Beginners and improvers if you are just starting out, looking to improve or not sure how best to start enjoying swimming we have lots of helpful articles full of all the information you need
If you start coughing during or after a swim, the cause is often the air above the water. Swimmers cough is usually a short-lived irritation of your throat and airways, triggered by chloramines that build up in the air above chlorinated pools, especially indoor ones with poor ventilation. Most mild episodes ease once you leave
Swimmers Cough: Causes, Relief and When to Get Help Read More »
You can go swimming for free in the UK, but rarely by walking into any pool you like. The most reliable routes are council free-swim schemes for residents, school-holiday programmes for under-16s, and lifeguarded beaches or open water, with discounted concession memberships as your back-up. The catch is that most schemes depend on your age,
Swimming for Free: Pools, Lessons and Local Schemes Read More »
A length is one swim from one end of the pool to the other. A lap is less fixed: some swimmers mean one length, while others mean a full there-and-back of two lengths. The clearest way to track your swim is to count lengths, because one length always equals the pool’s length, while “lap” can
Laps vs. Lengths in Swimming: Definitions and Distances Read More »
Sculling is the small, controlled sweep of your hands and forearms that lets you feel, hold and push against the water without taking a full stroke. Sculling in swimming teaches you to keep steady pressure on your palms and forearms, which gives you a stronger catch and better propulsion in every stroke. You won’t race
Sculling Swimming: Technique, Drills and Stroke Benefits Read More »
You do not need a particular frame to swim well, and you cannot swim your way into a skeleton you were not born with. A swimmer body is a lean, strong build with broad shoulders, a well-developed back and low-to-moderate body fat, shaped partly by inherited proportions and partly by years of steady training. Training
Swimmer Body: Traits, Training and Common Myths Read More »
No, you cannot swim in Cardiff Bay’s open water. Cardiff Harbour Authority bans swimming and jumping into the Bay and its rivers because of deep water, currents and the risk of drowning. The good news is that you still have safe ways to swim right on the waterfront. If you want lengths or family fun,
Swimming in Cardiff Bay: Rules, Pools and Safe Options Read More »
A good swimming warm-up takes about 10 to 15 minutes: roughly five minutes of dryland work on the poolside, then 300 to 700 metres of easy swimming, kick and drills that build gradually into your main set. That sequence suits everyone from a nervous beginner doing their first few lengths to a club swimmer preparing
Swimming Warm-Up: Dryland and Pool Routines Read More »
The safest way to learn is to master breath control and floating at the wall before you ever try a full length, because a swimmer who can exhale calmly and stand up from a float has the two skills that prevent panic. Every drill below builds on those two foundations, working from shallow-water bubble blowing
Swimming Drills for Beginners: A Safe Skills Progression Read More »
Treading water means staying upright in deep water with your head above the surface, using small arm and leg movements to hold your position without touching the bottom. It is one of the most useful basic swimming skills you can own, and unlike a fast front crawl, you can learn the essentials in a few
How to Tread Water: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners Read More »
