BASICS OF SWIMMING A Skill for Life: Learning to swim is a life skill that can come in very useful throughout one s life. Swimming is not only a great way to keep fit, it is also a requirement for various professions (i.e. the emergency services). Along with being a life saving skill swimming can make a whole range of water sports accessible, such as surfing, kayaking or water polo. Learning to swim is also an important preventative measure towards accidental drowning. Drowning is one of the highest causes of accidental death in children worldwide. If children are taught the skills that will ensure their safety in and around the water, we can greatly reduce the likelihood of these accidents. Getting Started: The 3 most popular swimming strokes are Front Crawl, Breast Stroke and Back Stroke. When learning to swim it is important to practice as often as possible. This will build up your confidence in the water. Learning to swim can become fun by participating in swimming lessons, it is also much easier to learn with the aid of a qualified instructor. Swimming lessons are available in most communities through private gymnasiums and programs such as the American Red Cross, Swim America, public schools, YMCAs, and sports clubs. When starting out, most instructors provide floatation equipment, this is a good idea as you will be able to focus on your stroke technique without worrying about staying afloat. Choose floatation equipment that does not restrict your arm and leg movements and do not rely upon the equipment to keep you afloat in deep water, it is only to be used as a swimming aid. If you start using inflatable flotation equipment, try deflating the device bit by bit as your skills improve. Soon you will find you don't need the equipment any more. Learn to Swim - The Breaststroke Breaststroke is the slowest swimming stroke but it can be swum powerfully and at speed. It is popular with people who like to swim for fitness as the breathing is much easier than with the front crawl. The initial position of breaststroke is to keep your body level with the surface of the water. Your shoulders need to be in line and your hips must be flat in the water. Breaststroke Steps / Technique: Step 1 - Leg Movement: From the initial position move your feet and legs together, like a frog would. Simply bend your knees and lift your feet up as far as your posterior. Turn your feet out in preparation for pushing back with the bottom of your foot. Move your feet out and in again to meet each other, and straighten your legs with your knees touching. It is a good idea to practice this movement at the side of the pool, by holding onto a support rail with your legs stretched out behind you. Step 2 - Arm Movement: Start out by placing your arms out in front just under the surface of the water. With your palms facing outwards push both hands out and around as if drawing a full circle. Your hands finish by stretching forwards again. Your arms and legs should stay in the water all of the time and you shouldn't splash when doing the stroke correctly. Step 3 - Breathing: The reason breaststroke is so popular among recreational swimmers is that breathing is achieved easily. When you have mastered the leg and arm movements you will notice that your head starts to lift naturally at the end of the cycle. When this occurs simply lift your face out of the water and take a breath in through your mouth. Put your face back into the water breathing out through your nose and mouth, as you stretch your arms forward to begin the circle again. Step 4 - The last step is to put the stroke together, so pull your arms and breathe in while pushing your legs back and stretching out with your body level in the water. Learn to Swim - Freestyle The freestyle is a swimming style commonly referred to as the front crawl or sidestroke. It is regularly used in competitions, but there are no real regulations on how it has to be swum. Most swimmers chose to swim front crawl during freestyle competitions as it is the fastest technique. For individual freestyle competitions, a swimmer can use
any stroke they want. During medley competitions, a swimmer cannot use the breaststroke, butterfly stroke or backstroke. Freestyle Technique Swimming Tips: 1. Leg Kick: The leg kick will control the body position in the water, while the arm cycle will move the body forwards. Establishing the correct timing between your legs and arms is vital to perfecting the stroke. The legs kick in a flutter style ideally 6 times per cycle. During freestyle try to remain horizontal in the water, a strong kick will keep your legs from sinking behind you. You should only make a small splash with your legs, only slightly breaking the surface of the water. 2. Arm Cycle: The arm cycle consists of Pulling, Pushing and the Recovery. Pulling is the semicircle movement your arms make from the water level to the chest. The arm is kept straight and the hand points towards the body center and downward. As you pull your hands through the water, keep them cupped firmly, but not rigidly. Fingers should be held just slightly apart. Pushing is the completion of the pull, the swimmers arm is pulled back up to the waters level. The palm is moved backward through the water underneath the body at the beginning and at the side of the body at the end of the push. The recovery moves the elbow in a semicircle in the swimming direction. The lower arm and the hand are completely relaxed and hang down from the elbow. The recovering hand moves forward, just above the surface of the water. During the recovery the shoulder is moved into the air by twisting the torso. It is important to relax the arm during the recovery. To practice the elbow movement try skimming the water with your fingertips, you should also try stretching each stroke out as much as possible without ever stopping the motion. 3. Breathing: The swimmers face is kept down in the water during freestyle. Breathing is done through the mouth by turning the head to the side of a recovering arm at the beginning of the recovery. The head is rotated back at the end of the recovery and points down in the water again. The swimmer breathes out through mouth and nose until the next breath. Try to take a breath every 3rd arm recovery so you will be able to breath from either side. Learn to Swim - The Front Crawl (Freestyle) The Front crawl is commonly regarded as the fastest swimming style (also known as Freestyle). Most professional swimmers use this stroke in freestyle competitions. The initial position for the front crawl is on the breast, with both arms stretched out in front and both legs extended to the back. Then while one arm is pulling/pushing, the other arm is recovering. The arm strokes provide most of the forward movement, while the leg kicking in a flutter movement only provides some. Front Crawl Steps / Technique: Step 1 Initial Position: From the initial position, the hand is held flat and the palm is turned away from the swimmer. The hand is then lowered into the water thumb first, this is called catching the water. Step 2 Pulling: The pull is a semicircle movement from the water level to the chest. The arm is kept straight and the hand points towards the body center and downward. Step 3 Pushing: The push is the completion of the pull, the swimmers arm is pulled back up to the waters level. The palm is moved backward through the water underneath the body at the beginning and at the side of the body at the end of the push. Step 4 Recovery: The recovery moves the elbow in a semicircle in the swimming direction. The lower arm and the hand are completely relaxed and hang down from the elbow. The recovering hand moves forward, just above the surface of the water. During the recovery the shoulder is moved into the air by twisting the torso. It is important to relax the arm during the recovery as having your hand higher than your elbow will result in drag and loss of balance. Step 5 Kicking: The legs move alternately, with one leg kicking downward while the other leg moves upward. Ideally, there are 6 kicks per cycle. The leg movement is important for stabilizing the body position. The leg in the initial position bends slightly at the knees, and then kicks the lower leg and foot downwards. After the kick the straight leg moves back up. Try not to kick too much out of the water. Step 6 Breathing: The face is kept down in the water during front crawl. Breathing is done through the mouth by turning the head to the side of a recovering arm at the beginning of the recovery. The head is rotated back at the end of the recovery and points down in the water again. The swimmer breathes out through mouth and nose until the next breath. Most swimmers take one breath every third arm recovery, alternating the sides for breathing. Other swimmers instead take a breath every cycle so they can always breathe from the same side.
Step 6 Turn and Finish: A tumble turn can be used to reverse directions in minimal time. The swimmer swims close to the wall as quickly as possible. In the swimming position with one arm forward and one arm to the back, the swimmer does not recover one arm, but rather uses the pull/push of the other arm to start the tumble. At the end of the tumble the feet are at the wall, and the swimmer is on their back with their hands over the head. The swimmer then pushes off the wall while turning sideways to lie on the breast. After a brief gliding phase, the swimmer starts with a flutter kick before surfacing, usually around 15 m from the wall. Step 7 Finish: For the finish the swimmer has to touch the wall with any body part, usually the hand. All competitive swimmers sprint to the finish, usually taking fewer breaths than normal. Learn to Swim - The Back Crawl The difficulty with the back crawl is that the swimmer cannot see where he/she is going. It is very easy to bump into other swimmers or with the end of the pool, while learning this stroke. You could start by counting how many strokes it takes you to swim a length, so you will know when you are getting close to the end of the pool. The initial position for the back crawl is lying on your back with your arms and legs stretched straight out. While swimming all of your body should stay close to the surface of the water. Back Crawl Technique Swimming Tips: Step 1 - Leg Movement: Your legs constantly kick while doing the back crawl. This allows the swimmer to travel in a straight line. You should use long fast kicks and make sure your legs are moving up and down. Your knees are kept slightly bent and underwater, and your toes should make a small splash when you kick. You can practice the leg movement by using the safety rail at the side of the pool. When you have built up enough confidence you can then let go of the rail as kicking your legs will keep you afloat. Step 2 - Arm Movement: The arms are used similar to the front crawl, but in reverse. The swimmer makes a circular motion as they move their arms in and out of the water at alternate intervals. You can start by putting one arm in the water in a straight line above your shoulder. Your palm should be facing away and once your hand is in the water it should push down and towards your feet. Keep pushing your hand towards your feet until your elbow is straight. Then lift your arm out of the water, back to its original position and repeat the motion again. The arm should be kept straight all of the time it is out of the water.