I started to learn to swim back in March. Since then, I can do the basics such as the front crawl and back stroke. My problem is that I don't feel comfortable in water that I can't stand up and actually touth the bottom of the pool. That restricts me to staying in water that's 5 1/2 feet or less. I use to be afraid to backstroke in 3 feet of water and I got myself out of that once I learned to stand myself up while in the water. I have not made any progress since. I won't even allow myself to learn to tread water because I am afraid to even get in deeper water even though the ropes and the wall is there for me. I don't know what to expect. Does anyone have any suggestions for me? What happens if I try to get myself to a stand up position in deeper water? Will I start to go down? My goal is to be able to get into 12 feet of water and be comfortable, and then I want to start swimming in the ocean. But, I don't know what's holding me back. I know it can be done because Masters can do anything in the water. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Parents
Former Member
a couple of years ago, I was hanging out in the deep end of our pool (a beautiful 12 feet deep) waiting for the deep water aerobics class to start, when I noticed a guard/swimming instructor talking to a woman who was clinging to the side of the pool (they were also in the 12 foot water). The reason I noticed them was because the instructor was pointing me out to the woman. I allowed myself to drift a little bit closer so I could hear what was being said. What the instructor was asking the woman to notice about me was the fact that I was RELAXED, not paddling, not treding water, etc. and I was floating in an upright standing position. What I was actually doing was allowing the movement of the water in the pool and the natural bouyance of my body to move my legs and arms. When my arms floated up I moved them back to my sides, when my legs floated out of verticle I moved them back to verticle IN SLOW MOTION. I was also making SLIGHT sculling motions (figure 8's) with my hands. You might want to try this in water that is slightly (an inch or two) over your head so you can get the feel for it.
a couple of years ago, I was hanging out in the deep end of our pool (a beautiful 12 feet deep) waiting for the deep water aerobics class to start, when I noticed a guard/swimming instructor talking to a woman who was clinging to the side of the pool (they were also in the 12 foot water). The reason I noticed them was because the instructor was pointing me out to the woman. I allowed myself to drift a little bit closer so I could hear what was being said. What the instructor was asking the woman to notice about me was the fact that I was RELAXED, not paddling, not treding water, etc. and I was floating in an upright standing position. What I was actually doing was allowing the movement of the water in the pool and the natural bouyance of my body to move my legs and arms. When my arms floated up I moved them back to my sides, when my legs floated out of verticle I moved them back to verticle IN SLOW MOTION. I was also making SLIGHT sculling motions (figure 8's) with my hands. You might want to try this in water that is slightly (an inch or two) over your head so you can get the feel for it.
