So nervous (adult swimming)

[yellowmellw]

I have never learnt to swim but with a young dc I feel I really need to get over this fear and learn.

So I have my first lesson tonight and I'm so anxious and worried.

Has anyone learnt to swim as an adult and how did they find it

Good luck - you are doing the right thing

My dh learned at 43 when our reluctant swimmer son, then 13 learned. They both took the lesson together and now both swim just fine. It might save your life or someone else's so good for you!

My mum learned in her late 60's and now (mid 70's) swims 50 lengths every Monday with her friend. She really feels the benefit!

She was adamant that my sister and I learn as children, because she couldn't, so I guess we would have had to save ourselves if we fell in anywhere........

Well done OP.

I have a real fear of the water from when I was a child so ensured all my DC, all in their 30s now, learned to swim well as children.

I hope you enjoy it and wish you lots of luck with your lessons.

Try to relax and so with the flow, as it were.

I was talking to a lovely man this week. He was scared of water when he was a child and could barely swim. He tried again at 30 and is now 58 and does the 5k swimathon every year for the last 14 years.

Well done you! I hope you get on okay :)
I need to do this. I'm 28 and have had millions of lessons as a child and teen and never got it.
Also short sighted so interested to hear how you get on.

I started learning to swim at 35. I was terrified of putting my face in the water and also was extremely short sighted so being in the pool area without glasses on was scary.

It took me months to be able to do two lengths of front crawl. I figured that I needed a big goal to make me practice.

18 months after my first lesson I swam 17.5km/11 miles around the Isles of Scilly.

I'll never be a natural swimmer, but I'm so glad that I learnt.

Brilliant that you've enrolled in lessons. Keep going!

Well done for taking that step. I think most people just assume that everyone could swim.

If they teach you the way they teach young kids your face needs to be in the water at all times blowing bubbles so might be worth investing in prescription goggles x

I did it 12 years ago. Go yourself in between lessons and practice practice. A couple of strokes becomes a quarter of the pool, then half the pool, then quickly you can do a full length. Exhilarating. Don't be embarrassed. The lifeguards and other swimmers will be rooting for you. I swim 3/4 time's a week now.

Hope it went well!

How did it go op? I can swim on but scared to put my face in the water and feel quite panicked when people splash around me so would love to have lessons

Good luck. Hope your first lesson went well.
I went for lessons when I turned 40. First lesson i burst in to tears. Not though fear but an overwhelming feeling tbat i was finally going to learn. Everyone was completely lovely. 4 of us in the group. Very supportive and I did learn to swim. I'm still not great at it but I can swim underwater, in the deep end and I have even jumped in to a swimming pool which was just so fantastic. I can't swim on my back but I can float not very good at crawl as i struggle with the breathe control and I can't go upside down....yet but i will on day. Truely the BEST thing I have ever done just for me.

Thanks everyone the first lesson went well.

I learned the leg movements for breast stroke and front crawl (using a noodle under arms and the float in front)

I never in my life could use the noodle floats as I was afraid of them but tonight I used one and even went backs wards although slowly which is a really big deal to me because backwards is scary also.

I had to blow the bubbles underwater also a couple of times but I could only do it for 2 seconds before pulling my face out. The instructor said that my aim is to built it up to 8-10 seconds over the next few weeks but at least I put my face in and done it.

She advised me to order the prescription goggles which I have just done online so I will have them for next time.

So happy it went well but next week it will get tricky when she expects me to fully go under water etc but I'm going to just try take it one lesson at a time and practice in between when I can.

Yay go you! Really great that you did so well. You'll be swimming lengths before you know it!

Well done to you.

Well done! It's such an important skill and you're being a great role model for your children.

Well done OP! I went to classes last year. I could already swim breaststroke but wanted to learn front crawl. There were lots of total beginner swimmers in the classes so you are not alone!

Btw it took me ages to get front crawl but I’m now a couple of weeks away from competing in my first Olympic distance triathlon with the swim in a lake! So stick with it, you will get there and once you’ve learnt you’ll never forget it.

I went to adult lessons at about 16. I just totally failed to learn technique at school lessons. I swam my first length about 3-4 months later and from that point got a new certificate every week or two until I built up to a mile the following year

It was so worth it.

Oh well done yellow! Go you!!

Great to hear your positive story's.

I might add I heard a few joints crack upon starting the new leg actions in the pool. I've obviously woken up some muscles I've never used before my back is sore and my hips/legs are a little sore. Felt like a good workout

Well done Yellow. I might be brave enough to go for it one day!!

Well done. Sounds like you did really well. Practise practice practise as much as you can in between lessons even if its just in the bath.

Thanks I have my second lesson tonight and I think they may try get us to float without holding onto anything which is my main issue so fingers crossed to see how this will go.

Lots of luck and have fun tonight.

Don't worry about letting go of the float, if you don't want to let it go this week, you can let it go next week.

But the feeling you will get when you push the float away and swim a few strokes alone will be fantastic!

If you can, try being in quite shallow water when you first let the float go, then you will have the security of knowing that you can stand up if you want to.
If the tutor hasn't shown you yet how to stand up, ask them to show you how to do it....it's a wide forward sweeping motion with your arms/hands in the water, with knees bent. It will help your confidence to know how to do it.

Also if you have time, it helps to have a swimming session between the lessons to practise what you have done.

But most of all, have fun!!