Breathing Techniques for New Swimmers
Breathing Techniques for New Swimmers
Most swimmers who look like they are struggling with fitness are actually struggling with breathing. It is a technique, not a lung capacity problem.
Book swim lessons →Ask an adult why they cannot swim more than a length or two and they will usually say they get out of breath. Almost always, the real issue is not fitness. It is that they are holding their breath underwater and then trying to inhale and exhale in the fraction of a second their mouth is clear.
Breathing in swimming is a learned technique that works almost backwards from breathing on land, and once a swimmer understands the principle, distance often improves dramatically without any change in fitness at all.
Breathe out underwater, not above it
The single most useful correction in swimming. Air should be exhaled steadily through the nose and mouth while the face is in the water, so the only job when the mouth clears the surface is a quick breath in.
Why holding your breath does not work
It feels natural to hold your breath underwater, and every beginner does it. The problem is that carbon dioxide builds up, and the urge to breathe is driven by carbon dioxide rather than by a lack of oxygen. A swimmer holding their breath feels desperate for air within a few strokes, even though they have plenty of oxygen left.
Holding your breath also makes the body tense, and a tense body sits lower in the water. So the swimmer is now both uncomfortable and less efficient, which is exactly the spiral that ends with someone stopping at the end of the first length.
Continuous exhaling underwater solves both problems at once. Carbon dioxide clears, tension drops, and the swimmer only needs a fraction of a second at the surface.
The progression that works
Each step is practised until it is automatic before the next is added.
Bubbles at the surface
Face in the water, blowing a steady stream of bubbles through nose and mouth. This teaches the out breath and prevents water going up the nose.
Rhythmic bobbing
Down to exhale, up to inhale, in a steady repeating rhythm while standing. This builds the pattern without any swimming to think about.
Breathing with a kickboard
Adding movement while keeping the same rhythm, so breathing survives the distraction of actually going somewhere.
Side breathing in freestyle
Rotating rather than lifting the head, timed with the arm cycle. This comes last because it depends on everything above being automatic.
Common breathing mistakes
These show up constantly, in children and adults alike.
- Lifting the head instead of rotating it, which drops the hips and makes the whole stroke much harder.
- Holding the breath and then trying to exhale and inhale in the same brief moment above water.
- Turning the head too far, which over rotates the body and breaks the stroke rhythm.
- Breathing too rarely, then having to gasp, rather than settling into a regular pattern.
- Tensing the neck and shoulders, which makes rotation harder and burns energy.
Where breathing fits in the program
Breathing is introduced alongside basic strokes, after the Level 1 water safety and floating foundation. That order matters, because a swimmer who is not yet comfortable with their face in the water cannot practise exhaling underwater in any meaningful way.
For adult swimmers, breathing is very often the whole reason they came. Many adults arrive able to swim in a rough sense but limited to a length or two, and correcting the breathing pattern is what unlocks actual distance.
Frequently asked questions
Why do I get out of breath so quickly when swimming?
Should you breathe out through your nose or mouth when swimming?
How do I teach my child to breathe while swimming?
Why does my child lift their head to breathe?
How many strokes should I take between breaths?
Related reading
Fix breathing, unlock distance
Most swimmers who think they need fitness actually need technique. We teach breathing as a skill from the start.
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