Strengthening the body, heart, and mind

Learning to swim has one major benefit – it could save your life.

But that’s not all – it can also enrich your life and, by teaching your child to swim, you are laying the foundations for a healthy body, heart and mind.

As any parent knows, children have pretty packed diaries, what with the vast range of activities now available to them.

If they’re not at nursery or school, then chances are they’re either dashing from one playdate to another or taking part in everything from football and trampolining to stagecraft and soft play.

And all these activities, which combine socialising with exercise, are great – but sometimes it’s time for a little bit of calm, for an activity which offers a completely different sensory experience – and that’s where swimming comes in.

The many benefits of swimming

Often described as the safest and most thorough form of exercise, this is because the body is supported by the water – reducing the risk of injury.

But, perhaps it’s in nurturing emotional – rather than physical – health that swimming really comes into its own.

There is something just so calming and restful about being surrounded by a pool of blue, that even the most frazzled parent and most energetic child will feel their tensions disappear and their mind begin to clear.

The feel of the water on your skin, the fun to be had splashing and playing and the feeling as you float on your back, going where the rippling water takes you.

The joy of swimming is that it can be as lively or as calm, as noisy or as soothing, as strenuous or as gentle as you and your child want it to be.
You don’t have to be great at it – just good enough – and you don’t have to compete or shout to be heard. You can have fun with friends or simply let the water carry you and wash your worries away.

Now, that’s just got to be good for the soul.