tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post4998090327219693725..comments2024-02-26T16:08:21.030+11:00Comments on Swimming Teaching: Floating In Swimming - Recovering From That FloatRichardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comBlogger63125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-27204984619087814872019-07-23T15:49:16.520+10:002019-07-23T15:49:16.520+10:00Reissued: from April 13, 2011 at 7:44 PM
let us k...Reissued: from April 13, 2011 at 7:44 PM <br />let us know how your goRichardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-52617831282081801462019-07-23T15:48:21.323+10:002019-07-23T15:48:21.323+10:00Unknown May 23, 2019 at 4:27 AM Reissued
I was hav...Unknown May 23, 2019 at 4:27 AM Reissued<br />I was having literally the same problem till today. The trick is getting comfortable with water and doing the motion shown here as quick as possible. Hoping to learn upside float tomorrowRichardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-60715099829890441782019-07-23T15:45:25.184+10:002019-07-23T15:45:25.184+10:00Morgan Nugent June 27, 2018 at 2:40 PM Reissued
Hi...Morgan Nugent June 27, 2018 at 2:40 PM Reissued<br />Hi Richard. I have finally managed to stand from a front float position, Its not text book but I can do it. I have found that putting one foot flat down first is the key for me. I am now backfloating with no problem but I'm now having to learn to stand from that, I know what to do, i really think its all a confidence head thing. Going to keep perservering though. My girlfriends liking not having her body covered in bruises from where i used to grab onto her. I really think I'm going to get there, Don't think ill ever be a great swimmer but hopefully good enough to enjoy the water<br />TerriRichardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-874327347145292022019-07-23T15:11:26.654+10:002019-07-23T15:11:26.654+10:00October 11, 2014 at 10:15 AM Reissued
G'day Ex...October 11, 2014 at 10:15 AM Reissued<br />G'day Expat,<br />I'm sorry your confused. I think you are asking me how to get into a front float in chest deep water (i.e Horizontal position). If that is what you are asking and if as you say you can do it in shallow water then it is almost the the same for chest deep water. The only difference is you don't crouch down, you just push off the bottom with your feet.<br />If your problem is that you are afraid to do that in chest deep water then you need to get 2 things:<br />1) You need a friend who will stand with you when you try. You should always have friend with you when you are in the water anyways. For safety sake. Your friend does not have to know how to swim. They just need to be someone you can trust to help you stand up if you reach out to them. Get them to stand in front of you in the water so you can grab them if you need to. Then just lean forward and push towards your friend as you enter the water, by giving a little push with your feet and toes just before they leave the bottom of the pool. You can do this without a friend by pushing towards the edge of the pool and grabbing that, but a friend is better and safer.<br />2) You need to do a calming exercise before you start. A couple of long, slow deep breaths, in through you nose and out through your mouth as slow as you can.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-80648619050571630532019-07-23T15:10:18.914+10:002019-07-23T15:10:18.914+10:00From EXPAT_DIARIES October 11, 2014 at 1:43 AM Rei...From EXPAT_DIARIES October 11, 2014 at 1:43 AM Reissued<br />how to get into the horizontal position while in chest deep water of the pool? for shallow part i crouch and then bend forward but how for deeper part of the pool?confused...Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-49924969106851466022019-07-22T17:24:18.129+10:002019-07-22T17:24:18.129+10:00re issued from February 28, 2012 at 4:07 PM
Exciti...re issued from February 28, 2012 at 4:07 PM<br />Exciting isn't it! let me know how you go with the back float recovery.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-53979693645606897222019-06-25T16:37:12.360+10:002019-06-25T16:37:12.360+10:00June 13, 2017 at 5:39 PM reply reissued to Dsharma...June 13, 2017 at 5:39 PM reply reissued to Dsharma <br />June 13, 2017 at 4:08 PM<br />What if I change the wording from "press down on the water with your hands" to <br />"Try pushing your hands towards your legs"<br />Does that Help?Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-64741569225735586822019-06-25T16:33:27.300+10:002019-06-25T16:33:27.300+10:00October 21, 2016 at 10:45 AM Reissued
G'day An...October 21, 2016 at 10:45 AM Reissued<br />G'day Anonymous,<br />What you are experiencing is very common for many adults new to swimming. <br />The problem is that, possibly even without realizing it, you are trying to raise your feet by tilting your head back in the water. You have to resist doing this. <br />Although it may feel quite unnatural, you have to tilt your head forward to raise your feet. Like in the picture above. <br />I know that it seems wrong but there are many things that are the reverse of what we think they should be when we are in the water. <br />If you look at the pictures on the blog post above you will see that just before you can stand up you have to tilt your head forward onto your chest. This also has the effect of raising your feet toward the surface of the water, before it starts to lower you in the water.<br />So what you have to do to fix your head going back into the water is tilt you head forward like you are trying to put your chin onto your chest. <br />Don't put you chin all the way on your chest, just lift it enough so that you can feel your feet start to rise to the surface of the water. Stop lifting your head the moment you toes get close to the surface of the water. <br />Your feet do not have to reach the surface, they just need to get close enough so that you start to float.<br />This may take quite a few tries, so you may want to get someone to help you by standing in the water with you and holding you up until you learn to tilt your chin to your chest instead of tilting it back into the water.<br />Once you get used to tilting your head forward all you have to do to stand up, is follow the directions on the above post.<br />I hope this helps. Let me know if I can help further.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-87436593072267018952019-06-25T15:43:43.839+10:002019-06-25T15:43:43.839+10:00Reply from April 30, 2013 at 11:03 AM Reissued
Whe...Reply from April 30, 2013 at 11:03 AM Reissued<br />Whenever you try something new you should always go with a friend. It helps remove the possibility of panic making the technique useless. <br /><br />By this I mean that when we panic we forget everything. If you have a friend stand by, that prospect is eliminated and you will be able to give the technique a proper trial. <br /><br />RichardRichardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-17586351497446425692018-08-15T17:13:17.608+10:002018-08-15T17:13:17.608+10:00G'day Terri,
I'm glad you can now stand.
...G'day Terri,<br />I'm glad you can now stand. <br />Yes your confidence will improve. But be patient with yourself. As an adult you have a lot of years of learning to fear the water and it takes time to overcome that.<br />There is no shame in waiting to have a friend be there with you. Consider this if you have learned to conquer your fear of your face going under water, you don't have to fear the possibility of going under the water when you float. The only thing left then is feeling confident that you can get up without help. Once you have mastered that, you will gradually feel the confidence grow in you.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-49726070902720274452018-07-24T16:46:31.267+10:002018-07-24T16:46:31.267+10:00Hi Richard
Still trying to swim. I can now stand ...Hi Richard<br /> Still trying to swim. I can now stand from a front float, Its not textbook but it gets me up. I managed to back float quite easily and now have to try and master standing from a back float. The thing is, this week i went to the pool on my own as my friend had other obligations. I was too scared to do anything without her there, Will i ever get over this fear, I didnt attempt any floating because i was frightened i would fall, Will any of this ever come naturally?<br />terrinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-9346242393567757472018-03-17T22:23:33.194+11:002018-03-17T22:23:33.194+11:00G’day Terri,
I’m so glad you made the decisions y...G’day Terri, <br />I’m so glad you made the decisions you did. It sounds like the right one. May I recommend that, if you haven’t already, you and your friend read up on my other post on this subject. Go to this blog post using a tablet, laptop or desktop computer you use the right side label listings to find more posts on floating ("Float"), "Fear of the water" and "Getting your head under water". Read up on those and let me know if it helps. You can also do a word search in the blog search bar that may help.<br />Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-70689671046206884262018-03-16T08:22:07.524+11:002018-03-16T08:22:07.524+11:00Thank you Richard. I ended up finishing up my less...Thank you Richard. I ended up finishing up my lessons with instructor, I had something like 4o lessons and they all in a pool that was shoulder level,I felt i was going backwards and still quite scared. Ive come to the conclusion that instructors where i live really have no experience when it comes to teacher adults. I now have myself a very good friend who comes with me 3 times a week to the local pool where i am in 1.1 metres of water,I have days where i can stand and then others when i cant, i think it is all a head thing.I guess its just a confidence thing but will keep tryingTerrinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-27147346988694291162018-03-12T09:42:57.915+11:002018-03-12T09:42:57.915+11:00G'day again Dsharma,
I am sorry I did not see ...G'day again Dsharma,<br />I am sorry I did not see your reply from so long ago. I hope that you have had success in overcoming you difficulties you mentioned above. If not may I recommend you go to this blog post using a tablet, laptop or desktop computer you use the right side label listings to find more posts on floating ("Float"), "Fear of the water" and "Getting your head under water". Read up on those and let me know if it helps. You can also do a word search in the blog search bar that may help. Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-22038377980052424332018-03-12T09:33:23.819+11:002018-03-12T09:33:23.819+11:00G'day Phi,
Sorry for the delay.
I get a lot of...G'day Phi,<br />Sorry for the delay.<br />I get a lot of comments but unfortunately most are spam and it sometimes takes me a while to get through them all to get to the good ones like your.<br />Don't give up! <br />I will admit the 2.5 months is a long time to be doing lessons and not getting the results you want and it may be time to consider a new teacher but everyone can learn to swim.<br />You haven't given me a lot of information to work with but one thing is clear and that is your fear of the water. So I am glad that you have decided to try it with a buddy. <br />I wonder also if you are still working through your fear of getting you head under water. This is something that must be dealt with before you can float successfully.<br />If you go to this blog post using a tablet, laptop or desktop computer you use the right side label listings to find more posts on floating ("Float"), "Fear of the water" and "Getting your head under water". Read up on those and let me know if it helps. You can also do a word search in the blog search bar that may help.<br />Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-43872771881381523582018-03-12T08:59:01.952+11:002018-03-12T08:59:01.952+11:00G'day Terri,
Sorry for the delay. Same reason ...G'day Terri,<br />Sorry for the delay. Same reason as above unfortunately. <br />I am glad you are having a go at swimming. By your description, it sounds like you are not using your stomach muscles to bend in half as you bend you knees. Your hand motion is important but the recovery action is more than just the hands pulling you through the water. Your whole body is involved in the action. <br />Try this: Practice pulling your knees up as close to your chest as you can, before you pull with your hands through the water. Once your knees are in position then pull with your hands to line your feet up with the bottom of the pool and then stand up.<br />Your teacher should be in the water with you supporting you as you do this. maybe even holding your hands as you lift you knees. If they are not willing to that get a friend to help you. <br />Let me know how you go.<br />Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-30350748254298098832018-02-07T10:43:05.436+11:002018-02-07T10:43:05.436+11:00Hi Richard
I decided i wanted to learn to swim at...Hi Richard<br /> I decided i wanted to learn to swim at 56.I also am having no success at recovering from front float, 22 lessons and still cant do it, Im limited into what pools and teachers i can access as i live in a country town, i know what to do as far as standing up, just cant put it all together, Its hard to explain but i feel like i cant get any leverage to pull my hands back.<br />Terri<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-10908786482480077902018-02-01T03:56:21.771+11:002018-02-01T03:56:21.771+11:00Bless you. I had such a horrible day at swimming t...Bless you. I had such a horrible day at swimming today. I'm a 35 year old adult learning to swim. I have been going for lessons for almost 2,5 months. I still can't recover from floating on either back or front. Today my instructor insisted I try to swim without an aid. I tried to psych myself up, and attempted it but the moment I needed to come up I couldn't, my body tensed and I cramped from my toes to my calves. I felt so demotivated and was actually thinking of quitting. Thanks for these great tips, I'm going to try them with a buddy before my next lesson. phihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00675010045111394552noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-63721546857307001792017-07-03T13:17:05.096+10:002017-07-03T13:17:05.096+10:00G'day Bhamah,
Sorry for the delay, I get a lot...G'day Bhamah,<br />Sorry for the delay, I get a lot of questions and sometimes I miss some, as I did in your case. I hope you are advancing better by now. <br />In the description you gave me above, if I understand you correctly, then your back pain is almost certainly being caused by the noodles. This is not a technique I use when teaching. Noodles tend to put your back out of alignment with the rest of your body; hence the pain and don't allow you to strengthen your torso nor move your arms and legs correctly. Use the links list under heading "Pages", on upper right hand side of this page. You should find lots of information there that will help you with your stroke. More importantly however, you need to learn to stand from a float properly before you move on to actual swimming; even if it's a partial float. Knowing how to stand will help reduce your fear.<br />As to your request for a step x step learn to swim program, I am working on such a thing at the moment but it is taking a lot of time because communication something in text format is not as easy as being there. But keep an eye out it should not be too far away now.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-18984822756526785022017-06-16T12:52:56.585+10:002017-06-16T12:52:56.585+10:00Oh by the way, I have modified the post a little a...Oh by the way, I have modified the post a little after you feed back. Thanks for you help.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-38698575140026339502017-06-16T12:51:25.574+10:002017-06-16T12:51:25.574+10:00I am glade you are starting to have success. Don&#...I am glade you are starting to have success. Don't give up and you will be able to do it.<br /><br />I highly recommend a qualified instructor. However, to be honest, you don't need a qualified instructor to master this skill. You just need a someone who you can trust, is strong enough to lift you and and able to stand up safely in the water themselves. Have this person stand in the water with you so you feel safe.<br /><br />They have to stand behind you. In front of you or beside you is not safe. You can see how your helper has to stand from this post: http://www.swimteaching.com/2008/11/swimming-lesson-ideas-teaching-back.html (copy and past the link into your browser).<br /><br />As a Lifeguard myself I am trained not to get into the water unless I absolutely have to. And when I first started swim teaching we were taught to teach as much as we can out of the water. But that was a long time ago (Over 30 years ago), and we now know that the best way to teach a new swimmer is to be in the water with them. Standing up (recovering) from a float is very difficult to teach from out of the water. I admire you for doing as well as you have. Keep it up.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-1805962570602477402017-06-15T19:57:26.087+10:002017-06-15T19:57:26.087+10:00Hello Richard,
Thank you once again for a quick r...Hello Richard,<br /><br />Thank you once again for a quick response. As I mentioned in my previous response I have several weaknesses the most important being fear of deep water. When I find other people picking up things quickly it feels a bit awkward. In any case, I have come half way through in about a month and am determined to crack it in steps. I think the approach of breaking complex problem into multiple sub problems work. Specifically, i find the following weaknesses in me.<br /><br />* I am unable to raise my head up while floating. Due to this I have to hold my breath while performing strikes and get exhausted,<br /><br />* If in a deep water above shoulder level, I have no confidence I will be able to balance myself or get up and touch the ground. Due to this the moment I start kicking and am floating horizontal, i feel I might lose control midway or may not be able to get back to vertical position so I give up.<br /><br />* Even if I am in a floatation device such as a ring, I feel I might lose control of it as I move to the deep side. My instructor pulls the ring and asks me to just hold it but still I am scared.<br /><br />Overall do you feel mastering swimming in shallow water would make it possible to swim in deep side?Dsharmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05094822931938664201noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-58287985850196085042017-06-15T19:44:43.343+10:002017-06-15T19:44:43.343+10:00Hello Richard,
Thank you so much for the quick re...Hello Richard,<br /><br />Thank you so much for the quick response. I carefully read you mention lift your head and bend knees towards your chest. I think that is the trick to rotate the body along with some hand movement. Unfortunately, my instructor is actually a lifeguard in our pool but not a qualified instructor. He was just asking me to push my arms back and the body will rise up quickly but it didn't work. I think the approach you mention works equally well to get quickly to vertical position, only thing is the trust in self that needs to be build.<br /><br />I think I need a qualified instructor who has experience teaching people who are very scared.Dsharmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05094822931938664201noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-52530119030928090852017-06-13T17:32:55.875+10:002017-06-13T17:32:55.875+10:00G'day Dsharma,
Get Your instructor to read the...G'day Dsharma,<br />Get Your instructor to read the blog post and then have him stand beside you as you practice it. That will give you the confidence to try the technique. <br /><br />Your fear is the only thing that will stop you from doing this recovery. So you need to have a way to overcome that fear. With your instructor beside you, you need have no fear.<br /><br />Take some soothing breaths before you try it. Have you instructor standing by. Think Safe thoughts. Trust your instructor.Follow the steps and you will succeed. <br /><br />In the unlikely event that your instructor needs more advice on your particular difficulty, contact me again. <br /><br />I will need to know precisely where you are having problems.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529982489044576584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2799176631061623144.post-37591103311007627212017-06-13T16:11:29.882+10:002017-06-13T16:11:29.882+10:00I am learning swimming for little more than a mont...I am learning swimming for little more than a month and in general am scared of water. I can float on my front, glide, kick. I can also float on my back but am unable to get up without support. I need to call my instructor to lift me up. I am not sure how I can break down the process of getting up from back float position.Dsharmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05094822931938664201noreply@blogger.com