Not all instructors in swimming have the same opinion about the importance of the leg kick in the crawl stroke. Some believe that the leg kick is very important for propulsive power; others think that it is only needed for stabilization of the body. Furthermore, opinions vary about the number of leg kicks required per arm stroke. This problem has been the subject of many investigations in which a variety of methods have been used. Counsilman (1968) used a towing apparatus to measure the actual influence of the leg kick. Swimmers performed the leg kick while being towed through the water at various speeds. Thus the forward push or the braking effect could be measured. The results showed that in general the leg kick supports the forward push at speeds of less than 1.5 m per sec. At speeds above 1.5 m per sec the leg kick did not increase the towing speed, but on the contrary produced a retarding effect. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the relative effectiveness of the leg kick and arm stroke on the speed of crawl stroke swimmers.
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