How to Have Success with Swim Babies

Today you can find a number of swim babies’ classes that can help a child to successfully swim from an early age. Why is this so important? In the womb the baby develops and soon starts to move in the amniotic fluid. After nine months the infant is already a qualified swimmer. This means a child should have no problem adjust to water and many find it to be immediate fun.

An instructor will often begin with kicking since swim babies are really good at this. Parents are right there with their infants and will use a floating device to help keep the child’s head above water. In this position swim babies will typically start to kick their legs underwater. Soon the floating devices will be removed and the parents will hold the baby in the water. Sometimes the babies will be held by the stomach horizontally in the water. This will help teach the swim babies how to move around in the water, keep control and prevent them from sinking.

The hardest part of teaching a baby to swim is the automatic choke reflex which happens when their heads go underwater. During the first few times underwater the baby will try to inhale and start to choke. This is a habit that has been ingrained after nine months in the womb and must be broken.

Babies need to relearn swimming and also unlearn what they became accustomed to in the womb which is oxygenating their lungs from breathing amniotic fluid. Swim babies need to learn that they can’t breathe water. They need to learn that their lungs are no longer meant to take in oxygen in the form of liquid but that they need to take in air. After six to ten months old swim babies can start practice being held underwater and learn to recognize signals of holding their breath underwater.

No matter what form of training you use to teach your baby how to swim the splashing and fun in the water will help to build a personal connection between the parents and the baby. So consider signing up a for a swim class with your baby today.

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