Learning to Tread Water
Treading water is not a stroke like the side stroke or the butterfly, nor is it a dormant water activity like floating. Treading water requires co-ordination of arms and leg motions, appropriate body positioning and lots of practice. Once you become proficient at treading water, you will find that it allows you to keep your body upright and your head above water for prolonged periods of time. Knowing how to tread water means that should you find yourself in deep water, on purpose or by accident, you will no longer be unable to function. Being able to tread water for an extended period of time gives you both a new water safety skill and the self confidence that goes with it. People who know how to tread water seldom go into full blown panic in the water. Knowing that they have the ability to keep their head above water and can continue to breath gives swimmers in difficulty time to calm down, rationally evaluate their situation and make a reasonable decision about how to proceed.
Treading water is a water safety skill that should be learned and practiced under the close supervision of a water safety instructor, life guard or mature, well qualified swimmer. Most of the learning process should be conducted in water that is chest deep ( not over the head of the learner ) and the learner should be within easy reach of a safety flotation device, pool wall or instructor.
Learning to tread water involves coordinating arm movements, leg movements and body position. You can begin by working first on the arm position and related hand movement. Standing in chest deep water extend your arms and hands directly in front of you resting them on the top of the water. With palms facing one another, cup your hands keeping fingers together. With hands cupped and facing each other, submerge hands and push them strongly towards each other. Before they meet, keep them cupped but turn palms outward away from each other and push back through the water in what is called a sculling motion. Throughout this sculling motion remember to keep your hands in front of you and submerged. You can practice the hand motion in or out of the water until the motion feels natural and comfortable.
It is possible to tread walter by simply using a leg motion but knowing how to scull rhythmically with your hands helps you to keep your body in the best treading position because you are focusing your attention on your hands directly in front of you. The result of this focus is a gentle inclining of the body in the direction of your focus, the ideal position for treading.
The hand motions for treading water are certainly useful , but it is the leg motion that powers your efforts to keep your had above water. A variety of leg movements are possible but two seem most effective. Most treaders begin by simply pumping their legs just as they would when riding a bicycle. In the second method, swimmers who have already learned a scissors kick may prefer to tread by executing the kick in an upright position. In either case the leg motion should be performed rhythmically and with just enough speed to keep the treading person balanced with his or her head above water and free to breathe.
The co-ordinated movement of hands sculling and legs pumping or scissors kicking is made easier by adapting your body position in the water so that you are leaning slightly forward. This position is accomplished by bending gently at the waist. Keeping your eyes in front and focusing on your hands. The slightly inclined body position assists the treading process because it allows natural body buoyancy to kick in and assist the treader.
Treading water is a safety skill. In an emergency situation being able to tread over a prolonged period of time may be essential. To be prepared for such threatening situations it is important to learn how to tread efficiently by using minimal strokes and conserving energy. Once you are comfortable with treading you can increase its effectiveness in life saving situations by alternating treading with floating. This alternation allows you to rest tired muscles and can add many minutes to your survival time. Learning to tread water is important, its useful in any deep water situations and if catastrophe presents itself being able to trad water can save your life..
