Swimming is a great sport that can be enjoyed by people of all ages, fitness levels and backgrounds. If you are lucky enough to learn to swim at an early age, you will be even better off. By learning when you are a small child, you are able to conquer fears much easier than as an adult, and sometimes, you won’t even develop the fears at all. Depending on at what age you learn, and what your ultimate goal is in the world of swimming, your training will be very different. Swim teachers and coaches are tasked with finding the best way to relate to their students and developing a teaching style that fits each students needs and learning styles.
There are many opportunities now for small children to learn to swim. Classes are offered at community pools, health clubs and even some schools. You also have the option of teaching your own children if you yourself are a strong swimmer. Swim lessons have come a long way from the “sink or swim” theory of years past. Teachers are now realizing that that approach may make things worse not better by instilling an innate fear of water in the young child. There are all sorts of apparatus’s such as arms floats and inner tubes for children to become accustomed to the water. We can now take more of a training wheel approach to swim lessons, allowing them to get comfortable and learn in a safe environment.
If you are learning to swim as an adult or older child and will be competing in competitions, your training will look a bit different. On top of learning the basic moves, your coach will need to work with you in order to develop stronger muscles. Depending on what type of strokes you will do, they may focus entirely on your upper body muscles or may lend some of the focus to your lower body and leg muscles. You will be doing repetitive laps to build up endurance and may be practicing each stroke for around 20 minutes to build your strength. Some coaches even place items in the water that you must swim under in order to practice diving into the pool.
Whatever you choose to do with your swimming knowledge, being in the water is an experience like no other. It is a wonderful way to stay in shape, stay healthy and have a ton of fun while you are at it.
Sydney Garrison is an avid cyclist and sports enthusiast. She is also a partner in an online bike rack store.
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