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Safety and Training Equipment for Swimming

Swimming comes with numerous risks, of which the biggest one is drowning. Hundreds of people die because of accidental drowning every year, even though half of these people know swimming. To keep a swimmer afloat, numerous swimming equipment are available in the market. Most swimming equipment is made up of plastics, which can keep themselves dry in water. This equipment should be capable of withstanding the weight of an adult person.

One of the most common swimming safety equipment found is the swimming vest, which helps a person safe and also helps in leering swimming in the initial stages. They come in various shapes and types. Some swimming vests need to be inflated with air and many are just filled with foam to increase floatation. Other inflatable devises are also found, which are not as effective as a swimming vest, but can help keep a swimmer above the water.

Kickboards are pieces of flat foam, which help new swimmers in learning to use their legs to move in water, while keeping their hands still and afloat. A pull buoy is held between the legs of a swimmer and provides support to the bottom part of the body while practicing different hand strokes. It helps in development of upper body arm strength. Pools also come with various safety features that keep swimmers safe. Equipment varies from swimming pool floatation ropes to electronic alarms that sound when they detect a person in the pool.

Butterfly Swimming Technique

The Butterfly style or stroke originated in 1950s, and is a very attractive stroke, considering it from the audience perspective. The stroke was developed by swimmers who were trying to make breaststroke faster. The noticeable difference in this swimming style and the breaststroke is that the arms are recovered over the water at once and also the double legged dolphin kick. It is also called as the dolphin stroke, since it is swum with a dolphin like undulating movement on the upper side of the water.

The two arms pull water simultaneously under the swimmer and also recover simultaneously over water, with the two arms coming out together. When doing the two arm pull, swimmers also simultaneously do double dolphin kicks. One kick comes when the swimmer hits the water with the arms and one kick when the hands exit the water. The two feet along with kicking together, also need to be close to each other. The body is always in a perfect streamlined position, with the chin extending forward along the surface, this is when swimmers breathe.

A few swimmers prefer breathing to the side instead of raising the entire head above the water. The head and shoulders rise above the water as the hands sweep below the chest. The butterfly stroke races begin with a forward facing dive. Swimmers have to touch the wall with two hands at once at the end of each lap and will have to do open turns instead of flip turns in multi lap races.

Backstroke Swimming Technique

Backstroke is another popular swimming style or technique followed in international swimming competitions around the world. It is considered to be a upside down freestyle stroke, since it is swum with the same alternating arm strokes along with rapid kicks. However, unlike in a freestyle stroke, where the swimmer is facing downwards, here the swimmer's face is facing towards the sky. It is a difficult technique to master, but once mastered, it is a very relaxing swimming stroke where the swimmer does not have to surface for taking breaths.

The limbs apply a constant propulsive force because of the continuous flutter of the legs and alternating strokes by the arms. A swimmer in this style cannot pill his or her arms directly under their body. The head faces upwards with the the waterline above or up to the ears. The body is placed horizontally above the water surface. Body roll includes both hips and shoulders, however most swimmers who swim in the backstroke position swim on the side at angles of 35 and 45 degrees.

There is an increase body roll, which translates into lesser resistance from the water because of the V-shape formed by the body. The hand enters the water with the palm facing outwards and the arm fully extended. The entry into the water needs to be clean, without any splashes. New beginners do the mistake of overreaching, which increases drag force on the body. After the arm has entered the water, the hand sculls ahead, outward and downward with the palm turned towards a downward pitch.

Freestyle Swimming Technique

Freestyle swimming technique is among the most flexible officially recognized swimming style. It is also known as the crawl swimming style and is considered one of the fastest strokes. The only stiff rules in this style are that a swimmer does not touch the far wall or pull on the lane line while swimming. All types of strokes are allowed in this style. However, most swimmers have developed their own style over the years, which include facedown, alternating arm swings, rapid up and down alternating kicks, and side breathing depending on the arm that is being used for making the stroke.

The facedown technique begins with the swimmers diving with their faces forward into the water from either the sides of the pool or from a starting block. The position of the body needs to be streamlined, with the arms being extended above the head. While swimming, one arm is place on top of the other and cover the ears. Legs and the back is kept straight, until a flutter kick is required. The head is kept under the water to reduce frontal friction from water.

Freestyle also allows a swimmer to body roll. Body roll is initiated by the arm action and the entire body makes a turn along its axis. Body roll helps the body to maintain a streamlines position, since it keeps the shoulders and hips in line. The hand enters the water in front of the head, between the parallel line from the shoulders and the mid line of the body.

Other Swimming Equipment

Apart from a wetsuit or a swimsuit, a swimmer also wears swim goggles for various reasons. Human eyes are not designed to see under water. These goggles help a swimmer to see under water and also above the water. The goggles come with a low profile design and are designed not to form fog over the lenses under water. These fit over the eyes air tight, ensuring that water does not peep into the eyes. Goggles apart from helping swimmers see underwater, also protect the eyes from harmful substances such as chemicals in the water. Some goggles come with features like UV protection and tints. For people who wear prescription glasses, they will need to consult their eye specialist in order to get glasses that help see properly underwater.

A head swim cap is also worn by swimmers to protect the swimming pool filters and also to protect their hairs. Swimming caps are made from latex, silicon or lycra and are worn by competitive and recreational swimmers. These caps keep the hair dry from the chlorinated swimming pool water and also help to keep the hair away from the sun. These were first developed to be used by women to keep their wave hairstyle after swimming. They are different types of swimming caps such as Tank, barracuda hothead, racing, and standard swim caps. These caps differ in the area of the head they cover and their shape, with some covering the ears too. Other swimming gears commonly used are nose clips and earplugs to keep the water out of the nose and the ears.

Swimming Suits

One of the most important pieces of equipment for swimming today has become the wetsuit. Suits today are made from fabrics of polymer that are designed to decrease the drag coefficient of a swimmers body from the hydrophobic forces in the water. They are usually made from materials such as neoprene. Wetsuits come in many different forms, and are different for men and women. Many companies employ high tech materials in the development of these wetsuits. However is not certain that all swimmers benefit in the form of increased speed and buoyancy when it comes to wetsuits. Suits being developed today offer 10 percent less passive drag from the water, giving a little speed boost to the swimmers.

Wetsuits work by tapping a thin layer of water between the skin and the suit. This blanket of water reduced drag from the surrounding water and also helps keep the swimmers warm in cold waters. It is important that wetsuits fit perfectly. Any baggy areas will lead to it coming in the way of swimming. This is the reason that public swimming pools do not rent wetsuit, although they rent everything else. Wetsuits also need to be taken care of, if one wants them to last for a longer time. After using the wet suit every single time, one has to rinse the wetsuit and dry it under shade. Washing machines are not meant to wash swimsuits. While drying a wetsuit, it is important to dry the swimwear first from the insides.