Combat sidestroke

The Combat Swimmer Stroke was developed for the United States Navy Seals by Former Navy SEAL Stew Smith (CSCS)[clarification needed] and Terry Laughlin of Total Immersion Swimming.

This stroke is one of the strokes that can be used for prospective SEAL candidates in the SEAL physical screening test (PST), which includes a 500-yard swim in 12 minutes 30 seconds to determine if the candidate is suitable to go to the Basic Underwater Demolitions/SEAL school.

The swimmer starts with the body flat and arms in a fully extended position in the water, facing downward, legs flutter kicking.

The hands move forward fully extended in front of the head while simultaneously performing a scissor-kicking motion cork-screwing the body back to being flat in the water.

The only difference between the full side stroke and sprinter side stroke is instead of bringing the second lead arm fully down to the side of the body the arm will only half stroke; the arm moves halfway towards the body and is then brought back to the fully extended position.