Physical Exercise Swimming Help

[Lord Snot]

Swimming is the only exercise I enjoy and therefore the only exercise I can sustain for long periods.

The problem is I only had basic lessons, about 15 years ago, and I never learned how to swim with my head underwater. The idea panics me, I just don't know how to breathe! I tried it today and ended up with a lungful of chlorine - I felt really panicked and claustrophobic. Can someone give me a step by step guide of how to do it? I know it sounds stupid, but if I can go through the steps in my head I think I will get less panicky. I want all the minor details like exactly when you take a breath, which position your head should be in, at which part of the stroke you breathe etc.

I don't mind butterfly or front crawl, if I can learn how to do one underwater I'm sure I can do the other.

I am a really slow swimmer and I think a lot of it is due to my posture, with the head up you are so much less streamlined. I also don't want to strain by neck by holding it up for so long.

Hoping someone can help me

 

[AeryFairy]

For front crawl, I turn my head to the right and take a breath as bring the right arm over for the stroke. I find that when the arm is bent back at the elbow it's easier to angle the head so you don't get a lungful of water. I take a breath about once every four strokes, but this can be done once every two if you can't stand it for four. You can also do it on the left if that's more comfortable, but I find it way easier to turn my head right. When my head is underwater, I keep it faced straight down and count the strokes as I release the breath. It looks like this:

For butterfly, there's a natural breathing point - as you pull your arms down to form the stroke, your body is pushed up. Push hard enough and your body will come out of the water, allowing you to take a big breath and duck back down again.

I love swimming underwater, makes me feel like a mermaid

 

[Lord Snot]

Thanks Aery

I need to buy some goggles. I bought a swimming cap and apparently I have a big head, it didn't quite cover my hair and when I took it off my hair was wet anyway

 

[SummerRain]

Heya,

The standard way with front crawl is every three strokes so that you alternate sides, and you turn your head to one side and breathe in with your mouth while your arm is in the air (like the picture above!), and then you can let the breath go when your head is the the water.

Maybe you are trying to breathe in and out all when your head is above the water? I think you wouldn't have enough time for that.

Also I think wearing googles will help, because if you're shutting your eyes/getting water in your eyes too it's bound to make the experience less pleasant.

You're definitely right about streamlining your body. When you see from under water peoples bodies when their heads are out of the water swimming, they're much much more diagonal (sometimes almost upright) compared to people with their head in the water who are pretty much horizontal, which is going to slow you done quite a bit.

I don't think swimming hats are meant to keep your hair dry... maybe I'm wrong but I thought it was just to streamline your head and keep your hair out of your face, whenever I wore them my hair was always damp, maybe not soggy but certainly wet afterwards. Maybe that was just me wearing them wrong though?

Goodluck I hope this helped a little, if no maybe you could have a look on youtube? I don't know but I bet they have videos. They have vidoes for everything, I just looked and found quite a few you might want to check out: http://www.youtube.com/results?sear...42.2026.12j8j1.21.0...0.0...1ac.1.D3CbospgY5o

 

[Lord Snot]

Thanks SummerRain

I can't learn by watching, or else I would just watch people at the pool (their heads are under, they can't get creeped out ) and copy. I need to have it in words so I can think it through in my head when I do it.

You might be right about the caps, but what do professional swimmers do about their hair? The chlorine is devastating for hair, I really want a way of keeping it out of the pool water.

 

[SummerRain]

No idea... maybe I'm wrong this was when I was a kid so perhaps I was doing it wrong.

Fair enough that makes sense I guess if I was to explain it step by step it would be:

- swim with your head facing down towards the bottom of the pool, or down but slightly forward so you are looking down but ahead. Then every third stroke:
- when you're lifting your arm, rotate your head to that side, and your body will follow a little too naturally
- as your arm moves over in a normal way, take a deep breathe in through your mouth
- as your arm goes back into the water, simultaneously close your mouth and turn your head back facing downwards towards the bottom of the pool (or looking slightly forward into the water)
- breathe out as you find comfortable, you can do it all straight away but I tend to let it go slowly over the next couple of strokes as I find it more comfortable
- on the next third stroke, your other arm will be moving, repeat the process on this side.

 

[Lord Snot]

Thanks that is really helpful! I think I am going to struggle with this, my instinct for all this years has been to hold my breath underwater.

 

[ledboots]

For the hair, the best thing to do is wet it thoroughly in regular, non pool water before swimming. Then the hair has already soaked up the good water, and the chlorine water doesn't dry it out. Some people put and leave conditioner on after wetting it to really keep out the pool water. (I used to be on a swim team.)

 

[CrazyCatLady]

I know you specifically didn't mention breast stroke but I found this the easiest to learn under water.
If you can do breast stroke, first just practice timing your breathing with your head out of the water. As you push your arms out in front of you and round is when you want to be breathing OUT, a long-ish blow out (the whole length of time it take for your arms to complete the circuit. By the time your hands are back round in front of your chest, take a quick big breath in. And continue. You could even practice this now.
Then start nodding your head with it. Forwards when blowing out, then up when you're breathing in. As you feel more confidant you can move your head closer to the water surface on the blow out. Eventually you will be able to put your face in to blow out. And finally you will realise its more comfortable to actually tip your head in and submerge it for this part of the stroke.
Good luck. Let us know how you get on wont you xxx