Top tips for choosing swim schools near me

Learning to swim is a skill that should not be rushed as developing a strong swimming technique requires patience, practise and dedication; forming a skill that could one day save your life.

How long does it take to learn to swim?

This question is asked frequently by our customers but its very much an open ended question. It is almost impossible to put a time frame on a process that is so different for each individual, with everyone learning to swim at a different pace and so many variables to consider. As an example, perception, some people consider swimming to be learning the basics of front crawl kick, to others picture the full front crawl stroke with rhythmic bilateral breathing. Due to this it is always best to discuss your goals with your teacher on your first lesson in order to truly get the most out of your swimming sessions.

Those who have been introduced to swimming from an early age often find the process easier as their water confidence comes naturally to them, similarly to if they were learning to walk. Water confidence allows the individual to become comfortable in the water, meaning that they are free from the anxieties that cause their muscles to tense up, allowing the body to move freely and float up with the waters buoyancy.

In order to get the most our of your lessons, work on your water confidence.

Take steps to build the fundamentals of water confidence by starting off slow and creating a FUN and safe environment. Feeling safe in your surroundings is the first step to building confidence, creating the foundations for each of your swimming strokes

Children

If you have a particularly nervous child then you could begin working on the fundamentals at bath time – spending time with your child and allowing them to learn to enjoy being in the water, gently splashing hands on the surface of the water and showering water over the back of the head. As their confidence grows they could practise placing their chin on the surface of the water, then blowing bubbles, before feeling confident enough to place their face flat in the water and blow bubbles, this allows them to associate having their face in the water with breath control which builds the foundations of each stroke.

If possible, getting into swimming sessions from an early age is a great way to get started.

Adults

For adults it can be more of a challenge to build water confidence as there may be some underlying reason for their late introduction to swimming, whether its from a traumatic experience or just not having the opportunity to learn. To break though any looming anxiety its best to begin slowly, much like you would when first introducing children to the water. Taking your time to familiarise yourself with your surroundings and practise calmly putting your face into the water, working on blowing bubbles to develop the foundations of the breathing technique. You can then work on gradually allowing your body to float in the water before combining your body floating with your breathing to work on a relaxed streamlined body positioning.

Its very important that if you are an adult that suffers from hydrophobia that you seek help from a qualified swimming instructor to allow you the best opportunity to work through your fears in a controlled environment.

With a great selection of blogs and YouTube videos to chose from, you can find advice for learning to swim at any age or stage in the Simply Swim Learning To Swim Blog selection.