Swimming exhalation techniques

More and more people will learn to swim, because swimming can not only exercise the body's muscles, but also save lives at critical moments. Because everyone has a different physical constitution and different talents for learning swimming, everyone learns to swim at a different speed. When learning to swim, you must learn how to exhale so that you can swim better. So what are the exhalation techniques for swimming?

1. How to exhale when swimming

Squat down with your hands on the pool wall or your companion's hand, submerge your head in the water, and then slowly exhale through your mouth (nose). It is best to exhale through your nose alone. After a while, he slowly stood up. The longer you can exhale in the water, the better. Be careful not to exhale intermittently, as this can easily cause choking.

2. How to hold your breath while swimming

2.1. Take several deep breaths before holding your breath. Every time a person breathes, he or she does not exhale all the air that was inhaled into the lungs last time. The oxygen in this part of the air has already been used and is not fresh. Take several deep breaths before holding your breath to completely expel this gas from your body. When you take a deep breath again, the gas you inhale will be completely fresh air. In addition, taking several deep breaths first can fully expand your lungs, allowing you to inhale more air than usual.

2.2. After inhaling all the air into the lungs and holding your breath, exhale some of the air from the lungs and leave it in the mouth. After a while, inhale the air in the mouth into the lungs, and then exhale some of the air from the lungs and leave it in the mouth. Repeat this process. This is done so that the alveoli can fully contact the air inhaled into the lungs, maximizing the utilization rate of oxygen in the air.

2.3. After you start holding your breath, keep your body as still as possible and avoid any unnecessary movements, because any movement consumes the body's energy and increases your oxygen demand.

2.4. At the final stage of holding your breath, when you feel you have reached your limit, do not exhale all the gas in your lungs at once. Try to control your exhalation as slowly as possible. This process can allow you to hold your breath for another 10 seconds.

3. How to practice holding your breath while swimming

3.1. Choose a shallow water area with a depth no deeper than your heart for preliminary practice; do warm-up exercises before entering the water; and wear a swimming suit and cap.

3.2. Go into the water, take a deep breath, exhale, and do 5 deep breaths in a row.

3.3. Turn on the stopwatch, take a deep breath, start timing, watch the time and stop timing when you need to breathe, write down the time, repeat the above steps again, and take the middle value after 5 times as the standard time for holding your breath underwater.

3.4. Take a deep breath and press the stopwatch to start the time. Squat down in the water, check the stopwatch to see if the time is up when you need to breathe, come out of the water according to your ability at the beginning, and slowly increase the breath-holding time according to the time. You can also increase the underwater time by exhaling air after inhaling.

3.5. The practice time should not be too long. Generally, practice for 20 minutes and rest for 10 minutes, and the total time should be controlled within 2 hours. After a week, you will find that the time has been gradually extended.

3.6. The length of time you hold your breath is related to your lung capacity. To better increase your lung capacity, you need to participate in more exercises.

Do you breathe through your mouth or nose when swimming?

Generally, people who have just learned to swim still breathe through their noses in the water out of habit. Some people who can swim also use their noses to breathe in an emergency. This can easily cause choking. Developing the good habit of breathing through the mouth can effectively prevent choking.

If you accidentally inhale water through your nose in the water, don't panic, float to the surface as soon as possible, exhale the air in your lungs through your nose first, then inhale through your mouth, and continue to exhale through your nose. The water that has entered your lungs will usually come out after a few coughs. If there is no recovery, you need to go ashore as soon as possible and do not breathe through your nose anymore.

How long is the best time to swim each time?

The golden time for swimming should be 40 minutes.

40 minutes of exercise can achieve a certain exercise effect without making people too tired. When swimming, glycogen stored in human muscles and liver is the main substance that provides energy. In the first 20 minutes, the body mainly relies on the calories provided by glycogen to maintain physical energy; after another 20 minutes, the body will break down fat to provide energy. Therefore, for those who aim to lose weight, 40 minutes can help them lose weight.

In addition, beginners should not stay in the water for too long at a time. Generally speaking, 10-15 minutes is most appropriate. Before going into the water, do some warm-up exercises first, then pour cold water on your body, and wait until your body adapts to the water temperature before going into the water.