2 Ways to Save Yourself From Drowning According to Olympic Swimmers

[Music] two ways to save yourself from drowning even the most experienced swimmers can find themselves in a situation where something has gone wrong and they start to drown that's why it's crucial to know what to do and what not to do in the scenario one day this knowledge might save your life remember to click the subscription button and ring the notification bell to join us on the bright side of life first of all let's have a look at some statistics about drowning in fact drowning is one of the most widespread causes of death worldwide with regards to the u.s. there were approximately 3,500 unintentionally fatal drownings a year from 2005 to 2014 this means that approximately 10 people lost their lives in the water every day sadly according to specialists most of these deaths could be avoided if people knew what to do in a critical situation and that would be don't panic surprisingly when a person is drowning they need to fight not the water but their instincts the thing is when somebody feels that they aren't in control of the situation they start to flail as hard as they can by panicking they make themselves submerge deeper and deeper as a result they get exhausted quickly and can't stay afloat long enough to wait for help the first thing you should always remember is that the human body has a natural ability to float the only necessary condition is that the lungs are filled with air so as long as you're taking regular breaths you won't drown unfortunately you can't hold your breath forever when you exhale the air that keeps you buoyant you sink into the water for a short period of time that is when you might start to panic and as you know panic is what you need to avoid by all means since it's the most common cause of drowning experienced lifeguards can easily draw a picture of a typical drowner a person realizes they're in trouble they attend to attract attention by waving their arms but this brings them out of the water according to the laws of physics they become heavier and start to sink faster instinctively this person starts to struggle to get up in the gas upper air but these hectic movements pull them underwater so what's rule number one try to keep your panic at bay and please don't stop breathing assuming you've managed to overcome your panic you're on track to breathe normally now it's time to conserve energy so that you can wait for help to arrive you can do this by assuming one of two positions either floating on the water or treading water first of all let's see how to tread water correctly your body has to stay upright and your head should be above the surface you need to move your arms and legs to keep yourself afloat you can use your arms and legs together just your legs or just your arms try to shift your arms horizontally back and forth if you start moving them up and down you'll begin the bob around as a result you'll waste a lot of precious energy make sure your palms face the direction of your arms movements there are several ways to move your legs when you're treading water your instincts can make you use a frog kick aka breast stroke or a flutter kick used in freestyle if you're still too anxious you might even start to move your legs in circles but although all these techniques will make your body move upward you'll waste too much energy the best way to move your legs is to rotate each leg in a different direction this motion may take some time to master but once you do you can stay in the water vertically for hours remember that one of the most important things about treading water is being calm and breathing slowly this way you won't get tired and you will improve your energy efficiency as well you're doing it correctly if you're bobbing up and down a little on the waves the second way to stay on the surface of the water until somebody comes to rescue you it's to float on your back this is the best way to calm yourself and breathe normally try to position your body in such a way that it's almost parallel to the ocean floor your head should be tilted backward make sure your ears are submerged admittedly it's not the most pleasant sensation but if your ears aren't underwater your neck will feel a serious strain as a result you won't be able to float effortlessly also this head position is very important since it will make your legs rise to the surface this way you'll be lying on the water in addition your mouth will stay above the surface meaning that you'll be able to breathe freely keep your chin lifted so that it points toward the sky paradoxically this simple movement can make your body more buoyant make sure your head is centered as long as it is your whole body is balanced so don't try to turn your head to one side or the other you should pay particular attention to the position of your arms you can either bend them at the elbows and move your palms under your head or straighten your arms and keep them close to your body the most important thing is to remember that your palms have to face the sky if you want to float for as long as possible it's vital to push your body upward to do so try arching your upper back slightly this will move your chest and stomach out of the water by no means should you bend your body downward if you do so the middle of your body will start to sink and you won't be able to float your body has to form a straight line together with your legs if you feel your legs begin to submerge you can make some small kicks there's no need to do this all the time just float on your back and whenever you feel your lower body start to move downward take your legs to return to the surface one more important thing about floating is connected with your breathing namely how big your breath should be we've determined that a person floats as long as they have air in it would be logical to suppose that the bigger lungfuls you take the better you float however there's a catch when you exhale a deep breath your body sinks into the water more deeply this happens because the difference between the volume of air inside and outside the lungs is too great that's why the best way to stay afloat is to breathe in medium sized lungfuls of air and don't hold your breath this will lead to a buildup of co2 and this won't help you on the contrary you'll get out of breath much sooner and once again if you find yourself pulled away from the shore or you've fallen out of a boat don't panic use your knowledge of floating or treading water and conserve your energy while you're waiting for help have you ever experienced any water related accidents share your stories in the comments below remember to give this video a like share it with your friends and click Subscribe stay safe and happy on the bright side of life

Channel: BRIGHT SIDE

Views: 3,159,683

Keywords: survival tips, drowning, save your life, stay afloat, floating, treading water, water-related accidents

Id: yt8M6qFBT5Y

Length: 7min 19sec (439 seconds)

Published: Thu Nov 08 2018