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The Little Lilypad is a lifestyle blog mostly written by a mum to two beautiful, cheeky and entertaining daughters. It is sometimes written by the Man on the Pad or by one of our baby bloggers. Occasionally we accept guest posts too. There is frequently talk of sustainable living, saving money, lifestyle and travel. It is hopefully helpful, sometimes funny and always honest.
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Why should I take my baby swimming when they are small?

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Just in case I've not written about it enough, our house loves swimming. For a long time my mum took our smallest to her Water Babies lessons, as they were on a day when I'm working. When the chance came to move to a Sunday morning lesson, I took it instantly - I love being in the water with her and seeing her learn. With summer coming and this being the busiest time of year for people wanting to learn more about baby swimming and baby swimming lessons, I asked Tamsin if she'd write for me about all the things people usually ask me when I'm telling them how much we love our Water Babies lessons...
 
The first thing I'm asked is "Why should I take my baby swimming when they are small? Are there really any benefits to starting early on?"
 
Over to Tamsin....
 
To be honest, I don't know where to start - there are so many benefits of baby swimming lessons!

Water safety is the main reason that most parents chose to take their baby swimming. By introducing your baby to the water at a young age, they become familiar with the environment and would not panic in the event that they fell in water. Swimming is also extremely beneficial for your baby’s cognitive and physical development. Physically, the water allows babies to exercise muscles that they can’t on land as it eliminates the constraints of gravity by providing a supportive environment. Also, the repetitive movements of bouncing and splashing provide a great stimulation for a baby’s sense of motion, co-ordination and balance.

Water Babies

This in turn also helps cognitive development. During your baby’s first year of life, their brain will grow more rapidly than at any other time and every movement they make helps to boost this growth. Swimming provides a complete physical workout for your baby, strengthening the heart, lungs and respiratory system which, in turn, promotes brain development.Learning to respond to voice commands used in swimming lessons can also make babies sharper mentally and increases levels of understanding.

And one of the best bits?  Regular swimming in warm water both relaxes your baby and stimulates their appetite, leading to improved sleeping and eating patterns!

I'm so pleased to have opportunity to share with you here on the Little Lilypad, about how great swimming is for you and your baby. But for now, I just want to encourage you to get in the pool, book a baby swimming lesson with any of the Water Babies teachers across the UK and beyond, because it's something that I love and feel privileged to be able to share with families. Seeing the happiness on the face of our babies and their mums, dads, grandparents and carers makes all our hard work behind the scenes worthwhile.

If you have any questions about anything baby swimming related, please call us on 01295 709221 or email us at [email protected] as we're always happy to talk about our favourite subject!

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Comments

  1. I have terrible memories of taking my eldest to swimming lessons when he was tiny, so i didn't bother with the younger two, but we did take them ourselves regular which helps. x

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  2. Mammasaurus

    This is something we wish we had done when our were tiny!

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  3. My two LOVE swimming and they're actually there right now while I get to relax on my own for an hour or so. They go at least once a week and never get sick of going. You're so right to talk about starting them young!

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  4. My boys have both been to lessons from a young age. It gave them a confidence with water, and they learned some valuable safety lessons before they could swim.

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  5. I regret not taking my children swimming when they were babies, especially Tigger who hates going in the water

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  6. I wish I had taken my children swimming when they were little. They swam as they were older but by then we had the fear to overcome and my hatred of getting my face wet. Getting babies in the water when tiny is SO important. This is a great post

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  7. We love swimming too. Started with Little Dippers when my son was around 6-months old and then when I returned to work, we could not get a weekend class because they were so popular. I finally managed to register him for after school lessons 2-years ago and we go every week and he loves it! I have never felt prouder watching his confidence grow in the water. A life skill, I think too.

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  8. I knew there was a natural reflex to swimming in the first 6 months but was unaware of all these added benefits. My niece has been swimming since she was born pretty much so I would love to get in the pool with her now and see how well she is doing (she is 1)

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  9. We used to take our little one swimming but in the end I couldn't keep up with the classes due to work commitments. I'm keen to get started again though. X

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  10. If I had my time again I would definitely take my children swimming regularly from a young age. We go every 2 weeks now - it is the cost that is our barrier now. £16 for a family swim at our local council pool is a lot :-( There's no denying the benefits though x

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  11. I always find it so interesting how babies are so good at swimming underwater with their eyes open! Even I can't do that haha

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  12. my daughter has had a dislocated hip and swimming has been her saviour (apart from when in spica obviously!) she is at home in the water and swimming is more natural than walking for her.

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