Wednesday 27 March 2019

PARENTHOOD: The Benefits of going Swimming as a Family

PARENTHOOD: The Benefits of going Swimming as a Family
*Advertorial Content with Simply Swim
Swimming is not only a fun family activity, but also has so many benefits too. We often go swimming as a family at the weekends because Isabella and Poppy both really enjoy it and there's nothing better than seeing them enjoy themselves. For Poppy swimming is all about making the biggest splashes, jumping into our arms, going down the slides and kicking her legs with all her might. Whereas for Isabella swimming is much more about learning how to move herself around in the water, taking off her armbands to test herself and building up to dunking her head under the water. Poppy has always been the less cautious of the two, so swimming is an activity we can take them both to but that will benefit them in different ways. For Isabella it's about building up her confidence, but for Poppy it is about teaching her to be safe. 


Whether your child/ren are cautious or not there are some key benefits to swimming as a family, which are:

1) Affordable - Going to your local leisure centre for a swim is often very affordable, especially as many run loyalty cards in which you can earn a free swim. A lot of other activities for the whole family can get very expensive, so it's nice to know there is always a more affordable option. At our local leisure centre it costs around £8 for us to go swimming as a family and that can keep the children entertained for hours!

2) Improves Fitness - Swimming is a form of exercise and therefore is ideal for improving everyone's fitness levels. If you have young children like us then you probably aren't able to swim lengths of the pool, however keeping your legs kicking and arms moving (even if it is in the baby/toddler pool) is all movement. It's also a fun form of exercise for children too, as it helps to build up their core muscles and put muscles that often don't get used into use. 

3) Teaches safety - This is probably personally the key benefit to swimming as a family because water isn't just in a swimming pool; puddles, lakes, ponds, rivers, canals, the sea etc. are all places where if an accident was to happen your child may need to swim to get to safety. I am really keen for Isabella and Poppy to learn to swim independently, so that should anything potentially devastating happen regarding water that they will have a chance of getting themselves to safety. 

4) Demonstrates body confidence - I have to admit then when Isabella was younger I would let my husband take her swimming, while I'd watch from the side. It broke my heart every time that I didn't feel confident enough to get into a swimming costume and get in myself; they always looked like they were having so much fun and that I was missing out. Then I got pregnant with Poppy and a bump started growing, which also saw my body confidence grow. Eventually I decided to stop letting my own thoughts/worries hinder my enjoyment with my daughter and I went swimming with them for the first time. I was so incredibly proud of myself for pushing myself outside of my comfort zone and ever since I have always joined them swimming. It took me a while, but now I don't feel anywhere near as self conscious as I used to and I hope that I'm showing Isabella and Poppy to be proud of your body whatever size it is. At the end of the day they are the most important people to me, not the other swimmers who I spent ages worrying what they'd think of me when in reality I'll probably never see them again. Once you find swimwear that you feel confident in it can make all the difference too. Simply Swim have a wide array of women's swimwear, including active, chlorine resistant, boyleg, competition, cup sized, legsuits, longer length, maternity, plus size, shaping, sports, swim shorts, tankinis, tummy control and padded. There are so many different styles, fits and designs that there is something for everyone; some of my favourite picks from their website are:
5) Widely available - You can go swimming at your local leisure centre or any leisure centre, on holiday, in the sea, pretty much anywhere you go you can go swimming. It's an activity that travels with you wherever you go and with summer quickly approaching a lot of us will be jetting off to warmer climates and will inevitably spend many hours swimming as a family. It's a guaranteed way to keep children entertained, ideal for cooling down and if you've not got a holiday abroad booked then there's always a paddling pool in the back garden which is just as fun! If you have plans to spend the summer swimming then it might be worth browsing the range of swim toys available from Simply Swim, including the diving sticks, diving rings, squirty toys and splash balls. 
6) Learning a life skill - Swimming is a life skill that is not only needed for safety, but also is a lot of fun too. It's like riding a bike, once you know how to swim you know for life. Children learn a lot from observing and copying their parents and swimming is no different; by going as a family you are showing your children how to swim in a multitude of ways. There are many ways to help children learn how to swim gradually, as well as many items that can help such as:
7) Suitable for rainy days - Those days when the weather is due to be raining and you can't face soft play then swimming is the perfect activity. It's fun whatever the weather! 

Simply Swim have swimwear for the whole family, so whether this has inspired you to you swimming together or you are already a fan then check out what they have to offer. 

Do you enjoy going swimming?

Feel free to leave a comment - I love reading every single one :)

Helen x

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17 comments

  1. My children love to go swimming. It's something I need to try to do more often with them. At £8 for a family it's pretty reasonable.

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  2. Erin has had swimming lessons since being 10 weeks old and she still loves it aged 3. Her and her dad go every Sunday too.

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  3. we so need to do more swimming as a family! we have put it on our half term list of things to do however!

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  4. We haven't been swimming as a family for a long time. I think we need to go soon.

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  5. I remember when I was young and we’d have a ton of fun in our local leisure pool, it is definitely a great form of exercise!

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  6. I used to love going swimming with my parents when I was younger and I do think it's so important for kids to learn the vital skill as early as possible x

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  7. Ah, we love swimming! The children are included on my gym membership, so we go at least once a week. My middle son has lessons there too, and although they're not the cheapest of activities I agree that it's a life skill! You can't put a price on water safety can you. My 2 year old would absolutely love the Swimfin! Might add that to our summer shopping list :)

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  8. Swimming is good exercise! It's something which is fun as a hobby, but also important in life for safety. I love the mermaid flippers haha :) xx

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  9. I am slowly teaching myself to swim and have been loving just being in the water and exercising at the same time.

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  10. Swimming is such a great family activity, the kids love playing with those toys that you drop to the bottom!

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  11. We haven't been swimming in ages, it must be almost 2 years. You've reminded me to definitely organise a trip to our nearest pool soon!

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  12. I must admit its not something we have ever done as a family, will put it on our to do list!

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  13. My boys love swimming but we don’t do it enough as a family I don’t think. I now want to go this weekend!xx

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  14. I love swimming, I don't have my own family but I go a couple of times a week on my own.

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  15. We love swimming as a family. Two of my three can swim independently now and it makes family swimming so much easier!

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  16. We like to take the kids swimming but our local pool closed and the other one is pretty grotty so at the moment we can’t go unless we go to a hotel or one that’s a good drive away. Shame x

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  17. My little boy absolutely loves swimming. I think it's a fun and important skill for them to learn.

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