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The butterfly stroke has three major parts, the pull, the push, and the recovery. These can also be further subdivided. From the
initial position, the arm movement starts very similarly to the breast stroke. At the beginning the hands sink a little bit down with
the palms facing outwards and slightly down at shoulder width, then the hands move out. This is called catching the water. The
pull movement follows a semicircle with the elbow higher than the hand and the hand pointing towards the body center and
downward. Then you push down into the water. The push pushes the palm backward through the water underneath the body at
the beginning and at the side of the body. The recovery swings the arms sideways across the water surface to the front, with the
elbows slightly higher than the hands and shoulders. The arms have to be swung forward fast in order to bring them to the front
over the water. The arms enter the water with the thumbs first at shoulder width. The leg movement is similar to the leg
movement in freestyle except the legs move together. The shoulders are brought above the surface by a strong up and medium
down kick, and back below the surface by a strong down and medium up kick. The feet are pressed together to avoid loss of
water-pressure so you go faster. The feet are naturally pointing downwards. There is only a short window for breathing in the
butterfly. If this window is missed, swimming becomes very difficult. The breathing usually takes place when arms are just about
to come out of the water or as they start to come out.