UP-FACES®

Rhythmic breathing is an important element in the process of swimming. Having good breath control and the ability to exchange air allows swimmers of all ages to swim longer distances more efficiently. 

At LPB, new students, regardless of age, learn to hold their breath when their faces are in the water. Instead of blowing bubbles, we want swimmers to inflate their lungs and hold their breath while swimming. This method is superior for a few reasons:

• The inflated lungs offer extra buoyancy to the swimmer, and buoyancy along with balance and breath control are the three foundation skills that make swimming possible.
• A held breath allows us to swim face down or dive longer since the alveoli of the lungs continue to hold some oxygen.
• A held breath also allows a big exhalation during the Up-Face, which is immediately followed by a big inhalation. This good exchange of air will allow for maximum efficiency while swimming – just like whales!

We teach Up-Faces® in our Aquatic Classrooms® to students as a more developmentally appropriate way to complete that necessary exchange of air. Child Development is one of our Core Values at La Petite Baleen, informing every method we use to help our students learn swimming and life skills. 

So what is an Up-Face®? 

An Up-Face® is a coordinated movement during a dog-paddle swim. Dog paddling is the most child-developmentally friendly way for children to learn to swim since it closely mimics the same body movements as crawling. In fact, the dog paddle imitates a baby’s crawl, as this motor skill fosters the formation of the most synapse connections across the midline of the brain, promoting enhanced brain development. Also, the prone position is an ideal swim position because it spreads body weight for best buoyancy. While kicking and paddling, we teach our students to lift their chin, expel their air, grab a new breath in a Balloon Face, and return their face to the water to continue their swim – in other words, a breath exchange. Just like a whale!

Why do we call it an Up-Face® and not just a breath? Because it’s a kid-friendly term that quickly indicates to everyone that it involves a face coming up out of the water. When we keep our students focused on fun, they often don’t realize how much they’re actually learning. Fun fact: our teacher training manual has a two-page glossary of fun and imaginative terms we use during lessons to help our young swimmers better understand what we’re asking them to do.

Instead of rolling to the side for a breath, we teach our young swimmers to lift their heads for a forward-facing exhalation followed immediately by an inhalation. That exchange of air is the Up-Face® – one of the foundations of our learn-to-swim program. Students as young as toddlers can begin working on the Up-Face® swim, but the key component – the held breath – is taught from day one.