Swim Indah swim.. :)

Swimming is one of my fav past time.. I didn't get any chance learning it when I was young.. just dunno why my parents tak hantar gi kelas berenang ehhehe.. so I decided to learn it on my own once I start keje .. and I did.. I had my proper lessons in Pusat Akuatik , Shah Alam .. and during my free time I would go to my friend's apartment to swim with her.. tapi dah lama tak berenang...last berenang masa pregnantkan Indah :)


A friend emailed me the pics and I got so excited bout it.. I quickly did a search on how to teach your baby to swim ehhehe :) and here are the things that I found .... can't wait to teach Indah to swim.. skarang ni pun she dah excited gilerr bila it's BATHING time !!! eheheh she's ever ready.. with her big eyes and a smiley face she will be happy getting her bath while listening to her Ummi sing to her...(I can sing ok :P)

What does she need to wear?

Swim nappies are a good investment but aren't compulsory in most swimming pools. Most pools do insist that babies wear a swimming costume of some kind though. "Don't worry if your baby has an accident, as staff will know exactly what to do," says Libby Tucker. Water wings aren't suitable for babies under one but there are other swimming aids available for this age group.

What you'll need to take ?

Before your first trip to the swimming pool, phone ahead to find out if there's a playpen, pushchair access and changing tables in the changing room.
You'll also need to take:
• A warm bottle for after the swim if you are bottlefeeding
• A towel, preferably one with a hood or a towelling dressing gown
• A snack — swimming makes babies hungry
• Books or toys for older babies
• A few of your baby's bath toys to play with
• Don't forget your nappy bag.

How early can you start?

You can begin to teach your child to swim from a very young age, as early as 6 months old. Taking your young baby to the pool can be a little daunting. After all, the only water she’s familiar with at this age is the bath and that’s a lot smaller than any swimming pool.

But don't be put off - teaching your baby to swim is a lot easier than it sounds. In fact, try not to think of it as teaching her to swim at all, view it more as developing her confidence in water. Apply the same concepts you would use regardless of what you are teaching her – make it fun, take it slowly, use lots of repetition and above all smile! If she sees you looking concerned, she will pick up on it and start to worry too.

From six months

The first few visits to the pool with a baby of about six months old shouldn’t last any more than 10-15 minutes. Always use the teaching pool (it will be warmer than the main pool) and only increase the amount of time spent in the pool as her confidence develops and her strength begins to build up.

For the first 6-8 weeks:

• Don’t use armbands at this very young age, as they will be too difficult to put on.

• Bounce her up and down in the water and encourage her to splash her arms about.

• Aim to splash her face gently with the water regularly so that she gets used to the feeling of water on her face. (You can also do this at bath time.)

• Don’t let her get cold.

At around 8 months, continue with the above and include the following:

• Use armbands, blown up fully.
• Hold her at arms length and encourage her to become aware of the space around her in the water by kicking her legs and waving her arms about.
  
• As she develops in confidence, hold her hands and try to get her to kick her legs out behind her.
  
• Make it fun - play rhyming games/ take in a favourite bath toy etc.
  
• Gradually begin to let go of her hands and play chasing games, where you follow her about in the water. Make sure that she is within your vision and reach at all times.

Once she is walking:

• Encourage her to jump in; assure her that you will be there to catch her. As she jumps in she will naturally go under, hold on to her and bring her up again. Greet her with a smile and praise her to reassure her that going under is OK. By this time she will be so used to splashing about and getting her face wet that this should not cause too much concern. If she is not keen to jump in when standing, get her to slide in at first from a sitting position.

As she becomes increasingly sturdy:

• Guide her on her back and hold her bottom underneath initially, encourage her to straighten her legs and to kick very gently, not making too much of a splash.
  
• Once she is confident on her back, then try a similar activity on her front.
  
• Tell her to wave her arms gently by her sides so that she becomes aware that she does need to use her arms when she is swimming.
  
• Play more chasing games.

As she becomes stronger when swimming on her front:

• Gradually start to deflate her armbands so that there is a little less air inside every week. Don’t tell her you’re doing this – if you do it slowly enough she won’t even notice!
  
• Show her how to move her arms for the doggy paddle stroke. By deflating her armbands, she will be able to move her arms about more. Carry on doing this for several weeks until there is no air left in the armbands.

If you start swimming with a six month year old baby, expect the whole process to take about two years.

If your child is older and hasn’t been in a pool before, you will need to spend more time building confidence before you follow the steps outlined.

Once they get the hang of doggy paddle without armbands their ready for an instructor, who will be able to teach both the strokes and the required breathing techniques.

Remember there can be a downside to all that water confidence you’ve instilled in your child. Watch out for over confidence, especially when she is excited. As a safeguard, incorporate some dos and don’ts into your routine.

Do:

• Be positive – let her know that you will be there at all times.
• Put the armbands on in the changing room.
  
• Ensure she understands that you always get in the pool first and that she cannot jump in if you are not in the pool to support her.
  
• Reinforce the pool rules, e.g. she mustn’t run along the poolside etc.

Don’t:

• Show concern if she goes under - pull her up smiling and reassure her that she is safe.
  
• Never duck her under - you are teaching her to trust you in the pool.
  
• Don’t make her do something she is reluctant to try. Give her a choice and if she’s nervous, leave it to another day.

The most important thing to ‘do’ is:

Have fun. If you show her that you are enjoying yourself, she will too.

Happy splashing!

Can't wait to teach Indah to swim :) lagi 2 bulannnnn yahoooo ... ehheheh