Swimming is not just a fun activity, it’s an essential matter of life and death, and it would be good if all children were taught to swim as part of the essential school curriculum. Many adults also can’t swim, and it’s a good idea to take some swimming lessons.
Not only is swimming good for your physical and mental health (and also good for joints) but it’s one of the few safe exercises for people with limited mobility or severe obesity, to help get fit and enjoy gentle exercise.
Safety First: The Life-Saving Skill
Knowing how to swim not only keeps you safe, but means that if there is an emergency, you may be able to help others in danger. Drowning is still one of the leading causes of accidental death in the world, over 230,000 people drown each year. Yet many of these tragedies could have been avoided, if people had basic swimming skills.
Swimming is also a lifelong skill. Once you can swim, nature kicks in and you’ll always be able to swim. Obviously still keep safe near water. But once you know how to swim, you can just go and enjoy a swim in the pool, whenever you want.
Swimming also lets you participate in fun activities like wild swims and surfing.
We Need More Affordable Public Pools
It’s a shame that old-fashioned pay-as-you-go swimming pools have disappeared, as today you have to mostly sign up for monthly memberships, which many people can’t afford to do. Enter your postcode to find local pools which are more affordable than swanky gyms, or approach out-of-season hotels as many offer memberships in quiet seasons, though obviously the caveat is that there are likely no lifeguards. But its nice to find a quiet pool to support local hotels, and you may benefit from uncrowded pools.
