In addition to the preparatory exercises, some core exercises are required.
The child is holding a pull buoy or a swimming board. The body is completely stretched and the drive comes from the legs as a result of an interchangeable impact. Then the child turns on his back from the prone position and back again after a few meters. The exercise is carried out 10 - 15 meters with at least four turns. This exercise trains shoulder rotation, which is a decisive factor for correct lateral breathing. The exercise can also be done with a swimming board. This requires even stronger shoulder rotation to turn the entire board and thus makes the exercise even more efficient.
The child lies on its side in the water. The body should be as parallel as possible to the pelvic wall and not just slightly rotated. One arm is stretched and the other arm is on the side of the body. The mouth and nose should be on their sides above the water during the entire exercise. The head is placed on the straightened arm. This exercise teaches the correct water position during crawl breathing. Make sure that your child's extended hand stays on the surface of the water. When doing this exercise, it is easy to lower your front arm. However, this is a mistake, the hand must be as stretched as possible on the surface of the water.
The child swims 25 meters of crawl with arms placed on the sides and breathes forward as an exception. This exercise aims to train the strength condition for crawl stroke. The leg stroke is important for longer distances as it brings stability and rhythm to swimming.
When doing this exercise, the body rotates 90 degrees in both directions, both from the prone and supine positions. The hands remain on the side of the body. In a further step, a complete rotation takes place, maintaining the lateral hand position. This makes it easier to correct the water level on the back and return to the starting position after the 90-degree turn. The change of direction when turning the body promotes body control in water.
In this preparatory exercise, the turn is practiced with a swimming board. Alternatively, a pull buoy can also be used. The buoyancy of the swimming board allows the learner to easily return to a comfortable position of water after a spin. The board prevents the face from staying underwater after turning. However, turning on the back requires a stronger body twist to turn the board around. This more intensive rotation is trained through this exercise.
If you have severe problems with water sensitivity, if the child has difficulty striking the leg despite straightened legs and loose feet, I recommend the exercise with fins. These make it easier to position the foot correctly due to a stronger reaction of the water. Start with a mat and a swim board. Use short fins that are only slightly longer than the foot, as foot movement with long fins is different and less appropriate.
Although many children understand that side breathing is central to this exercise, they do not understand that you have to rotate your shoulder to do it. This then results in the child breathing forward and lifting its head, but trying to turn its head on its side by simply looking at the side. This species looks very unnatural and damages the spine for a long time. Communication is also key here. Especially if you have already successfully completed the above preparatory exercises several times, the child should actually be able to rotate the body. For this reason, you also can't mention the need for shoulder rotation often enough.
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Many children do not understand the need for shoulder rotation. They are also used to breathing forwards from previous exercises, such as the motor boat. This error may be due to poor communication. The children do not understand that side breathing is the decisive factor of the exercise. For this reason, you can't mention the need for side breathing enough. Or, of course, it could also be because they simply can't do it. For this, the exercises mentioned above will help.