Hey, hey, hey!
To those who have been following along through this series, hello again; and those who may be just joining, welcome! We're continuing on with our introductory freestyle series. After streamlining and kicking our way into our early steps, we now look to focus on what can keep us going longer: breathing. It's easy enough to push off and start kicking in our freestyle, but without solid breathing technique and a consistent breathing pattern, we might find some difficulty. Let's take a deep breath and jump right in!
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The first three (four including the upcoming post!) posts have been focused on the trunk of the body. Your head/body position was stressed in the streamline post and becomes ever more important when the head has motion of its own, now. When implementing the breath, it's imperative you continue to consider its position with respect to the rest of the body. As mentioned in the video, where the head goes, the body will follow! Start slowly with simple breathing techniques as shown in the video, and just understand that it may be somewhat challenging at first. Head rested on shoulder; rotation around the long axis; one goggle in the water; and go!
Fact of the week: Even for the most seasoned swimmers, finding a consistent breathing pattern can be a challenge. There are differences in cadence and speed that have to be accounted for to ensure that we're not only getting a full breath, but also not having the accompanying gulp of water in the process. Like the previous post on kicking, it is important to let breathing occur as a process of your freestyle, and not force the body to turn and wrench in uncomfortable desperation. Relax, focus on the technique queues, and work your breath seamlessly into your stroke and it'll proceed to feel much less like a chore! Follow us on YouTube for more!
How does my child move up? Come to every swim class, bring your progress report, earn those stickers, and ask your child's instructor or location's deck manager if you have questions.
How do I move up? Attend as many of your classes as possible, communicate with your instructor on your struggles, goals, and where you're at in our curriculum. We also have many adults who purchase a gym membership to 24 Hour Fitness or LA Fitness while they are taking lessons so they can practice 2-3 times between classes.
Breathe comfortably knowing you're improving! Glad your swimmer is learning to swim with us!
The Sigma Team