Your last stroke should bring you about half a body length away from the pool wall. If you are more than half a body length from the wall, give an extra kick in the water to push yourself forward.
Your arms should remain about shoulder’s width apart.
Make sure to keep your hands against the wall. Do not hang onto the lip of the pool; this might cause you cling to the wall and slow you down. Keep your legs close together and begin to bend them at the knee.
The leg tuck will force your body back, so your face and torso should now be turned towards the ceiling, and your legs should be bent at the knee. Bending one arm in at the elbow will cause your body to pivot slightly right or left (depending on which arm you bend). Try to bend the arm in quickly to help your body begin turning faster. Keeping one arm bent in will help the body get ready to flip over. You can bend either the right arm or the left arm - whatever feels the most natural to you. Tuck your body as if you’re curling up into a ball. While tucking, keep your knees pointing straight up towards the ceiling. This will help keep you moving in a straight line when you push off.
Neither hand should be touching the wall now. Bend your elbow as you are slicing through the water, and bring the arm over the crown of your head. Watch your hand move over your head. Keeping it straight will help you push off straight.
Straightening your arms and legs will force you to be pushed away from the wall. Streamlining your body will help reduce water resistance while you propel yourself forward.
Try to push with a little force in order to create some forward momentum in the water. As you push, your body should naturally start to turn either right or left. This will depend on the arm you bent while tucking your legs initially.
Twist onto your stomach quickly. This should be fairly simple with the forward momentum and turning motion you achieved while pushing off from the wall.
Keep your arms straight and don’t kick or do any strokes yet. Just let yourself glide forward.
If you are doing a butterfly stroke, do about 4 dolphin kicks. If you are doing a breaststroke, start your pullout.
