Health - Well-being. Learning to swim as an adult: solutions exist!

At the end of May, Public Health France published its annual report on drownings that occurred during the summer of 2024. This highlighted " a continued high number" of drownings, "particularly fatal ones ," the document states.

And to learn that adults " represent 56% of drowning victims and those under 6 years old a little more than a quarter (29%) ."

Body of water, private swimming pool…

According to Santé Publique France, " among drownings followed by death, nine out of ten involve adults. Across all ages, approximately half of drowning deaths occur in rivers or bodies of water. For other locations, the majority of drowning deaths among adults occur at sea, while drownings followed by death among those under 18 mainly occur in private swimming pools ."

Specific courses

These figures highlight the importance of learning to swim, or even to manage in the water, regardless of age. To this end, the Ministry of Sports has developed programs called "I'm Learning to Swim" and "Aisance Aquatique " (Water Ease). These programs specifically target children aged 4 to 12, as well as adults over 45.

To benefit from this program, simply contact a local swimming club. And if you're under 45, most municipalities also offer weekly slots dedicated to adult swimming lessons in their pools. Just head to the reception desk of the aquatic center in question.

For adults, the process often begins with the challenge of overcoming their fear of water. To this end, the association Le pied dans l'eau relies on its own unique formula: " You have to be comfortable in the water to learn to swim, not learn to swim to be comfortable in the water ."

Learning should therefore ideally take place in a learning pool, of course with an educator.

Gently…

Then, before learning to swim, it's mainly about feeling your body floating in the water, an essential condition for " accepting to let yourself be carried. At this point, you will be able to move (or swim) with pleasure in the deep end ," the association specifies. It lists the different stages:

• immersion, meaning putting one's head under water;
• breathing to manage your breath calmly;
• balance in water, on the back, on the stomach or sitting;
• mobility, which involves knowing how to propel oneself in or under water.

Once you've completed these steps, you can then head to the deep end and continue your learning through the different strokes: crawl, breaststroke, or backstroke.