Breaststroke is widely considered the trickiest stroke for young swimmers to learn, and the kick is usually where things fall apart. Unlike freestyle or backstroke, the frog kick demands a very specific sequence of movements that feels unnatural at first: bend, turn, push, squeeze, glide. Miss any one of those steps and the kick stops working.
The good news is that most kids make the same handful of mistakes, and every one has a clear fix. Whether you’re a swim coach, a parent watching from the bleachers, or a beginner swimmer trying to sort out what’s going wrong, this guide walks through the seven most common breaststroke kick errors, including the scissor kick that trips up even kids who’ve fixed everything else, plus the drills, cues, dryland practice, and knee-safety tips that actually correct them.
Quick Answer
The most common breaststroke kick mistakes kids make are: sneaking in freestyle-style ankle flicks between kicks, not bending the knees enough, keeping toes pointed straight back instead of turning them out, skipping the glide, spreading the knees too wide, pulling the knees to the chest instead of drawing the heels to the hips, and kicking with one foot turned out while the other stays in (the scissor kick). Each mistake responds to a specific drill and verbal cue, no special equipment required, and most kids notice improvement within a few focused practice sessions.
Mistake 1 — Flutter Kicks Sneaking In
Kids who already swim freestyle often let little ankle flicks creep in between each breaststroke kick. It looks like a ghost freestyle flutter and it kills rhythm while adding drag. The fix is rhythmic counting: have your child say out loud “Kick… two… three… glide” so they consciously pause between kicks. A fun drill is the Noodle Glide Game: the child holds a pool noodle under their arms, does one kick, then glides to a cone or toy. One powerful kick should carry them far; if it doesn’t, they’ll feel it immediately. Note for anyone swimming competitively: a flutter or dolphin kick blended into breaststroke isn’t just a technique flaw, it can draw a disqualification for an illegal kick, so this fix matters for meet swimmers too.
Mistake 2 — Straight-Leg Kicking
When kids swing rigid legs backward without bending at the knee, there’s no “snap” in the kick and almost no propulsion. This usually means the child is skipping knee flexion during the recovery and lifting the whole leg from the hip instead, so the leg swings back straight rather than whipping through a bent-knee motion. Teach the sequence explicitly: “Bend, turn, kick, squeeze.” At the wall drill called Frog Feet, the child holds the gutter, brings heels toward their seat, turns feet outward so toes point away from each other, then pushes water backward. Do it slowly on land first. Another useful drill: Pencil-Frog-Pencil, where the swimmer alternates between a tight streamline and the bent frog position so they feel the contrast.
Mistake 3 — Toes Pointed Straight Back
If feet stay in a pointed position like a fin rather than flexing and turning outward, the swimmer is pushing with the top of their foot instead of the inside of their shins and soles. Coaching cue: “Duck feet” or “heels together, toes apart.” Deck Clamshells work well here: sit on the pool edge with feet dangling, and practice turning just the feet out into a V shape without moving the knees. The Sock Trick (doing the motion on a smooth floor in socks) helps kids feel exactly when their toes are pointing the wrong direction.
Mistake 4 — Rushing and Skipping the Glide
Young swimmers often kick rapidly with no pause, burning energy and creating constant drag. Breaststroke efficiency lives in the kick-squeeze-glide sequence; without the glide, there is no recovery and no speed. Cue: “Kick, freeze, glide” and “go long like a pencil.” One-Kick Rockets are great for this: push off the wall, do one single kick, then hold a streamline glide while counting to three. If the child cheats and kicks again early, they restart from the wall. The Coach’s Whistle drill works the same muscle: kick on the whistle blow, glide until the next one.
Mistake 5 — Knees Spreading Too Wide
When knees splay out beyond hip width, the propulsive surface (the inside of the shin and foot) faces sideways instead of backward. There’s also a real injury risk here: an overly wide breaststroke kick is a known contributor to the medial knee soreness coaches call “breaststroker’s knee” (more on preventing that below). The SLOB drill (Streamline On Back) is a coach favorite: lie face-up in streamline, do the kick, and watch your knees; if they break the water surface, they’re too wide. Cue the swimmer to keep a “small window” between their knees, not a “big door.”
Mistake 6 — Pulling Knees to the Chest
During the recovery phase, many kids drag their knees up underneath their torso instead of drawing their heels back toward their hips. This creates a large drag pocket under the body and slows them down significantly. The fix is to keep the thighs nearly still and let the lower leg do the work. Vertical kicking in deep water while holding the wall is excellent for isolating this: the child can feel whether their knees are swinging forward or their heels are bending back.
Mistake 7 — Scissor Kick (One Foot Turned Out, One Foot In)
This one shows up in kids who’ve already fixed the other six errors: instead of turning both feet out symmetrically, one foot turns out while the other stays turned in or trails straight, so the kick looks lopsided, sometimes called a “screw kick.” It usually comes from uneven hip rotation rather than a foot problem, which is why foot cues alone don’t fix it. Go back to basics on dry land first: sit on the edge of a chair or the pool deck and practice the bend-turn-kick motion slowly, watching both feet in a mirror or on video to confirm they mirror each other. Then move to Back Kick (breaststroke kick on the back, arms at sides), where uneven hip drive is easy to see and feel, before returning to kicking on the front. In competitive swimming, a scissor kick is treated as an illegal, non-simultaneous kick and is one of the most common reasons breaststroke swimmers get disqualified, so straightening it out matters even for kids who aren’t racing yet.
Whip Kick vs. Frog Kick: Which Should Kids Learn First?
Coaches sometimes describe two versions of this kick: the wide, symmetrical “frog kick” most recreational swimmers learn first, and the narrower, faster “whip kick” used by competitive swimmers, where the knees stay closer together and the power comes from a quick snap of the lower leg rather than a wide sweep. For beginners, the frog kick is almost always the right starting point because it’s easier to see and feel, and it builds the same bend-turn-kick-glide sequence kids will need later. Most programs don’t push kids toward the tighter whip kick until they’re swimming breaststroke consistently and starting to race. Trying to teach the whip kick too early usually just recreates the knee-width and timing problems described above.
Breaststroker’s Knee: Why a Wide Kick Hurts (and How to Prevent It)
The breaststroke kick puts real torque on the knee’s medial ligaments every time the lower leg whips inward, which is why coaches and doctors both use the term “breaststroker’s knee” for the resulting soreness on the inside of the joint. Kids are more prone to it when their hips don’t rotate well internally, which forces the knee to absorb work the hip should be doing, so a too-wide kick (Mistake 5) isn’t just slower, it’s a real injury risk over a season of practice. Prevention comes down to technique plus mobility: keep the “small window” knee width described above, build hip flexibility with gentle frog-stretch holds on land, and ease off breaststroke-kick volume for a few days if a child reports inside-knee soreness rather than pushing through it.
How Long It Takes Kids to Fix a Breaststroke Kick
Most coaches treat breaststroke as the hardest stroke to teach precisely because the kick asks for hip and ankle flexibility that doesn’t come naturally to every child. Some kids pick up the frog kick in a single lesson, while others need weeks of slow, dryland bend-turn-kick repetition before it clicks in the water. Programs that introduce breaststroke to young kids typically wait until a child already swims freestyle and backstroke comfortably, since the multi-step sequencing of the kick is easier to learn once basic water comfort isn’t also a variable. Patience matters here: rushing a child into full-speed breaststroke before the kick pattern is grooved tends to lock in the exact mistakes covered above, and those habits are harder to unlearn later than they were to prevent early.
Dryland Practice Kids Can Do at Home
Because the breaststroke kick is really a sequencing problem rather than a strength problem, a lot of correction can happen out of the water. Sit on the edge of a bed, chair, or pool deck and walk through bend-turn-kick-squeeze slowly enough to check foot position at each step; a phone video played back in slow motion shows a child exactly where the sequence breaks down. Lying face-down on a carpeted floor and practicing the same motion helps kids feel hip rotation without worrying about buoyancy. A few minutes of this a couple of times a week, paired with the in-pool drills above, is usually enough to turn a mistake into a habit that’s actually correct.
breaststroke kick mistakes kids FAQs
What age should kids start learning the breaststroke kick?
Most swim programs give kids basic exposure to breaststroke around ages 4 to 6, but a reliable kick usually doesn’t develop until a child can already swim freestyle and backstroke comfortably, often closer to ages 6 to 9. Readiness matters more than age: a child needs enough hip and ankle flexibility, plus the patience to follow a multi-step motion.
Why is breaststroke considered the hardest stroke for kids to learn?
Freestyle and backstroke rely on a repetitive, symmetrical motion, but breaststroke’s kick requires a precise sequence, bend, turn, push, glide, using hip and ankle flexibility that doesn’t come naturally to every child. Miss one part of the sequence and the kick loses most of its power, which is why it takes more patience and more targeted drills than the other strokes.
What’s the difference between a whip kick and a frog kick?
They’re two versions of the same breaststroke kick. The frog kick is wider and more symmetrical, and it’s what most beginners learn first because it’s easier to see and feel. The whip kick is a tighter, faster version competitive swimmers grow into, where the knees stay closer together and the power comes from a quick snap of the lower leg.
How do you fix a scissor kick in breaststroke?
Because a scissor kick usually comes from uneven hip rotation rather than a foot problem, foot cues alone rarely fix it. Go back to slow, dryland bend-turn-kick practice in front of a mirror or on video to confirm both legs mirror each other, then use a back-kick drill (breaststroke kick while floating on the back), where uneven hip drive is easy to feel, before returning to kicking on the front.
What is breaststroker’s knee, and how can kids avoid it?
Breaststroker’s knee is soreness on the inside of the knee caused by the torque of the kick’s inward whip, and it’s more common in kids whose hips don’t rotate well internally or whose kick is too wide. Keeping knee width narrow (the “small window” cue), building hip flexibility with land stretches, and easing off kick volume when a child reports inside-knee soreness all help prevent it.
Can an incorrect breaststroke kick get a swimmer disqualified?
Yes. Blending in a flutter or extra dolphin kick, or kicking with one foot turned out while the other stays in, are both treated as illegal, non-simultaneous movements and are common reasons breaststroke swimmers get disqualified, so the fixes in this guide matter for meet swimmers, not just technique.
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