Understanding Your Body Type, How To Tread Water and Much More – A Simple Overview from Your local Swim School in El Dorado Hills and Roseville

The ability to keep your body at the surface of the water is dependent on many factors. For some of us, floating and bobbing at the shimmering surface comes effortlessly, and we can rest, take in the scenery around us, and simply relax as we bob along. For others, staying afloat takes a significant effort and constant concentration.

Body Type Plays a Huge Role

While body type plays a role, staying afloat is possible for most swimmers once they have learned the appropriate skills. Most importantly, all children and adults need to be able to remain calm when in the water and move to the safety of a pool edge or lake dock with ease. However, body type does impact the ease with which anyone can float.

For example, those with muscular builds and lean body fat tend to sink quickly when motionless, while those with a higher concentration of body fat float effortlessly. Your lungs also play a role in floating; consider your lungs as your internal floatation devices and that when full of air, they will aid in floating.

To get started with Wallen Swim School in El Dorado Hills, feel free to sign up for a class at any time!

Safety First

At Steve Wallen Swim School, our focus is on water safety. We will teach you and your children how to return to safety following a sudden submersion into a body of water. This skill is also taught so that following a swim of any distance, a swimmer can, again, make their way to a point of safety and rest. Safety and rest typically mean a place where you can catch your breath, support your body, and exit the water. Following an unexpected water entry, such as a fall or a boat capsizing, it is critical that you and your children can stay calm and move to safety.

However, it’s important to remember that while the skill of static floating is a great one to learn and has many benefits, the inability to remain motionless and float is not a barrier to swimming. Many fantastic, competitive, and highly competent swimmers cannot float well.

Our excellent instructors will facilitate your child’s exploration of the water, which allows them to safely discover how their own body behaves when in the water, both at the surface and when they submerge. This lets them learn how buoyant they are and what they need to do to stay afloat.

All Steve Wallen Swim School students are taught with expertise and patience to submerge, glide, float, kick, and move their arms. First, because our focus is on the safe enjoyment of the water, we teach our swimmers how to roll over from back to front and front to back and find their own buoyancy. Next, children are taught how to kick their legs effectively, control their breathing, and make their way to a point of safety. Allowing your child to explore their buoyancy and how they move in the water under our team’s close supervision and expertise is the most effective path to water safety!

Treading Water

You may be familiar with the term ‘treading water.’ This advanced skill can be introduced after your child performs the above motions with competency and ease. Treading water allows for the body to be in a vertical position, with everything but the head submerged. While treading water, a swimmer can see all around them, breathe with ease, and consider any potential hazards such as moving boats and changing weather.

Treading water is a crucial skill when engaging in water sports such as water polo and synchronized swimming. The ability to tread water also allows your child to observe their instructor as they move on to more advanced swimming techniques. Moving from a swim stroke into treading water is a great way to adjust goggles, catch your breath, and get back in your lane. When learning complex strokes such as breaststroke and butterfly, losing the pattern and rhythm can be frustrating; taking a break to tread water for a few moments will allow you to pause and regain your stroke technique.

Takeaway

Finally, like all other swimming skills, treading water is a fun confidence booster! When learning to swim with the experts at Steve Wallen Swim School, your child will be taught everything they need to know about staying safe in the water when ready to learn, with excitement and experience!