I don’t know how to swim. There I said it.

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Cloggie

....I am 66 and just learning how to swim....so far I can dog paddle across the pool and more or less not scare myself.

....just need to learn to be confident in my treading water capabiity (can sort of do it.....) and proper breathing (the crawl I believe it is called).

Its never too late...

D.

Good for you...swimming is one of those skills that can save your life. Guess I was fortunate...one of those took to water like a duck kids. Loved it...

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by masraum

Yep, it the boy scouts we learned to make a flotation device out of a pair of blue jeans. I'd have to be pretty desperate to do it, but it worked.

Me too...hope they still teach it. Also, it's much easier to swim without pants on...the trick is breath control while taking them off. Good survival skill to know.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNTSoKg6xHM&ab_channel=America%27sNavy

[Tobra]

You tie knots in the pants legs and get them wet, trap some air in them and they will keep you afloat, just have to keep them a little wet or you start sinking.

[70SATMan]

We did it in boot with pants and white hats... Every little bit.

[wdfifteen]

It's great that you are determined to learn to swim. I understand how you feel.
My mother thought the way to keep her kids safe was to teach us to be afraid of everything, so I grew up with a lot of water phobia. I have tried, but never got over it.
I took swimming lessons in high school, never got in the water after the last class.
Tried again in college, again, once the class was over I never went swimming again.
Technically I CAN swim, but I have zero confidence because I have to force myself to do it and so I never practiced.
I tried snorkeling, thinking it might be fun. Nope. Only went once.
I tried SCUBA diving. Went once in open water - never again. I have a total bypass-the-brain-go-straight-to-panic, stupidly irrational panic instinct that I've never been able to kick. The time I went diving I looked up and saw the bottom of the boat (it was a big one - there were at least 25 of us on the dive) and panicked, for no reason at all. I stuck with the group for the rest of the dive just so I wouldn't embarrass myself. I got by by never looking up until I got to the top of the anchor chain at the end of the dive.
Try as I might, I cannot get comfortable in water.
Good luck, keep at it and you just might get good at it.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

It's great that you are determined to learn to swim. I understand how you feel.
My mother thought the way to keep her kids safe was to teach us to be afraid of everything, so I grew up with a lot of water phobia. I have tried, but never got over it.
I took swimming lessons in high school, never got in the water after the last class.
Tried again in college, again, once the class was over I never went swimming again.
Technically I CAN swim, but I have zero confidence because I have to force myself to do it and so I never practiced.
I tried snorkeling, thinking it might be fun. Nope. Only went once.
I tried SCUBA diving. Went once in open water - never again. I have a total bypass-the-brain-go-straight-to-panic, stupidly irrational panic instinct that I've never been able to kick. The time I went diving I looked up and saw the bottom of the boat (it was a big one - there were at least 25 of us on the dive) and panicked, for no reason at all. I stuck with the group for the rest of the dive just so I wouldn't embarrass myself. I got by by never looking up until I got to the top of the anchor chain at the end of the dive.
Try as I might, I cannot get comfortable in water.
Good luck, keep at it and you just might get good at it.

It's impressive that you kept going back to try, and managed to complete all of the stuff. Fortunately, you don't HAVE to swim, but if you did, you could.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by cantdrv55

When we get back to the mainland, my wife and I are signing up for lessons at the town pool. She took lessons as a kid but it didn’t take apparently. Thanks all!

When is that? Have you signed up, started, or finished yet?

[red-beard]

Don't feel bad. My wife doesn't swim and we have a pool.

To help her with her fear of the water, I had her wear a waterskiing jacket. It still allows you to move quite well and keep you afloat.

But you need shallow end work on getting your head under water to get over the fear before a stroke is taught.

And tell the wife: No makeup and her hair is going to get wet!!!

[Robert Coats]

I learned as a kid, and was quite confident as a young adult. I'd singed up with the Navy Reserves as a aircrewman, which meant I had to pass the Navy's "First Class Swim Test." At bootcamp in Orlando, about week three, me and a guy named Jones were pulled out of line and told to report to the pool. We arrived and a First Class Petty Officer ordered us both in the water, and started barking out instructions. It was clear Jones was struggling to finish most of them, and the PO1 pulled him aside. He looked at me and said, "Stand by, Coats!" So I started a quiet slow backstroke/float. My ears were below water level, so it was quiet, and the sun was bright and clear; my eyes were fully closed. But you know, that feeling when you're at the beach, and a cloud passes over the sun, and you feel it in your eyelids? That was me, but there was no cloud, just the PO1 screaming at me (which I could only tell from his flapping jaw and spewing saliva). I leapt out of the water and he shoved my signed off paperwork to me and told me to beat feet back to my company. Poor Jones was shuffled off somewhere, his aircrew or other swim-necessary job dashed.

[matthewb0051]

Originally Posted by Tobra

The instructors in basic showed us how to stay afloat with a pair of pants, or the uniform hat, bucket, a few tricks. Glad I never had to test that stuff out in the middle of the deep blue sea

Originally Posted by masraum

Yep, it the boy scouts we learned to make a flotation device out of a pair of blue jeans. I'd have to be pretty desperate to do it, but it worked.

I was stationed on Oahu in 2010. Technically all new arrivals had to go to the pool and take some course but the higher in rank the easier it was to get out of that requirement.
Edit: the class consisted of jumping off the 10 meter platform and treading water for some period of time.

We had a couple of people drown together in my second year. I remember the more senior people (CG and CSM and others) saying, "well didn't they go to the class?". Answer was yes but they were non swimmers to begin with and there was no follow on course.

Then came the inevitable questions about the floatation with uniform pants made into a PFD. Honestly, for a minute I thought the CG was going to make an order that any time you went to the beach you had to take and swim with your pants.

[cantdrv55]

Originally Posted by masraum

When is that? Have you signed up, started, or finished yet?

We missed the sign ups for adult private swim lessons at our town pool so we’d either have to be in group lessons for all ages or go to the next town over and sign up there. I haven’t decided what I want to do yet. Yes, there’s vanity involved.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by cantdrv55

We missed the sign ups for adult private swim lessons at our town pool so we’d either have to be in group lessons for all ages or go to the next town over and sign up there. I haven’t decided what I want to do yet. Yes, there’s vanity involved.

Understandable. Bummer that you missed the sign up.

[cantdrv55]

Originally Posted by masraum

Understandable. Bummer that you missed the sign up.

I guess we’re not the only adults needing swim lessons!

[john70t]

Originally Posted by red-beard

Don't feel bad. My wife doesn't swim and we have a pool.

Here is the secret: You don't have to actually swim in a pool.

-Wade in the shallow end and lightly jump off the bottom. This is great excercize for the knees.
-Lean against the sides and stretch the back and hips.
-Float and twist out the tired back and feet. Everything clicks into place.
-Duck under and practice your breath control. Useful for getting through times of dust smoke and chemicals.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by cantdrv55

I guess we’re not the only adults needing swim lessons!

I suspect that there are a lot more folks that can't/don't swim than most folks realize.

[RobFrost]

Originally Posted by cantdrv55

I sink like a rock so I panic. I’m not confident treading water even.

Your error is almost certainly that you are trying to hold yourself too high in the water. To swim, almost all of you needs to be under the water. Even your mouth and nose can be under most of the time, and you just bob up to inhale.

Nobody sinks like a stone, but it requires enormous effort for anybody to hold even 10% of their body above the waterline, which can make it feel like it's hard work just to float.

Practice being under the water at the level your body effortlessly sits in the water and just bob up enough to take a breath.

Once you learn this, swimming is effortless.


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[RobFrost]

Originally Posted by gchappel

I was a life guard for years- 6th largest pool in the world. Lots of saves.

When people panic they will grab for anything.

If you ever get in the situation that someone grabs you- just go under.

The last thing in the world a drowning person wants to do is go under water- they are crawling to get out of the water. Just sink and go limp. They will let go.

If you really have to do the save- just do this several times. They will tire out quickly, then you can easily cross carry them back to shore.

gary

Thanks that's a great tip.

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[jessyrich]

It is better now than never. Best of luck!
I've been always dreaming to learn how to dance salsa and always thought it is not the right time in my life.
Here we go, time had come, choosing a dance class for myself https://www.skillcourses.com/best-free-dance-classes-online/. Any tips?

[Rick Lee]

I lost the swimming skill somewhere along the way. I had it when I was a kid, we had a 12' deep pool when I lived TX, even had a solar heater on the roof back in 1980, so a long season. I was swimming with some friends in a lake in Austria about 30 yrs ago and they decided to swim out to an island in the middle. No prob. I started getting tired halfway there, but knew I could make it. But then I'd have to make it back. I was really beat by then. Now I have a pool at home, but it's only about neck deep on me. Three yrs ago I jumped right off a dock at another lake in Austria and it was about 20' deep. There was a rope from the dock and I felt like I always had to be near it or holding onto it.

My folks decided to get me swimming lessons for my next b-day. It's a lot easier to find lessons for kids than for adults. But it worked and I have a lot more confidence now. I was in that lake in Austria again two weeks ago and some of my skills and confidence had atrophied, but it was a lot better than three years ago. I'm sure I'd be better if I had a deep water pool and weren't so used to always being able to stand up in my pool.