Hi all.
I am new to the boards and indeed new to swimming. I hope you don't mind me asking probably silly questions but I am very keen to get better.
I have only ever been able to swim Freestyle with my head above the water. I have recently been trying to keep my head down and to breath to the side but more often than not I end up swallowing loads of water. Is there a way that I can bring my head out of the pool to breath without doing this?
I have watched others in the pool who seem to take their head back and above their shoulder to breath. Others slow down on that stroke to enable them time to breath.
Any tips I can try?
Thanks a lot.
Former Member
I went to the pool this afternoon and my sister siad I 'looked wrong' whatever that means. She was 30 feet above me looking down so I guess she could see me properly. I am not sure what wrong means though. I will try what you have said.
Thanks
As long as the back of your throat is higher than the water level, you can breathe with half of your mouth submerged! Think about keeping your forehead down (at the water line), and try breathing from your armpit.
There are also drills where you kick on your side. Maybe you could experiment on finding the best head position to breathe, while doing these drills.
Ask if there is anyone at your pool that teaches swim lessons. This is a great way to learn a lot and get some real help instead of just hearing that you are "swimming wrong." Also, make sure that you are not holding your breath and/or exhaling too fast. This will tire your lungs. When you take a breath, just breathe in enough to get you to the next time you breathe. Too many people try to fill their lungs with oxygen when they breathe. Swimmers don't breathe very deeply. I have my swim lessons try this drill to help with breathing. I ask them to take a breath like they would if they were swimming and push of the wall exhaling and kicking (no arms). If they travel more than 10 yards, they are trying to inhale too much. I then have them try it again, taking a much smaller breath. You only have about 2-3 seconds between breaths, if you have 7 sec. worth of air, you are going to have trouble exhaling fast enough and when you exhale fast, it tires you out.
Good luck. Get some lessons.
