By: Sara Kate A.
Consider this! When a child first learns to swim, they have to consciously hold their breath for the first time in their entire lives. It’s strange, tricky, and sometimes a little scary figuring out how to hold your breath.
Often, when kids are first learning how to hold their breath in the water, they come up sputtering and coughing. They get that look in their eye of fear. You’ve probably seen that look before and that look makes you never want them to experience that again!
Don’t fear! We have the tools to help your child learn to hold their breath.
Breath-holding is a foundational skill in the process of learning how to swim, so it’s one of the very first things we teach. If you’ve ever watched or participated in a swim lesson here at All Knox Swim, you know how much we love “chipmunk cheeks.” Using language like “show us your chipmunk cheeks” and “don’t forget to do chipmunk cheeks before you go underwater” helps kids visualize the steps of holding their breath. More on that later.
First, kids just need to learn what in the world is going on with their airways.
1) Learning the Big Breath
Show and tell can go a long way with little ones. Show them what it looks like to take a deep breath in with a long, exaggerated gasp. They may need help distinguishing between breathing out and breathing in. This is the first time they have ever had to think about breathing, so a bit of confusion is normal.
You can describe taking breaths by using language like “fill up your body with air”. You can use an open mouth or a small mouth like you’re sucking in through a straw, whichever helps them get the idea. Another helpful description could be “catch an air bubble with your mouth.” Keep trying different phrases to see what clicks with your child.
Once they take their big breath, they can blow it all the way out.
Blowing bubbles, toys, or blocks can help get the idea that they need as much air as they can to blow something.
2) The Chipmunk Cheeks
Once they can take a big breath and blow it all out, they are ready for chipmunk cheeks.
Similarly to how chipmunks hold food in their cheeks, we want kids to hold the air in their mouths without letting it out. The logic here is simple: if your lungs are full of air, there’s no room to suck in the water. This helps lower the possibility of your child sucking in water through their mouth or nose.
Puffing their cheeks out ensures that their lips are sealed and adds a little pressure to help prevent water from going up the nose. Though actually puffing your cheeks out is not required to hold your breath, it gives kids a practical way to know if they are doing it right.
An important note! You can still breath through your nose with chipmunk cheeks. Though rare, some kids can pull of this incredible feat. Hold your finger under their nose to ensure they are not “cheating” by breathing through their nose.
Learning to blow your nose is also a helpful skill, which you can learn about here.
If they can do chipmunk cheeks correctly, they are well on their way to excellent swimming!
3) Counting
Practice with your child by seeing how long they can hold their breath. For beginners, it’s safer to try this out of the water first. Start by counting to 3 seconds and work your way up to 5 seconds. Make it a game! Try challenging your child to see if they can hold their breath for as many seconds as their age. Remember, no cheating! They aren’t allowed to breathe through their nose.
When they seem ready, you can start doing this in the bathtub or the pool.
5 seconds is plenty of time for younger children to hold their breath. Older students should work towards 15 seconds, if they can manage it. No worries if they can’t, 5 seconds is sufficient for now.
Extra Tips
If you find that your child keeps using their nose to breath, have them pinch their nose. You don’t want to make this a habit, but it helps them feel what it is like to hold their breath.
To see if your child is holding their breath underwater, there are a few things to look for. If they cough or choke after resurfacing, they probably sucked in water. This is normal at first. Just give them a minute to recover, encourage them, and try again when they’re ready.
While they are underwater, be on the lookout for any air bubbles coming out of the mouth or nose. This is a sign that the seal has been broken and they need to come up for air.
Closing Thoughts
As always, be attentive to any signs of distress or discomfort from your child. Learning something new like this is not easy, and it takes time! Be patient with them as they bravely practice this life-saving skill. With consistent practice and encouragement, your child will be able to hold their breath and continue taking steps towards becoming a stronger, safer swimmer.
We would love to help you child learn this skill and other life-saving swimming skills. Check out what we have to offer!
