Learning to swim as an adult

In My Humble Opinion
1

In college we had to take one semester of swimming to graduate. I put it off until the last semester of my senior year. Kept hoping they would eliminate the requirement. Dang. They didn’t. So I took it and I did pass and graduate. That was in 1970.

I’m thinking now I’d like to become competent at swimming and become really comfortable in the water. I’m not embarrassed about this and I wouldn’t mind being in a group with kids. I’ve done some researching in my city and found a place that has classes for adult beginners with a maximum of seven students. The Y only teaches in the summer (but that is coming up).

I guess what I’m looking for here is a pep talk of sorts, i.e., some encouragement, some songs of praise about the fun/beauty/wonderfulness of swimming, how much you like it. How it’s especially good for us <ahem> senior citizens because of lack of stress on joints. Also, why I might not like it, the pitfalls, unreasonable expectations, etc. I color my hair. Will chlorine be a problem? In college we had to wear caps but they never kept your hair completely dry.

(It’s funny, but in that college swimming class, you only saw your classmates in their bathing suits with their hair covered, and minus identifying features like glasses…so when you saw them on campus fully clothed, etc., nine times out of ten we didn’t recognize each other. But I digress…)

Any helpful tips, advice, welcome. Thx.

2

Swimming is my workout of choice! (disclaimer: I took lessons as a kid and spent about 13 summers at a pool, so I am no stranger to it. I am just gonna tell you all my tips.)

I swim 3x a week for 30 mins at a time. I do several different strokes as laps.

As for hair, I get highlights - which means bleach - in my hair and do not have a problem with chlorine. I usually rinse off in the shower before a swim, which is supposed to be good for keeping the pool clean but also for your hair and suit (saturate them with clean water to keep out chlorinated water). I do not have long hair but I wear a lycra swim cap to keep it all up and out of the way. And from getting pulled by my goggles.

I can’t swim without my MP3 player. I’ve been using different forms of underwater music for the past 10-or-so years. My current fave is a waterproof iPod Shuffle with waterproof headphones. It’s the easiest underwater music contraption I’ve used yet. I have no idea how people can spend a half hour or more swimming without music. I would drown myself.

Get yourself a one-piece high-necked swimsuit. Two pieces can feel like they are being pulled off and low (ie normal) cut bustlines feel like you might pop out. If you have a long torso, look for a long torso suit. I am a very large woman with a long torso and I buy all my suits from SwimSuitsForAll.com. “All” actually means “plus sized” so if you’re under size 8, you won’t find what you’re looking for there. Speedo suits are good for sport swimming, of course. Another tip: Unless you buy more expensive chlorine-resistant suits, have 2 or 3 suits and rotate through them. They will last longer.

You will probably want to change in the locker room. I use a keyed lock for my locker (I would forget a combination!) and put the key around my neck while I swim.

You probably also want shower shoes to walk around in because locker room floors are disgusting plus ten. I got these and really like them because they are not porous and do not hold water. I leave them in my bag between swims and they don’t stay wet.

I rinse my MP3 player, goggles and cap in the sink or shower after every swim, to keep them from chlorine rot. I toss them in my mesh swim bag and they dry out by themselves. I take out dry my suit and towel in my shower. I used a regular backpack forever but I am so happy I switched to the mesh bag. Everything dries nicely! I also have room in there for full shampoo and conditioner bottles, face wipes and bar soap.

I have 4 large white beach towels and 6 swimsuits. I use the beach towels twice before I wash them.

I see a lot of people show up with their own kickboard, some with flippers, even one guy with a snorkel. I personally like to use Aquafit glovesto add resistance to my arm strokes. Seems like women who don’t want to get their hair wet like the paddle boards.

I tend to spend a lot of money on my gear because it keeps me motivated to swim. I never have to search for a dry towel or a dry suit, or go bored without music, and I like my bag and other stuff (I use goggles too but I can’t recommend any).

I am not too old but I am super heavy and have zero foot, knee or hip problems. Any time I take time off swimming my back hurts when I wake up in the morning - swimming fixes it right up. I love being in my own little swimming world - I can’t see w/o my glasses and can’t hear with my headphones in - and never have any issues with other people at the pool.

Even if you can’t do any good swim strokes yet you can benefit from just being in the pool and walking, or even paddling around. Sometimes I get to the pool and all the lanes are taken and I go over to the deep end and tread water for a half hour - just to move around!

I can’t think of why anyone would not like swimming but clearly I am addicted to it. I guess getting your hair fucked up all the time is not fun but if you did any exercise that made you sweaty you’d have to wash your hair all the time anyway. I do pay a little extra attention to my hair and skin products these days, to make sure I am staying clean and moisturized.

I hope for you that if you invest time and money in to lessons that you will find a new exercise that you love and is helpful for you! Viva la aqua!

3

A million thank yous for that excellent post with links! I will study it carefully. Just the sort of informative pep talk I was hoping for. :slight_smile:

Underwater music-- who’d a thunk it?

4

I’m a long-time swimmer, and (years ago) used to teach swim lessons to adults for the Y. The adult classes were separate, so it wasn’t a mix of children and adults. Helpful, in that kids are usually not very attentive, and adults are. However, quite a few of the adults had real fear issues to overcome, so be understanding if that takes a lot of class time.

I’d recommend the swim cap, and go look for UltraSwim shampoo and conditioner. It should be stocked near the specialty shampoos. Use both after swimming to keep the chlorine buildup down.

Also, you’ll want to put something in your ears after swimming to dry them out, lest you get swimmer’s ear. It’s easy enough to mix up some isopropyl alcohol + vinegar for that; you can google up some recipes if needed.

I’m currently using the FINIS Neptune mp3 player, which I’ve found to be quite robust. It’s a little annoying with the clunky control clipped onto your goggle strap, though. I prefer FINIS’ bone-conduction sound tech over earbuds for underwater, though.

5

Lighray, I’m not afraid of the water, just not comfortable. I can float on my back, but when I can’t feel the bottom of the pool with my foot, my body panics reflexively and I start to sink. Were you able to turn any adult newbies into good, confident swimmers?

My bold.

I love the sound of the phrase “goggle strap.” That’s either going to be my next screen name or the name of my next kitten.

*“Here, Goggle Strap! Here, kitty-kitty!” * Yeah. :slight_smile:

6

I’m a guy, so obviously weight distribution is different, but I often like to use a pool buoy (NOT a pool boy :slight_smile: ) when I swim. Keeps your legs afloat, but it does hamper the kicking process.

7

I only taught adult lessons for one summer, and while we had a few repeat students, most of them only did one class. So not really enough time to improve from “raw beginner” to “confident lap swimmer.”

The terrified students, I could usually get comfortable enough by the end of the class that they’d be okay splashing around for recreation, if unlikely to want to do laps or tread water or whatever.

The more confident beginners would usually progress enough that they’d admit they could see the appeal of swimming laps for occasional exercise, or even just kickboard laps. At that point, it just takes practice time, so I don’t know if anyone followed up.

My problem as an instructor was that the terror-filled students sucked up all my attention, so I fear the better beginners got shortchanged in some classes. The same held true for kids classes, of course, but because there were so many more kids signed up for swim lessons, we were better able to segregate them by skill level.

edit: John Mace, pool buoys are intended to let you work on your arm strokes without kicking; they’re sort of the inverse of a kickboard. Pool boys between your legs also hamper the kicking process, but that’s probably a different thread.

8

I’ve known people who kick with a pull buoy, it looks really strange but they do it anyway.

You could try looking in to a US Masters swim club near you. The coaches are able to teach adults and they might know the best way to teach. I wouldn’t worry one bit about going to a club as everyone is there to swim. I’ve seen all sorts come through my team and I think everyone has gotten something out of it.

9

Well, yeah, that’s what I said- it hampers the kicking process. But the OP said she panics when she sinks. One way to work yourself up is to use some floatation (i.e., pool buoy) and build up your upper body strength so that you’re swimming fast enough so you’re not sinking anymore.

10

Anyone know anything about Total Immersion instruction? One of the places in town that offers adult lessons has a guy who uses this method.

11

The hardest part will be learning to coordinate stroke, kick, and breathing to the point where it is automatic. Nothing but practice works.

After mastering this, it’s mermaid city all the way!

12

Apparently, that’s what Total Immersion is all about. This page explains it very well.

13

Don’t swim too much any more, but swimming can play havoc with shoulder joints, mine, anyway, so if you have any problems there, be careful. I have read, maybe on the SD, that the “chlorine smell” is actually the result of the chlorine reaction with the sweat and urine in the water and means there is too little, not too much, chlorine in the pool. And the foam in the whirlpool is Preparation H. Okay, that one is not true.

Despite all that, come on in…the water’s fine and fun!

14

:dubious:

15

Zipper JJ had some really great advice and I’d go with all of that. Ditto on getting a good suit that comes up high enough in the front. When I stared swimming again, I had a “bathing suit” and the first time around, my boobs nearly floated out of the top. So, yeah, get the girls in their place and keep 'em there.

After experiencing some horrible knee pain, I took up swimming just so I could move. I already knew how to swim, but due to knee pain and an old shoulder injury, I was very limited as to what strokes I could do. But, I got into the water and started moving from one end of the pool to the other. That was about 8 months ago and I’ve built up strength, balance, and flexibility. No shoulder pain, and my knee pain is bearable (and usually goes away after I swim) and I can now do all the strokes I couldn’t 8 months ago.

Don’t worry so much about getting the strokes “right”. Many moons ago, I was actually on a swim team, so while I technically know the proper stroke technique for many styles, I never liked the whole face-in-the-water-turn-and-breath thing, so I never swim that way. Matter of fact, I have several odd styles I do now that work different muscles and I really like, so ha. I’m sure I look completely weird, but I don’t care. I’m there for me.

I also got a pair of fins which I LOVE. There’s nothing like cutting through the water life a freaking mermaid. When I swim without fins, I’m doing about 5-7 laps. With fins, I’m up to about 20 laps on average. So, for me, it was worth the $25 or so for fins because it keeps me active in the water longer.

BTW, I also color my hair (red) and haven’t had any problems with the chlorine messing up the color. I use my regular shampoo and conditioner immediate after I get out (I shower at the gym) and so far, so good. Red is weird anyway and prone to fading, but there isn’t the need to color it more frequently since I started swimming. I have noticed that my fingernails are a bit more thin though, but not sure if that’s because of the chlorine or not.

16

Oooo, I color mine red, too. It’s the fastest-to-fade of all colors. (But I don’t care!) Do you wear any kind of cap?

17

If you live in the Dallas area, I can recommend Aqua-Fit of Plano. It is a heated (water is at 88 degrees), indoor (open all year), salt water (not as harsh on skin or hair or swimsuits) pool. They have group and private lessons for adults. They also have kickboards, hand bouys, webbed gloves to use. They have water exercise classes of varying intensities and even water yoga. And lane ropes to put up for lap swimming.

18

I learned to swim in my 30s, after being terrified of water all my life until then. I still had the occasional anxiety attack when I was in 10+ feet of water ten years later and could swim a mile non-stop. Somewhere in the last few years I haven’t been experiencing that, because when swimming with my kid, I forgot to worry about myself.

So from a psychological perspective, if I could do it, anyone can. The first 20 or so lessons were just torture. First going into three feet of water. Then several lessons of the instructor just trying to get me to put my head into the water for a couple of seconds. Many months before I would venture past the 5 foot mark.

19

I agree with this, too. I actually do 4 laps with just my arms in a breaststroke type motion (I never actually learned that in swimming lessons as a kid). Then I do 3 laps of a crawl with arms and legs. Then I do 4 laps with just my legs on my back. Then 3 more crawls.

As long as you are moving the entire time you are in there, it really really doesn’t matter how you are actually getting around. The main thing you are going to learn in swimming lessons is how to be relaxed enough to move swiftly and confidently through the water.

20

Yeah, that’s from the chlorine. My fingernails used to flake off in sheets. Go out and get some Biotin - should be in among the vitamins and supplements. Taking that regularly fixed my nails toute de suite. And made my hair look better, too (until it started thinning and receeding from age).

I’ve had other swimmers tell me that they take “the same stuff they use for horses’ hooves and manes”, which is available at supplement stores although I don’t know what it’s called. I always see them wet in the pool, though, so I can’t say how glossy it makes their mane. Their hooves do look fine.