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Chicken, Airplane, Soldier....?

When learning how to swim, the Breastroke kick is one of the hardest skills to master.  The kick can be taught in a variety of ways, and "Chicken-Airplane-Soldier" is one of them.  This phrase breaks the kick down into three simple steps: bring your feet under you as if you're squatting like a chicken, turn feet out wide with straight legs like an airplane, and then snap feet together with straight legs like a soldier.  Another phrase frequently used is: "In, Out, Around," which is short for: Bring your feet in, turn your feet out, and then snap your feet around.  

More simply, the kick can be described as a frog kick, because it is somewhat similar to how frogs kick in the water: 

The purpose of the Breastroke kick is to maximize the distance of the glide.  Gliding is very important to an efficient and effective Breastroke.  A forceful kick propels the swimmer forward into a glide.  Unlike the Freestyle kick, which is non-stop, the Breastroke kick stops when the swimmer snaps their feet together and glides.  The next kick starts immediately after the hands begin pulling for the next stroke.

The Breastroke kick is hard to master, but it is much like riding a bike: once learned, it is never forgotten.  Practice the kick with a kickboard and when everything "clicks" you will feel it.  It is hard to describe, but you will know once you have it right.  The most important thing to remember is to stop your feet once you snap them together and GLIDE.  Tip: count to 3 seconds before starting your next kick.  Even if you don't feel like you're moving anywhere, it is an important exercise to enforce the GLIDE.