For a while there I thought...
... that I was crushing it regarding my butterfly stroke. Several years spent doing parts of the stroke and drilling those parts ad nauseam have moved me a bit further along the continuum from struggling and drowning to swimming butterfly. 2 days ago, I was finishing a swimming workout with dolphin kick drills, one armed fly, and some full stroke 25s. On the last 25 just before getting out of the pool, I resolved to swim full stroke butterfly. Shortly after starting the first full stroke I got that feeling that I could really apply the power at about where my hands had reached my gut and put the pedal to the metal, even though my hands didn't really feel much resistance from the water. One of the coaches that also teaches saw me and complimented me--it completely went to my head. I got out of the pool ,showered and went home. It was a feeling. I don't have pictures to prove anything. The feeling is good enough for me.