Synchronized Swim Lessons

Synchronized Swim Lessons
Photo Credit Digital Vision./Digital Vision/Getty Images

Synchronized swimming lessons may introduce you to basic and more advanced elements of synchronized swimming. These swimmers use music to perform routines that incorporate dance and acrobatic movements. Synchronized swim lessons can help you prepare for performing these routines. Individual lessons improve your individual skills, and group lessons may improve teamwork among multiple swimmers. Synchronized swimming lessons develop your strength and coordination for performing synchronized swimming movements without touching the bottom of the pool.

Stretching and Warm Up

Synchronized swim lessons include stretching and warm-ups for synchronized swimming. Stretching for front and middle leg splits can improve your ability to perform well in synchronized swimming. Stretching helps you reach a greater range of motion and promotes better circulation in your working muscles. Some basic stretches for synchronized swimming include the standing, pike, straddle and kneeling lunge stretches. Warm up by jogging for 5 to 10 minutes before stretching, because stretching cold muscles can lead to injury. Your synchronized swimming instructor may recommend performing stretching exercises every day, according to SyncroSwim.isport.com.

Basic Skills

Synchronized swim lessons teach you the basic skills involved in synchronized swimming. Basic skills include sculls and eggbeaters. Sculls are hand and arm movements that propel your body in the water. Your instructor may introduce you to several scull variations that support your body in different ways for performing distinct movements. The eggbeater is a kicking style that involves alternating and continuous downward pressure. This type of kick helps you propel upward out of the water and change direction swiftly.

Lifts

You may learn to work with other synchronized swimmers to perform lifts during your lessons. Synchronized swimmers perform lifts to launch other swimmers out of the water. These lifts include the platform, stack and throw lifts. Your lessons may teach you how to use one swimmer's body as a platform to lift another. Advanced synchronized swim lessons may help you learn to launch swimmers out of the water with enough height to perform acrobatic movements, according to Swimming.Cappel-informed.com.

Routines

Synchronized swimming routines may last less than three minutes. Synchronized swim lessons may help you choreograph technical and freestyle routines for competition. Technical competition routines emphasize proper form and how accurately swimmers execute elements of the sport. Free competition routines highlight creative and artistic aspects of synchronized swimming. Nine swimmers participate in Olympic synchronized swimming team competitions, and duets include only two swimmers. Your lessons fine-tune your routine by perfecting team coordination for executing a specified number of synchronized swimming elements within a particular time frame for competitive events.

References

Article reviewed by demand12324 Last updated on: Jan 2, 2011

Must see: Photo Galleries

Member Comments