Buoyancy Swim shorts

[tbzep]

Thank you everyone for your helpful replies above. I guess it's just going to take some time to discover the right recipe for me to swim and float/tread. When I lie on back, My head tends to sink and it makes me panic.I have seen many people do it apparently effortlessly in the pool. I hope to get there a well.

When I relax in the water, regardless of being on my stomach or back, my torso sinks and I end up vertical with just the crown of my head touching the surface. When I was young and lean, I sank about 3 or 4 ft and more or less hung there. I've never been able to float on my back like others do. In order to stay "on top" I have to use a survival backstroke.

I do it like this, but he's looking at his feet. I have to lean my head back and look into the sky to keep my hips up during the glide. Your head is the key, both the position and the disposition.

 

[TMHeimer]

I can float on my back in salt water (since maybe 7 years old) with my nose & mouth barely out of the water. Not gunna happen in fresh water. Everyone is different with body buoyancy.

 

[northernone]

I'm also dense. Can't float without extreme lung packing from freediving training. In better shape earlier I use to need to also swallow air to fill my stomach as well if I needed to be less uncomfortable in the water. Dove fine, but surface could have killed me. I still don't like swimming but am at least drown proof.

Body type varies.

 

[Neilwood]

I think the thing with the "float" is that you can do (almost) anything to stay afloat for the duration (apart from using floats). That includes drownproofing, gentle swimming, leg kicks, arm strokes, doggie paddle etc.

I can almost float (with a decent lungful) but if I chose not to I find that if I adopt a vertical position a gentle breaststroke kick every 10 secs or very light/slow flutter kick will keep my head up enough. That or a fanning motion with my hands (arms extended with my hands acting as paddles at 45 deg to the surface).

 

[Dive_medic]

Thank you everyone for your helpful replies above. I guess it's just going to take some time to discover the right recipe for me to swim and float/tread. When I lie on back, My head tends to sink and it makes me panic.I have seen many people do it apparently effortlessly in the pool. I hope to get there a well.

When I was doing warm water whitewater sports, I had a pair of shorts that had 1-2mm neoprene in them for the srping and fall melts. That might add a little flotation,

look at the NRS website NRS Men's HydroSkin 1.5 Shorts - Closeout at nrs.com

 

[dmaziuk]

When I lie on back, My head tends to sink and it makes me panic.I have seen many people do it apparently effortlessly in the pool. I hope to get there a well.

The trick is don't panic: you need to be fully relaxed. I float with just my lips and nose out of the water (goggles help), and I have to hold my breath and do short exhale-inhales to actually float -- not as effortless as it may look. I think the real value of it is learning to be so comfortable in the water as to relax completely, so: don't panic.

 

[TMHeimer]

I'll stick to my guns in that everyone differs. If completely relaxed in fresh water all of me will sink. When drown-proofing, even then my head will go a bit under with full lungs. Then I will have to kick or use arms to get my head out for another breath.