Healthful Sports for Boys Part 6

THE LEGS

While the arm movements can be greatly varied, there can be, in the nature of things, no such variation in the action of the legs. It is said, and truthfully, that the motion of the legs of a human swimmer are much like the motion of a frog's hind legs when swimming. That is, the boy draws his legs up simultaneously and kicks them out in the same way, but in so doing he is not imitating a frog, for if he works the limbs together there is no other possible way in which he can do it under water. The frog's breast stroke is another story. A man swims very much as does a frog, though he cannot do so well under water as the amphibian. The legs are kicked in the same way and there is the same motion of the arms of one as of the forelegs of the other.

Some swimming teachers believe that the main reliance is the legs, but this has not been my experience, and I have seen many swimmers in many waters. The legs steady the body, but it is the arms that make for speed as well as for steering, though on the back it is the legs that do the business.

HOW TO DO IT

Bring your hands together under your chin, with the palms down, fingers straight, close together, and pointing in the direction you are about to move. Next shove the two hands straight out in front of you, keeping your thumbs touching. As your hands are pushed forward, kick backward with your legs, as previously described. When the knees are straight, the legs will be spread wide apart. Bring them together, and, if you time this properly, your position will now be that of an arrow, the point being your extended hands.

While the arms and legs alike do their share in the propulsion of the body, the legs perform by far the most important work, and the importance of a good "kick" cannot be too strongly urged. Though the action of the soles of the feet upon the water helps the "drive," the momentum is also given by the "wedge" of water embraced and driven backwards by the action of the backs of the thighs and calves, as they almost come together at the completion of the leg stroke. Hence, the wider the stretch the more powerful the "drive," and the beginner should try to rival as closely as possible that acrobatic performance known as "the splits" when trying to master the kick. The action of arms and legs is alternate; that is to say, when the legs are making their sweep, the arms are thrown forward to their fullest extent, thus helping to sustain the upper part of the trunk, and serving as a prow or cut.w.a.ter; then, during the first part of the arm stroke, the legs, almost touching after finis.h.i.+ng their work, remain stiff and extended, so as to offer as little resistance as possible. These positions are but momentary, but their rigid observance is necessary to ensure pace with the least expenditure of force.

THE ARMS

The breast stroke will require some practice, and this can be helped by out-of-the-water exercise. Close your fingers tightly, but not so as to be very conscious of the effort. In this position, bring them up till the chin rests on the two thumbs, which are side by side and parallel. Next separate the hands, fingers still close together, shoot them edgewise as far in front as you can reach, then with the flat palms and closed fingers to the resisting water, draw them smartly back, like oars.

For the second stroke, draw the arms edgewise to the first position and repeat as often as may be necessary. This exercise will strengthen the arm and shoulder muscles and greatly facilitate the movements when you come to use them in swimming.

Be careful always to bear in mind the following rules: Keep the head thrown back so as to clear the mouth and chin. Try to swim as low as possible. The lower and the nearer level the plane in which the body lies in the water, the less the waste of power and the greater the speed, so that all rising and falling must be avoided, and nothing seen below the chin. Always keep the trunk steady and the spine hollowed, avoiding all squirming, wriggling and bending, while the motions must be made steadily, avoiding all hurry. Exhale your breath when the hands are extended in front supporting the head, and inhale as they are brought back--an action which expands the chest and gives you almost instinctively the signal for taking breath, which should be inhaled through the nose as much as possible.

CHAPTER IX

METHODS OF SWIMMING, FLOATING, DIVING, AND SOME GOOD WATER GAMES

Some girls, after they have learned the alphabet of music, and are able to play elementary scales on the piano, are eager to surprise themselves and annoy their listeners by starting in to play tunes, if indeed they are not ambitious to tackle grand opera. But the wise learner is satisfied to take one step at a time, and before going on he is sure that he can do the previous steps reasonably well.

I am old enough to have boys of my own, still I hope I shall never be so old as to forget my own boyhood, nor to feel that much of the boy nature does not still keep with me; and this is why I advise my boy friends who read this to learn surely whatever they undertake; in this case it is swimming.

After you can manage the breast stroke well, try the side stroke, which you will find more speedy, but it has its disadvantages in a long swim, by reason of the tension thrown on the muscles of the neck in keeping the head thrown so far back from its normal position, while the chest and shoulders, square to the front, offer considerable resistance to the water. History has not handed down the name of the founder of the side stroke, but he deserves canonization equally with the man who ate the first oyster. Nature evidently intended man to swim on his side, as in this position the body moves more easily in the water, to which it offers less resistance, while the action of the arms is not so fatiguing, and the head is supported by the water at its proper angle to the trunk.

There is no arbitrary rule as to which side you shall swim on, left or right being a pure matter of choice; but while I think the left is preferable, as it gives greater play to the right arm, the right is the usual side "put on" by the majority. The great thing is to be able to swim equally well on either, as this enables you to keep your face to the breakers in a rough sea on whichever tack you lay your course.

When you have mastered this stroke you will seem to move forward continuously, and not in a succession of jerks, as with the breast stroke. The natives of the South Sea Islands, who are, to my thinking, the best swimmers in the world, use this stroke for a long, steady swim, and I have been surprised at the speed they make and the length of time with which they can keep it up without a sign of fatigue.

RACING

The racing stroke is effective for speed, but it soon wears out all but the strong, expert swimmer. In acquiring it you must remember that pace is the great desideratum, and, consequently, rapidity of action is requisite. To gain this you must combine two movements in one, by striking with the propeller on whichever side you swim at the same time as the feet, the sustainer acting in the same manner as before.

As the legs are brought up for the kick the propeller is lifted clear of the water, the arm being slightly bent in a graceful curve, and thrown forward in an arc to its fullest extent, the hand being held in the scoop-like position it maintains in the water. Now kick, and bring the propeller simultaneously downwards and backwards, with a bold and vigorous sweep, until it reaches the thigh when the elbow is bent, drawing the hand upwards to be thrown forward again. As this stroke is being made, shoot out the sustainer quickly forwards, and while this arm is pulled in towards the body the legs and propeller are quickly brought into action for the next stroke. The learner will have to count one, two, only in effecting this movement, as, when the propeller and legs are striking, the sustainer is shot out, and _vice versa_.

OTHER WAYS

Swimming on the back is very easy, once the confidence is a.s.sured. In this method the hands are folded on the breast, or still better, kept under the water and close to the sides. This done, the feet are drawn up together, as in breast swimming, and then kicked out together. As the arms are the chief driving power, swimming on the back is at best but a slow, jerky method of proceeding, but if one has not learned to float, it is a good way to rest for a bit in a long swim.

Some swimmers, particularly those that are narrow chested or lank and lean, can never learn to float, though once you know how, it is easier and far more comfortable than "falling off a log."

At first, when learning to float on your back, and by the way that is the only way to do it properly, you will find yourself sinking slowly, feet foremost, until you seem to be standing up, and must use some exercise to keep afloat; but you can learn.

Before lying flat on your back, inflate your lungs fully; as you do so you will be surprised to see how you seem to lift out of the water.

Now, before your lungs are exhausted, for you will sink as they empty, breathe deeply again and exhaust slowly as before, keeping your arms by your sides and your legs close together and extended.

Don't expect to float like a life boat at the first try, for you are not built along life boat lines; but if you stick at it, and make the experiment at least once every time you go in swimming, you will float well before the summer is over.

GOING IN

If you know the water, the best way to enter it is by a quick plunge or a straight dive.

To walk into the water and "duck" is rather an ignominious proceeding, only to be excused in the novice or the lady bather we see at our watering-places bobbing up and down at the end of a rope. The swimmer should not rest content until he is able to plunge in like a workman; but first, a word of caution! Never attempt to dive unless you know that the water is deep enough for the purpose.

Many serious accidents have occurred from this mistake, notably when bathing at sea. An incautious plunge from the s.h.i.+p's side into the sail bath extemporized overboard to ward off any danger from sharks has resulted fatally to the rash swimmer, and at all times danger attends rash plunging.

It is, nevertheless, astonis.h.i.+ng into what shallow water an expert can fearlessly dive from a height, his arms and head emerging almost before the feet have disappeared beneath the surface. The diver needs to be very quick of hand and eye, and many accidents attest the fact of the game not being worth the candle.

I have seen bathers extend the arms over their heads and fall forward, which generally entails a smart tingling of the chest and stomach, as the body is almost certain to drop flat on the surface.

A very neat plunge, which requires practice and a little pluck, is made by standing erect on the brink edge or board and, instead of springing from the board, allowing the body, kept rigid, to fall forward until it attains the proper distance, then suddenly throw up the feet and plunge in like an arrow and without a splash.

UNDER WATER

It requires some practice to swim under water, but you can soon do it.

It is well to learn how to keep the eyes open under water. This is no more difficult nor painful than it is to keep them open in the air.

This skill may be of great use in locating a body that has sunk for the last time. Many such cases have been brought up and restored to consciousness, under proper treatment.

WATER GAMES

are not as many as land games, but some of them afford good sport. One of these is "Water Bladder," which requires good swimmers, at least they must not be afraid of the water.

To play this game place two places, for goals, at proper distances where the water is overhead, and mark each with crossed rods, the tops about a foot out of water. Divide the party into two sides and take your positions as in an old-fas.h.i.+oned game of football. At the word "Ready," the umpire, who is on the sh.o.r.e or at some convenient point, throws an inflated bladder between the opposite sides. The object of the players is to send the bladder over the enemy's goal, and the rules are very simple. It is foul to interfere with an opponent by putting your hands on him, it is foul to use more than one hand in handling the bladder, but you may swim in front of a man, dive under him, in fact "interfere" in every way you can. Each goal counts one point, and five points make a game.

TUB RACES

One might suppose that this would come under the head of boating, but one would be mistaken, for it properly belongs to swimming, as any one who has witnessed or taken part in such a race will tell you.

Each contestant supplies himself with an ordinary washtub. At the word "Go!" he places it in the water, climbs in as best he can, and paddles with his hands for the taw line. This is great fun, and if one out of ten gets through he may count himself fortunate. He may not succeed a second time and will not if the others can help it.

When I was a boy we had no end of sport in running and diving from a springboard. This, as you know, is a long, strong board--the longer the better--one end of which is firmly fixed in the bank and weighted with logs or stones; but no matter how weighted you must see to it that it does not get out of balance.

The free end projects over the water at any desired angle, and care must be taken at the start to see that there are no stones or snags from which harm may come below the surface.

It would be difficult to find anything more graceful than a lot of slender boys speeding up this spring-board and shooting out, feet first or head first, into the river, pond or swimming pool.

When a boy can turn a somersault from the end of the board, and come down feet foremost in a clean-cut way, he may be said to be an expert.

Contrary to the belief of those who have not tried it, it is much easier to turn a back than a forward somersault, though neither can be achieved without some practice.

In the back somersault great care should be taken that the diver leaps far, so as to be free and clear of the board when he turns; otherwise his head may strike with bad results.