Learning to swim early is important for the integral biological, psychological and social development of a child. Swimming positively impacts breathing, the cardiovascular system, bones, muscles and body thermoregulation. If a child is provided with an opportunity to move in water before it learns to walk, it will move in water by pushing forward using both legs simultaneously. This movement will later develop into something similar to breaststroke. If children start with swimming at the age of twelve months, they will move imitating walking, i.e. alternating feet. When they start with early swimming training, children get used to floating in the prone position, i.e. to the basic swimming position.
Swimming maintains and develops the innate swimming reflex as a natural means of moving in water. Swimming positively influences overall child’s development. A child gets accustomed to independent movements in water – it moves forwards and backwards, it halts, rotates and paddles. Play and movement in water, accompanied by an increased breathing rate result in the improvement of endurance. Warm water makes a child feel satisfied and relaxed. It gets some exercise and therefore sleeps better and calmer. Swimming is performed in the horizontal position thus activating all major muscles groups. Regular and systematic exercise in water enables faster development of children who do it in comparison to the children of the same age who do not swim.