3. Swimming For Beginners

By Ms Jollybean

- fun activity

- leisure hobby

- improves our cardiovascular health

- reducing stress and anxiety

- improve our flexibility

- can be a social activity

- getting accustomed to floating

- kicking and arm strokes

- practice “bobbing”

- use a kickboard for support

- backstroke or front crawl

- avoid any accidental drownings

- avoid swimming outdoors during storms

- an idiom


Introducing swimming.

What are the benefits of swimming?

Swimming techniques for beginners.

The dos and don’ts for swimming.

Add an idiom or proverb.


     Swimming is a fun activity, one can swim for one's health, for competitions, do it as a leisure hobby, or make it into a gathering between family and friends. Swimming is not just a fun activity, it is also quite healthy. Swimming provides a full-body workout that improves our cardiovascular health, builds muscle strength, and increases flexibility with low impact on joints. The buoyancy of water supports our body, thus making it a great option for those with joint pain, arthritis, or those recovering from injuries. It also offers significant mental health benefits, such as reducing stress and anxiety. 


     When we swim our bodies engage most of our major muscle groups, providing a comprehensive workout for our arms, legs, core, and back. Swimming also strengthens one's heart and lungs, improves endurance, and can help lower blood pressure and the risk of heart disease and stroke. The resistance of water builds muscle strength and tones muscles, while the range of motion requires us to improve our flexibility. For those looking to lose weight, swimming burns calories and can be an effective way to lose or maintain weight. While swimming is not a weight-bearing exercise, it can still help improve our bone density. On the other hand, swimming can help with one's mental health too. As a stress reliever the rhythmic and meditative nature of swimming, along with the release of endorphins, helps relieve anxiety. Swimming can boost our mood and is associated with a reduction in symptoms connected to depression. It can be a social activity, providing opportunities to meet and build connections. Swimming consistently following a schedule can help regulate the body's internal clock, leading to a more restful sleep and with a restful sleep one can decrease the risks of diabetes.


     For beginners, focus on building comfort in the water by getting accustomed to floating, breathing control, and basic movements like kicking and arm strokes. Beginners should start in the shallow end where you can touch the bottom. Practice “bobbing” which involves holding the wall, putting your face in the water while exhaling, and then standing back up. Blow bubbles with your mouth and nose to get used to exhaling underwater and control your breath. Practice floating on your back and stomach by keeping your hips up and body streamlined. Now start with simple strokes like the freestyle or backstroke and use a kickboard for support, kick from your hips with pointed toes and relaxed ankles. Pull with your arms repeatedly, by extending them straight out and pulling them back to your sides, like in the backstroke or front crawl. Practice breathing out while your face is in the water and lifting your head to breathe in quickly. 


     Now comes the do's and don'ts of swimming. Gradual practice for 20-30 minutes with breaks, 1-2 times a week in the beginning. Start with short swimming intervals and longer rest periods, gradually increase your swim time and decrease your rest time the more experience you have. For example, swim for 30 seconds and rest for 30 seconds on your first try, then go for a longer period after every try. Always swim in a depth where you can stand up to avoid any accidental drownings. If you are new to swimming or feeling anxious, don't feel the need to rush yourself. Take your time to get comfortable with each step, a comfortable start would make progressing on easier. Avoid swimming outdoors during storms as the water’s current will be unstable and storms with lightning might cause it to strike you. 


     Some wise words for every beginner: don't be afraid to get your feet wet, both figuratively and literally. Trying new things is hard, but the “what ifs” for not even trying will always linger in our minds. Swimming may seem intimidating for some beginners, but it's always better to try and understand our preferences and dislikes rather than not knowing at all. And remember to have fun while learning as stated in the very beginning, swimming is a fun activity!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

4. Steps To Make Chicken Sandwiches

By Ms Jollybean
- shredded chicken sandwiches - ingredients - mayonnaise - rosemary and thyme - salt and pepper  - barbecue sauce - preheating the oven - setting them aside - caramelizing - saucepan - keep on stirring languidly - deboned - prepare a drink - enjoy the meal How will your chicken sandwich be made? The potion sizes? List down all your ingredients. Step by step, how to make the sandwiches. Add an additional drink or snack.      What defines a sandwich is really complicated these days, as I've seen many wild creations from social media that are quite wild and had them being called sandwiches when they look nothing like a sandwich. There are many types of sandwiches all around the world, one can make either a panini, hamburger, banh mi, falafel, steamed bun and so on. With all of the mentioned sandwiches and more, and not to mention the many different fillings in them, that means there are plenty of different ways to make them. However, I will only be making simple sandwic...
Read more

2. A Picnic At The Beach (future tense)

By Ms Jollybean
- morning - beach umbrella - sunscreen - swim - beach ball - build sandcastles - listen to great tunes - make food - sunset view - clean up - sleep like a log Where? With who? When? What, how & why would it occur?      Both my family and the neighbour's children are planning for a picnic at the beach next Saturday. We will all get ready early in the morning and gather in front of our neighbour's house by my dad's car. Our neighbour's parents will come out to say their farewells to their children before we head out. We will all head out to our destination at around 8:30 in the morning. We will then take a detour to our favourite nasi lemak stall for a quick breakfast.       After breakfast, we will continue with our trip. To ensure that there are no unnecessary delays, we will also be listening in on the weather and traffic reports from the radio. Once we reach the beach, my dad will then carry the heavier equipment to our spot and the rest of us ca...
Read more

5. An Intro To Tomatoes

By Ms Jollybean
 - variety of colours and sizes - associate - savory dishes - originated - cultivated - consumed - ideal for snacking - patience - sprouts - micro-environment - seedlings - sunlight - fertilizer - idioms and expressions What is a tomato? The taste, the types, the sizes, the colours? How are they prepared before consuming? Step by step, how to plant them. Add an idiom or proverb.       Tomatoes, the mildly sweet and sour, juicy berries that come in a variety of colours and sizes that we all know. Most would associate it as a vegetable as it is low in fructose and commonly used in cooking savory dishes; however, botanically, it is actually a fruit because it develops from the flower of a plant and contains seeds.       Tomatoes originated in the Andes region of South America and were cultivated in Mexico by the ancient Aztecs and Mayans. The first cultivated tomato was likely small and yellow. The Spanish brought tomatoes back to Europe in the ...
Read more