1. Sports
Send to a Friend via Email

Help for Novice Swimmers and Beginning Swimming Workout Practices

Are you a beginner, a swimmer looking for some basic swimming ideas to help you learn to swim, or still thinking of yourself as a novice swimmer but want to learn a little more swimming technique? Some of these will get you splashing through the pool with a purpose.

Lap Swim in Crowded Swimming Pools? Circle Swim!
You want to lap swim to do your swim workout, but the swimming pool is crowded. How do you lap swim in that case? You cooperate with the other lap swimmers and circle swim. If there are more than two people in a lap swim lane, many swimmers feel the lane is full. It is not! You can add more swimmers to a lap swim lane by circle swimming.

About A Fish out of Water
Running and swimming benefit each other - and mixing the two in a race is fun!

About Fins - or you can call them flippers
Ways that working out with these foot-enlargers can make you a better swimmer.

About Shaping Up for a Triathlon Swim
A reader asks - "I have my bike and run training figured out, but can't get the swim portion locked in; do I do long swims, short sprints, focus on technique, or something else? I hear something different from everyone I ask?" My answer - the obvious cop out, all of the above!

About steps to swimming
So, you want to improve your swimming ability or swim competitively, but aren't sure about the next step - or you have taken time off and want to "get back in the swim?" How should you start, and once you do, what next? Here are a few things to keep in mind as you splash through the pool

About Swimming - something for everyone
Water sports like swimming offer opportunities for relaxation or exercise for each of us.

About Swimming in a Triathlon
The first leg of a triathlon is the wettest, even on a rainy day. But it should also be the most enjoyable and relaxed part of the race. A good swim can lead to a great race, regardless of your ability to move through the water.

About the Freestyle Kick
A reader asks "The best distance swimmers use a 6 beat kick. Should I use it, too?"

8 Weeks to Better Swimming Fitness
This 8-week swim training plan may be just what you need to be a fitter or faster swimmer.

About Your Favorite Story From the Pool Deck
First hand accounts of funny, motivating, or just entertaining stories from the world of swimming.

Are you a committed swimmer?
Swimming is a wonderful exercise for everybody. Properly done, it can be most pleasurable, allowing the physical expression of fluidity, grace, power and stamina. A Shaw Method teacher (who is trained to understand and communicate the deep enjoyment of swimming) could help you become a committed swimmer.

Build up to swimming one mile in 6 weeks of workouts
Young or old, fit or not, six weeks seems to be the most common length of time it takes to be able to swim a mile without stopping. It requires swimming three times per week and the willingness to be somewhat uncomfortable while stretching your aerobic capability. This series of swim workouts will get you swimming one mile in six weeks. (Ruth Kazez)

How to Master the Top 5 Challenges to Breathing in Freestyle Swimming
The most common question I hear in the triathlete world about the mysteries of swimming efficiently usually involves something with breathing. In freestyle, it is the first step to get your body position right. Then, for many, you throw in breathing and everything goes haywire! This has to do with lack of balance, using your head instead of your...

If You Are Afraid to Swim, Why Would You Get Into the Water?
It has always been thought that if you're uncomfortable or afraid in water, you just need to learn to swim. But if you're afraid in water, why would you get into it? Why would you want to put your face in? Why would you volunteer to take your feet off the bottom and try to swim? For over a hundred years, the common practice used for swim students who were afraid of the water was to start from the premise that if you practice something uncomfortable long enough, it will become comfortable.

Learn to Swim Without Fear
My understanding of a swimming teacher is they need to have a proficient knowledge of scientific principles, physiology and psychology; coupled with the ability to apply them to the individual is vital. Thoroughly understanding these elements allows the teacher to work within the capabilities of the non-swimmer or swimmer both physically and mentally, adapt the strokes, and achieve a comfort level within every session.

Should I Swim All of my Swimming Workouts at a Slow Pace?
I am now swimming over 1-hour at a relaxed pace. Once in a while I mix up my swimming speed in the pool for 5-10 minute increments. Is swimming at a slow pace every day effective? Once swimmers reach a general level of fitness, they must do more to increase the challenge of the swim workout. Adding more distance or duration is one way, but not...

Swimmers, Are You Out of Swimming Shape?
Swimmers, have you taken a break from swimming? Do you feel out of swim shape and feel the need to get back in the swimming pool and get that swim fitness back quickly? Here are some tips to help you get back to feeling in the swim of things.

Swimming Glossary from Ruth Kazez
A glossary of swimming terms, acronyms, definitions, and abbreviations for swimmers.

The Adult Learner - Help for Swimmers from Ruth Kazez
Tips and insights for adult swimmers from Ruth Kazez. Ruth's insights and points of view are great for self-taught swimmers, but they are equally valid for coached swimmers. This article looks at the basics of each stroke and how to get in the swim.


©2014 About.com. All rights reserved.