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I'm 27 years old,... and I can't swim.

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I took swimming lessons after highschool (in CEGEP, 1974-75). Could only do the breaststroke for a couple of pool lengths. Haven't swum since so I'd probably sink like a rock.
 
22, and still can't quite swim.. well i can move slightly below the surface, but can't float. so i guess id drown if i get tired lol..
 
Parents threw me in the water when I was young, and I learned how to swim quickly after that. 🙂

I grew up swimming in rivers, but the best swim I've had was in the open ocean. Yay swim call.
 
Can't swim at 27? Wowzers. I learned around age 6/7-ish. I'm pretty good at it. Back in grade school, the only thing I could really compete with the jocks in my class in was swimming. I swam like a fish but absolutely hated the feeling of being soaked in chlorine and being cold after coming out.
 
I honestly think there really isn't that much to "learn" when it comes to swimming. The first thing is to get over the panic that you're going to drown as, if you're calm, it's actually really hard to not keep yourself above the water, in my opinion. From there, anyone can pretty much, at least, doggy paddle their way toward something.
 
Yes, I was a year-round competitive swimmer all my life.

If I ever have children, they will absolutely learn how to swim, and they will start at a young age before they learn to be afraid of the water. I taught swim lessons and coached swimming for years and it was always amazing the number of kids that were terrified to put their face in the water. A friend of mine's girlfriend is 30 years old and she will not put her ears under water in any body of water.

It is a skill everyone should learn.

Edit: On that note, I also occasionally taught the adult swim lessons, and I always had so much respect for the adults that were willing to learn so late in their life. That being said, it was pretty painful trying to teach them, because at that point, it was just ten times more difficult to learn than it would have been if they were 5 years old. You will never be as good a swimmer if you start learning at 40 instead of 5.
 
Originally posted by: dennilfloss
I took swimming lessons after highschool (in CEGEP, 1974-75). Could only do the breaststroke for a couple of pool lengths. Haven't swum since so I'd probably sink like a rock.
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Did you really just say swum? :laugh:
 
I'm 23 and can't swim to save my life. I just don't have the endurance. I get tired too quickly and before I can get very far I'm floundering.

But I love the water. I love deep water. I love diving and snorkeling and trying to hold my breath as long as I can and go as deep as I can with my fins to explore the depth and the fishies. I'm actually a lot better at maintaining calm and going deeper and longer than my friends who are far better surface swimmers than I am.

Swimming is fun as heck, I'm just not good at it without fins and when I have to keep my head above water.
 
I don't think you need to take lessons, just get a friend to teach you how. I taught my friend on and off over a few months and she was deathly afraid of water at first. A week or so of straight swimming would have accomplished the same thing.
 
I almost drowned once. Was around 6 I think, and was first time in water without my little 'floaties' on my arms. Went into water over my head at a campground pond and kept bobbing up and down. Was calling out for help whenever I was able to surface but got muffled as I sank. When my mom got out there and pulled me back to shore, I puked. haha fun times.

I've never ever been close to drowning since. I love the water.

I can tread water for a very long time, know how to conserve energy and keep my head above water. Of course, I also know how to use the clothes on my body to keep me afloat with using basically no energy, but that's cheating unless I'm stranded.
I can't really 'swim' for a long long period of time, I don't have the stamina to continually move forward for lengthy periods of time, but I can slow down and just tread and use that to make forward progress at a snails pace.
 
Originally posted by: Bateluer
Yes. I'm no Olympic swimmer, but I can tread water easily enough and propel myself in a desired direction. I always thought some type of swimming ability was pretty much instinctive.
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It is instinctive. Except, we have in no way bred our population to have the most desired traits. It's an instinct we all should have if natural selection and natural laws of breeding were to occur, but everyone can breed these days. Darwin doesn't apply to humans in the way it should. Such is the life of civilized creatures though.
 
Originally posted by: shortylickens
Originally posted by: Cattlegod
Are you black? A lot of my black friends can't swim.
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Theres room here for a New Orleans joke but I dont wanna get banned.
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Good, you're thinking before you hit that send button.😀
 
It is NOT okay to go through life and not learn how to swim. You can learn at any age. Grow some balls, register for a swim class, let some stupid little 5-year-old snot noses laugh at you, and learn to swim!

Once you figure it out, you'll be like 'holy shit.. I can't imagine going that long without being able to do it.. it's so damn easy'

It's like riding a bike.. once you know, you cannot forget..
 
Yeah, you never forget once you learn. Everyone should know how to swim well enough so they don't drown at least. Seriously.
 
I'm 22 and I can swim since I was much young, 10? maybe, I forget when I learned. Mostly doggie paddle though, but I can't stand the feeling of having my face submerged. Something about not being able to breathe and having water go in my nose. So those type of swim moves where you go under I can't/wont do.

But if I was thrown in water from a crashing boat or some other emergency situation like that I'd be able to swim and stay afloat and get to safety.
 
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