learn how to swim

There are many reasons that adults are scared of the water. And each persons reason is completely different. Inexperienced swimmers want to gain confidence in the water without to much stress and anxiety. When people panic in the water it is very distressing for them. Each person is different and each fear is different. Here are some great tips to gain more confidence.

Remember the more you know about how your body works in the water, the more confident you become in your abilities, and lessen your actual fear of water.

1. Balance and Floatation. If you have little body fat, it is harder to stay afloat. One trick to gain balance in the water is to learn the survival backstroke. Lie flat on your back and point your toes toward the bottom of the pool. Move your legs upwards and outward, (pretend you are drawing a heart with your feet). At the same time put your arms above your head and make a huge circle with them as if you had wings. Your arms and legs must be syncronised. As your legs are coming up, your arms must move in the circle motion as well. When you bring your feet together and your hands are by your side, you will glide. Push your arms up straight past your shoulders, and your legs point the opposite direction to the water level. Then you begin the stroke again. This takes pracitce and time to master. You must keep your body straight like a rod. This balances your weight and keeps you afloat. Taking air into your lungs also helps with extra floation.

Imaginary tool: Pretend someone is pulling your belly button with a piece of string and making your torso level with the waterline.

2. Breathing underwater. lncreasing your lung capacity allows you to leave your face in the water for longer periods. Learning to hold your breath while swimming is a skill that takes time to learn properly. Start in a place place that is not threatening to you. The shower or bathtub is ideal. Aim to increase the time you hold your breath, you can start from a few seconds and maybe work you way up to your own level of comfort. Keep taking a little more air each time, but do not over inflate the lungs.

Imaginary tool: It also helps to pretend that you are on a tropical holiday floating in the crystal clear water and enjoying your self.

3. Staying on afloat while you swim. When swimming your body must always be parellel with waterline. Your body must not be bent, it must be like a rod that rotates from side to side, this helps you to to glide through the water evenly while your propel yourself with your arms and legs.

Imaginary tool: Pretent you are a torpedo and skimming the top of the water.

4. Arm movements. Your arms need to be close to the body in order for smooth movement through the water. If they are not your arms will cause drag in water. Every movement needs to be sharp and close to the body. The arms need to reach out to their full length, they must be straight as they pass down under the water. As soon as your arms reach your side the elbows are then lifted into the air, and your forearm is then straightened to meet the water again. fingers must be tight and side by side. Your hands should be slightly cupped slightly to achieve more pull in the water.. Your arms movement must be parellel with your body at all times.

Imaginary tool: Pretend that you are rotating your arm like a clock and you sides are the face of the clock. (don't forget to bend your elbow at your side)

5. Leg movement. Legs must be with the waterline. They must be relaxed by straight like rods. If they are not they will cause drag in the water, therefore slowing your movement and causing you to sink.

Imaginary tool: Pretend your legs are as stiff as rods, and they are only allowed to move slightly below the water and slightly above the water. Then perform this action at a very fast pace. This in addtions with your arm movements will propel you smoothly through the water.

6. To learn to swim properly. You can do either two things, take lessons with a qualified aquatic teacher, or teach yourself. Remember swimming is a skill and takes a lot of patience and perserverance. But you must also be aware of how you and your body reacts to the water. It is also important to understand the emotional factors as well, such as fear and anxiety. Once you have understanding of all of these things you can start to correct them so you can become a skilled swimmer.