Everyone can do it. Why can't I ??

Some people can, some can't. I seem to have that problem too. But for me, I'm not that fond of water, so it's not really an issue. Oh, I could swim if I had too, but I'd just as soon stick to the wading pool.

Just means your slim, no fat. Lucky too, I might add.

try floating on your back first G. the secret is to keep still and as flat as you can. the human body is less dense than water so there is no reason why you shouldn;t be able to float on your back. once you get the hang of that, you should be able to kick your legs to propel yourself. swimming on your front is harder i think as the shape means you fall through the water easier.

I grew up swimming in the irrigation ditches of California and, later, the Nueces river. But, I cannot stay afloat without the most extreme effort. I have to work very hard to swim the length of a swimming pool. This was very worrisome when I served aboard a destroyer in the 60s.

I want to know exactly what you mean by "can't". If you were thrown into the deep end of a swimming pool, would you drown?

GD, have tried everything - doesnt work. And Ceili - no I dont think I would be called "thin"

Wilso - Yes, I would !

OK, that I don't know how to help with. I used to be a life guard. Now swimming 50 metres would stuff me. But that's just because of lack of fitness. If I swam every day again I could eventually get back up to a mile.

Gautam - are you really sure you are human? That is most odd, if you are generously built.

If you try the sea, you will float more easily. Do they have salt-chlorinated pools in England, as we do here? One of those might help, too.

I cannot cook with flour. There! Now you know!

Gautam, are you afraid? Fear is a huge inhibitor.

I am not a great swimmer. I can swim but I do it only for pleasure not to race or exercise.

My dad taught me how to swim. I was about four or five and he would hold the back of my swimsuit (the straps that criss crossed my back) and I would kick and splash for all I was worth. It was a huge effort and I got nowhere but he did it so often that I overcame my fears and one day he gently let go and I splashed and sputtered my way to the edge of the pool (unaware I was on my own). When I looked back and saw him standing in the middle of the pool, I realized and burst into tears.

Also, the Duke is right, floating on your back is easier. You have to give up any fears you have and allow the water to carry your limbs and finally completely relax until you are floating free. You will worry that you will sink - put that out of your mind - it can happen that you dunk and panic but you can always get your feet to the bottom of the pool before too much water gets up your nose.

I would go to the pool with a trusted friend. Wear a T-shirt. Have the friend stand behind you and hold your shoulders as you gradually relax and let your legs float, butt, back, and finally arms and head. Your friend will hold you so that your head does not go under the water, assuring you that he's got you and won't let go. This would be step one - trusting and then relaxing.

Even if you never learn to swim, it is not the end of the world. I am sure there are so many other things you are fabulous at.

Being able to float on your back in water requires the ability to trust your body enough to relax and let it float. If you are tense and out of position, you'll sink.

Have you ever had someone coach you into position with their hands under your body so you can know what it feels like?

This summer, I taught a neighbor kid to float on his back. He was having similar problems that you describe. I just kept talking to him while we were in the shallow end to distract him and gradually got him tilted back and in position to float.

Hmm, Heeven, get outta my head! :::grin::: What she said!

Well, even generous is not the right word at 5'7'' I tip the scales at just abt 10.5 stones. Not sure if there are such type of pools in my area.

I have tried floating on my back several times, the moment I am left, I sink I am thinking of giving it a go again, but not sure about wasting more money !!! (pvt swimming instructions in my club are abt $35 for half an hour)

If you come to the SF gather, we'll make a point of finding a pool and I'll give floating lessons to you and c.i.

Of course, then I'll have to kill you both afterwards because you will have seen me in a swimsuit! :::shudder:::

I actually love the water, until my face goes inside !!

The problem is that I really really want to swim !!! Both for excercise and for pleasure. I travel a LOT, and when you are alone in the hotel after a hard days work, a swim is a great way to unwind - also gives you something to do.

Because I can't, I end up doing all those things which my mother warned me against

According to the BBC's Body Mass Indicator, you have a BMI of 23, which is bang in the middle of 'healthy' (20-25). Here's the link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/yourweight/bmi.shtml

Mine is 24.5, so I am technically fatter than you, and yet can swim perfectly well (apart from smoking has knackered my lungs!).



You live in what is known up here as "That There Lun'un" which is (alledgedly) the largest city in the country mate! There must be some somewhere. I'm not convinced that London is our largest city though, as I've been to Leeds and that's pretty big... :wink:

No, Gautam. You don't lift your legs and start swimming. You start swimming and lift your legs. The sequence is important.

I also have a problem with my face being in the water - mine is a result of a swimming incident I had many years ago. I was swimming underwater in a public pool when someone dived into the pool, right on top of me. He panicked and in his haste to save himself he kept pushing me to the bottom of the pool. Since then, I have an aversion to my face being immersed, but my Dad did force me right back into the pool so I would not be scared to continue swimming. You can learn to swim without having to put your full face into the water. I know that feeling can be unbearable.

Hey, Gau, I can't swim so well, either. I mean, I didn't really notice this until I swam with the gf, who was a friggin' water sprite growing up, but apparently I flail quite severely.

Really, I'd echo the salt-water thing. Get yourself down to the Aegean, where the water's really salty and dense. I spent a lot of time floating around in that water -- and, worse comes to worse, you jus soak up the sun, wander back to town for some Retsina and a bit of feta and a salad, wander the waterfront... mmmm....

Oh and my foible? Driving. I absolutely suck!
I often think "Everyone can do it, why can't I?"
I have passed my test twice, once in Ireland, (stick-shift), and once in the U.S. (automatic) but I have absolutely no confidence. I know I can do it if I absolutely must but I prefer not to. Plus it doesn't help that I turn into the anti-christ behind the wheel. I suffer badly (or should I say others suffer?) from road-rage. I have absolutely no patience with other road users.