Swimming is a sport that consist of moving forward, using the arms and legs, over and under water. It can be done as a recreational activity or as competitive sport.
*Swimming styles*
- Crawl or Freestyle.
- Backstroke.
- Breaststroke.
- Butterfly.
In the following video, the four swimming styles mentioned above are briefly explained:
The technique of the swimming styles are improved until reaching the best technique as possible. Turns are used when swimmer reaches the wall and needs to do a change direction. They are done by doing a roll under water just before reaching the wall and pushing off with your feet.
*Swimming benefits*
Swimming is a useful and recreational activity for people, it is beneficial for health both physically and mentally, it is one of the most complete exercises to work the mind and body, so it is recommended at any age.
As a physical routine, swimming has a number of advantages for the body, among which are it: improves memory, improves respiratory capacity, helps to strengthen body tissues, improves the cardiovascular system, prevents and alleviates diseases such as asthma, relaxes the muscles, and improves the quality of life of people, since all muscle groups move in a coordinated way.
Swimming is also recommended for injury rehabilitation and during pregnancy, as the ligaments and joints are strengthened. Being in the water, the body weighs less, although it exerts more resistance in the movements.
As for infant swimming, babies show diving reflexes as soon as they are born, so in this activity, they work on motor coordination, contributing to the development of independence and self-confidence.
Swimming is an activity that provides security and is of low complexity. Swimming acts beneficially as long as the technique used is correct.
*Swimming accessories*
- Swimsuit. There are many fabrics, lycra, pbt, polyester, nylon, polyamide... In competitions, it is used for greater buoyancy and cannot go down from the knee or go up from the navel (except for women, which covers up to the neck).
- Cap: protects the hair, it can be made of fabric or silicone.
- Goggles: protect the eyes from chlorinated water and improve visibility under water. The most recommended are dark and / or polarized.
- Ear plugs: they can prevent water from entering the ears.
- Noseclips: they can prevent water from entering the nose.
- Table. It is used to keep the part of the body with which you hold it afloat.
- Pull buoy. It is generally used to put between the legs and keep the lower body afloat.
- Fins. They are used to lengthen the swim and improve technique and speed.
- Shovels. They are used to increase resistance during arm movements, in order to improve technique.
- Michael Phelps. American champion and Olympic
athlete who holds records for the most Olympic gold medals. He first performed
at the 2000 Sydney Olympics at the age of fiveteen.
- Mireia Belmonte. Spanish Olympic champion (with
four medals), world (with sixteen medals) and European (with 24 medals). It has
two distinctions: “AS Award” and “Sports World” for the “Best Spanish Athlete”.
Oooooh, swimming, I practised that sport when I was child, and I remember how cool was for me. Even I joined in a swmming group and I participated in a championship (I was second).
ReplyDeleteNowadays, I prefer being dry and warm and not to jump into the water. I don´t why I changed but I hope to enjoy again this activity.
Thanks for that, Tania – would you mind explaining a little about why you chose this topic, why it was important to you?
ReplyDelete