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How I Learned to Swim After Age 50

Overcoming decades of fear around water — plus how to improve your swimming


spinner image a woman in a swimming pool
Inspired by her grandchildren, Maria Rodriguez faced her fears and learned to swim later in life.
Thomas Simonetti

Maria Rodriguez, 67, approached the Venice, Florida, YMCA pool deck, then backed away.

As with so many other people, earlier traumatic experiences stood in her way, preventing her from learning to swim despite its numerous benefits.

Rodriguez grew up around water on Pico Island, Portugal, but never learned to swim. Though she often went with her brothers to the ocean, there were no beaches where she lived. The land was rocky, the water was deep, and currents could be strong, so she’d use an old tire as a floatation device when she ventured in.

“They didn’t know I didn’t know how to swim or breathe in the water and how fearful I was,” says Rodriguez, now a grandmother of four grandchildren, ranging from 2 to 8 years old.

Affable yet soft-spoken, Rodriguez describes herself as “nervous, humble and shy.” Those traits were barriers that she had to break through to learn the basics of swimming, after which she started to gain the confidence she had lost four decades ago.

spinner image a coach talking with a swimmer being instructed
A traumatic experience in her youth made Maria Rodriguez afraid of swimming, but at age 67, she gathered enough courage to sign up for swim lessons at the YMCA in Venice, Florida.
Thomas Simonetti

A terrifying plunge

In her mid-20s, Rodriguez was at a poolside celebration while visiting a brother in Canada when a partygoer playfully pulled at the towel she was resting on, causing her to topple down to the bottom of the pool. Someone jumped in to rescue her, but after that, she was always afraid of water.

It wasn’t until her mid-30s that Rodriguez was able to approach the water again, with the encouragement of her second husband, Hector, but she went in only up to her knees. Rodriguez would take her two sons — now ages 40 and 43 — to the beach and to pools to ensure that they were comfortable in the water.

The argument for learning to swim is compelling: Nearly 2,000 people age 50 and older died from unintentional drowning in the United States in 2022, says Tessa Clemens, a health scientist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Injury Prevention. That number accounts for nearly half of the 4,000 annual drowning deaths, according to a recent report from the CDC. Drowning death rates among those over 65 have been increasing for decades, with 15 percent of U.S. adults age 45 to 64 reporting that they don’t know how to swim. For adults 65 and older, that figure is 19 percent.

The deaths disproportionately affect some age, racial and ethnic groups. Rates are consistently highest among males, Black Americans and Native American peoples or Alaska Natives. Some 55 percent of U.S. adults age 45 to 64 have never taken a swimming lesson; 57 percent of those 65 and older have never done so. Although Rodriquez’s brothers learned to swim, no one in her family had lessons.

Water, water everywhere

After immigrating to the United States in 1979, Rodriguez met her husband. They settled in Middleton, Rhode Island, where she already lived with two children from a previous marriage. Although she couldn’t swim herself, she got her children into swimming lessons at early ages, and they became competitive swimmers.

Rodriguez devoted her adult life to supporting other family members: as a parent of two sons who became extensively active in their education and after-school activities as an involved grandparent, and assisting her husband in the success of his financial planning business. 

A snowbird, she toggles between living in Venice and Aquidneck Island, Rhode Island — both communities geographically embraced by water.

Although she was often around water with her family, she made sure she was never at the beach or pool with her grandchildren without her husband or sons, who are “awesome swimmers,” she says. She didn’t talk to them about not being able to swim.

“To me, that was something that was painful inside my heart, but the fear and the anxiety of the water overcame the other part of me that wanted to learn,” she says

spinner image a swimmer is swimming while a coach looks on
Swim coach Daved Back gently encouraged Rodriguez to feel safe in the water at the YMCA pool.
Thomas Simonetti

Taking the plunge

Watching a video of her youngest granddaughter getting ready to start swim lessons prompted Rodriguez to face her fear and seek out lessons of her own.

She drove to the YMCA in Venice, parked and then drove away. Finally, she gathered the courage to go back, walk through the door and ask to see the athletic director about swimming lessons.

The woman at the desk asked if the lessons were for her children or grandchildren. “I’m going to admit to you, it’s not for the kids or grandchildren — it’s for myself,” she told her. The director wasn’t there, and the employee asked Rodriguez if she could have her phone number so he could give her a call.

“I said, ‘No, thank you very much. I’m leaving.’ I lost the energy at the moment. I turn around and who walks in but the athletic director,” Rodriguez says, adding she was “speechless.” He convinced her to stay.

The day Rodriguez showed up to the pool deck for her first lesson with her instructor, David Back, she eyed the water, then backed away from the pool’s edge. Back, a competitive swimmer who coaches and teaches swimmers of all ages and abilities, gently encouraged her.

“His passion, talent and caring to teach swimming came through on our first meeting,” Rodriguez says. “He knew I was doubtful and very afraid of the water and afraid to fail.”

Back coaxed her back to the edge and had her go down steps into the shallow end of the pool. He went in with her, holding her hand. He had her get used to the feeling of standing in the pool, then they worked on exhaling underwater. After a few weeks of Back’s guidance, she could jump into the deep end, level off and save herself if necessary. She first learned backstroke, then progressed to freestyle strokes. She’s now almost able to swim the length of the 25-yard pool.

“Coach Dave assured me with confidence, humor, respect that I would be safe in his care and in the water. Even when doubt started to creep back, he would not let me give up. He let me know he believed in me,” she says. “As I learn how to swim, I am starting to believe in myself again.”

Rodriguez says the most rewarding part came when she was able to float on her back and look up at the sky.

She told Back, “I missed too much in my entire life. This is so relaxing.”

spinner image a swimmer and coach working on different things in the pool
At first, coach David Back had to coax Maria Rodriguez to the edge of the pool and held her hand as she walked into the water. As she gained confidence, he taught her how to exhale underwater, float and jump into the deep end. “Even when doubt started to creep back, he would not let me give up,” Rodriguez says.
Thomas Simonetti

Family support

After learning to swim, she told her younger son she was conquering her fear by taking lessons.

Her son was surprised, and she says he told her, “I never knew you didn’t swim because you were so into our swim lessons and competitions in high school.”

Rodriguez, who sees a physical therapist for herniated disks, says swimming is also great for her health.

“I am hopeful that learning to be comfortable in the water and swim a little will lead me to many happy moments with my husband, children, grandchildren and in exploring the wonders of the sea, like snorkeling,” Rodriguez says.

Back says there are many reasons older Americans never learned to swim, including parental neglect, being too busy and lacking desire or access to a pool. Although some schools and districts require that students learn to swim, no state or federal laws mandate swimming lessons, and there certainly weren’t any when those who are now age 50 and older were in school.

Many swim instructors say the primary reason many adults are reluctant to take swim lessons is a past trauma or embarrassment that they hadn’t sought lessons earlier. 

A gentle process

Throwing a child — or adult — into a pool “is not how you do it,” Back notes. “When that happens, you blow someone’s confidence all over the place. Maria is a prime example. She was tossed in the water. She almost drowned. Not only did it hinder her from swimming at such a young age, it set her up for failure because, ‘Hey, everybody can swim. No, they can’t. You just threw me in water, and I can’t swim now.’ ”

Get the gear

In addition to a swimsuit, an investment in swimming also includes swim goggles for eye protection, a swim cap to protect your hair and keep it from shedding in the pool, and ear plugs to reduce the risk of ear health issues. Over-the-counter products can be applied in ears after swimming to help dry the ear canal.

Rash guards are long-sleeved form-fitting shirts rated with an ultraviolet protection factor — the best offer 50-plus protection. Water gear like kickboards, pull buoys, swim fins, hand paddles and snorkels help refine technique.

In addition to physical and emotional health benefits, knowing how to swim provides a person with safety benefits as well, such as understanding unsafe water conditions and clearly knowing their capabilities and limitations, Back says.

Knowing how to swim and the basics of lifesaving could mean being able to save a grandchild or someone else struggling in the water, even if that’s getting in the water yourself and handing someone a noodle or towel to help get them back to safety.

While there are those who approach Back with excitement to learn to swim, he says when someone approaches the water with anxiety, “first they have to recognize there’s a problem. If they could do it, there would not be a problem. The biggest thing is confidence.”

Learning to swim boosts confidence, Back notes, pointing to Rodriguez as an example.

spinner image a swimmer is floating in a pool
Rodriguez first learned backstroke, then progressed to freestyle strokes. She’s now able to swim the length of the 25-yard pool.
Thomas Simonetti

A splashing good time

While water can be dangerous for those who don’t know how to swim, for those who do, Back says water is synonymous with fun.

“We either get in the water to get in shape, which is fun, or we get in the water to have fun. The world is 70 percent water. You are cutting out a whole aspect of life that is fun,” he says.

Back says tackling a deep-seated fear of swimming transcends learning to swim. “It is about the virtuous things of life that this teaches you — to put aside your fears,” he says.

Back cautions that people shouldn’t compare themselves to others. “Every adult I coach, they all have come to me with different baggage, different experience,” he says. “My goal is to have them set their own goals. I like to say, ‘Why don’t you just try to be 1 percent better than you were yesterday, not better than someone else.’ ”

According to the CDC, swimming’s physical and mental benefits include improved health for people with chronic illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease and arthritis.

Dawson Hughes, CEO of U.S. Masters Swimming (USMS), adds that swimming lowers blood pressure, aids in weight loss and weight maintenance, and benefits the immune system. It also lowers stress, improves self-esteem, reduces depression and anxiety, and improves problem-solving skills and memory, he says.

Fountain of youth

Rodriguez advises others to contemplate the role that anxiety plays in not wanting to swim. “Do not let time go by because you can use this technique of swimming all the way into your 80s and 90s,” she says. “You feel more comfortable to go to exercise class in the water. It’s better for your joints, your body and your soul because it’s relaxing. Now that I have a little bit of this experience, I can say I feel very relaxed floating in the water.”

Rodriquez looks forward to using her newfound confidence by going to pools and beaches more and even using a kayak and paddleboard she purchased a few years ago.

Slowing down the aging process is swimming’s most important benefit, Hughes says, noting that an older swimmer’s biological age can be as much as 20 years younger than their chronological age. He calls the sport a fountain of youth.  

How to become a better swimmer

Adults can seek out swimming lessons from local YMCA facilities, U.S. Masters Swimming, municipal aquatic complexes, and private instructors.

When older adults have previously experienced trauma surrounding swimming, it’s important to learn through a certified instructor, says Hughes.

USMS instructors are taught how best to work with older swimmers so they can enjoy the many health and fitness benefits swimming provides, Hughes says. USMS rolls out its “Try Masters Swimming” campaign in August. New and more advanced swimmers can try two free workouts with a participating club. Those new to swimming will learn to breathe properly in the water, then move on to strokes such as freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly.

The American Red Cross offers these swim tips:

  • Make sure you can jump into the water, submerge yourself completely and bring yourself to the surface.
  • Once you have returned to the surface, float or tread water for one minute. When treading water, stay relaxed so you don’t overexert yourself.
  • Turn around in a full circle and find an exit. Knowing how to get out of the water is as important as getting in the water.
  • Swim 25 yards to the exit without stopping.
  • If you are in a pool, exit the water without using the ladder.

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