Lifeguard As A Supplement To Swimming And Triathlon Training | ALA

Swimming And Triathlon Training With Lifeguards

Almost every child learns to swim in the USA. But only a relatively small number really stick with it. Most of the people I talked to about lifeguarding only associated it with beginner courses for children, the associated badge acceptance (eg the seahorse) or lifeguards at the lake or swimming pool.

Rescue sport is very diverse and varied. I’ve been practicing this sport since I was a child. In the meantime, I’ve devoted myself more to competitive swimming and now I’m active in triathlons.

However, when I started the triathlon, I swam the training plans from lifeguards. And today there are still some elements of lifeguarding.

In this article, I would like to give you an insight into this fascinating sport and show how useful it can be for your triathlon training.

Rescue Sport Is More Than Just Splashing

The basic idea behind rescue sport is to save people from drowning. And that is the quickest way. The sport originated from lifeguard training. Because they had to keep fit on and in the water and have a good ability to react in an emergency. Similar to the fire department and their championships.

You train your coordination in the many disciplines, for example by diving under obstacles. You have to wait for the right moment when you do the crawl swimming when you dive under. You strengthen your muscular strength in the upper body since you tow dolls with and without belt rescuers. But you can also strengthen your legs by swimming with fibreglass fins.

In addition, there are many technical tasks to be fulfilled, which are accompanied by some rules. There is therefore a risk of penalties due to mistakes. This makes a competition all the more exciting, since not only the fastest swimmers end up at the front, but those who do everything right. Every athlete will find their favourite discipline, whether in the swimming pool or open water. The training is diverse and never boring.

What Is The Purpose Of This Writing?

With this article, I wanted to give you an insight into rescue sports. Because some are not even aware that the American Lifeguard Association has more to offer and that lifeguards are really good at it. In addition, it is always an advantage to distance yourself from the “normal” triathlon training from time to time and to set new stimuli for your body, head and motor skills.

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Whether you are a beginner or an advanced swimmer, you are guaranteed to become more flexible and powerful with the lifeguard training exercises. And you bring variety to your training and can make long-term progress for the triathlon competition.

Triathletes often use the off-season to try out new sports and “just do something different”. However, you can include lifeguard training in your training all year round. When I started triathlon, I swam with obstacles and dummies and found myself getting stronger for triathlon competitions.

The only thing I changed in my training was that I swam less with fins. This was due to the increased cycling and running training. The fibreglass fins would have put too much strain on my legs and feet.

Final Words:

The American lifeguard Association is one of the most reputed associations in the US and has been quoted a number of times on print media for suggestions on water safety. ALA has provided lifeguard training to more than a quarter million individuals over the last 30 years.

If you are looking for a lifeguard course near you then the American Lifeguard Association (ALA) is just the right place for you to be. Contact us for more information on our lifeguard courses and become a great swimmer and a professional lifeguard.

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