin’s tail underwater

• Both legs move at the same time, pressed together to maintain the water pressure
• Kick twice for each armstroke
• The kicks are not identical: one is small, and the other is more powerful
• Head Position: Keep your head down during the arm movement and until your arms are near your thighs.
• Breathing: Breathe quickly during the recovery phase.
• Efficient entry: As you re-enter the water, ensure your arms are no wider than shoulder-width apart to reduce drag.
• Practice: The butterfly stroke demands practice. Focus on coordination, timing, and strength.

2. Freestyle (Front Crawl)

This is a versatile and widely used swimming stroke, freestyle offers a moderate calorie burn (around 300 calories per 30 minutes).

It engages the core, shoulders, and legs, promoting overall fitness and muscle toning. The adaptability of this technique allows you to adjust the intensity by varying speed and effort.

3. Breaststroke

Known for its characteristic frog-like leg kick, breaststroke burns slightly fewer calories than freestyle (around 250 per 30 minutes).

It primarily works your chest, triceps, and legs, with moderate core engagement. While gentler on the joints, its slower pace might translate to a slightly lower calorie expenditure.

4. Backstroke

This one is often recommended for beginners because of its ease of breathing and spinal alignment. It burns around 240 calories in 30 minutes.

Swimming backstroke tones your back, shoulders, and core, offering flexibility benefits.

While it is really not the most intense, staying consistent can still contribute a lot to your weight loss goals.

Beyond strokes: Optimizing your swim

Remember, the “best” approach lies in adopting a holistic weight-loss strategy. To help with this, try the following things:

Focus on consistency

Regular swimming, regardless of your stroke of choice, is more effective than periodic high-intensity workouts. Aim for at least 30 minutes, 3–5 times a week. Swimming three times a week results can be great!

Variation

Embrace variation as much as possible. Trying different swimming strokes helps keep your workouts engaging and target different muscle groups. This prevents plateaus and adds overall fitness benefits.

You can lose weight every day because if a certain muscle group hits the plateau with one swim style, you can still work it out using another stroke.

HIIT enhances calorie-burning

Interval training is great for your heart and calorie burning. Therefore, mix periods of high-intensity effort with recovery periods to boost calorie burn and cardiovascular health.

Build your proper swimming form

You must always keep good form, so practice until you get it right. Improper swimming technique can lower efficiency and increase the risk of sustaining injury to the most engaged muscles. 

If you don’t know how to go about maintaining proper form, seek guidance from a certified swimming instructor to refine your strokes.

A healthy diet improves calorie-burning

Take a healthy diet to boost your weight loss because exercise will not fix the weight you have gained if you continue eating junk and nutrient-poor food. 

Eat nutrient-rich food before swimming to give you the energy to swim longer and harder.

Check out these articles too:

Best swim stroke to tone abs

Best swimming stroke for lower back pain

Best swimming stroke for a shoulder injury

Final thoughts

The idea of adopting the best swimming stroke to burn belly fat is very good. However, do not be fixated on the “best” stroke alone, because it is not enough. Prioritize consistency, variation, proper form, and a healthy diet.

As you progress, your fitness level and preferences will guide you towards strokes that feel most enjoyable and effective.

Even as you swim to lose weight, have fun in the water. Enjoy all the diverse benefits that swimming offers, and enjoy the journey that will make you a healthier you!