Freestyle Breathing - The Bob

Breathing is a huge challenge for a lot of people when it comes to swimming. One of the most important skills to master is learning to inhale when your face is out of the water, exhale when your face is in the water. Inefficient air exchange creates anxiety and leads to exhaustion. Think of breathing when you run or do any other form of exercise on land: keeping your breathing consistent is crucial. It’s the same in the water. 

If this is something you struggle with, one very easy way to work on this is The Bob. 

There is another video that I find super useful (which has additional tips and drills for improving breathing) from SwimSmooth Louisville and TriSwimmingBlog.com here.

I use The Bob with all new swimmers, adults and kids. If breathing while swimming is still challenging for you, take a few minutes at the beginning of each workout and do 5 sets of 10 bobs, taking a break in between each set. As you get more comfortable with it, move to deeper water. It might seem dumb, but this a simple and really effective way to improve breath control.