Floats – Kick Boards


The ubiquitous rectangular float has been around unchanged for at least half a century and will probably be around well beyond the next. It is a terrific buoyancy aid, typically held in both hands while the swimmer practices leg movement. Used this way, not only is it helping the swimmer to stay buoyant but it is also keeping the swimmer’s hands and arms still so their only propulsion is via the legs, and in that way their effectiveness can be measured and developed. A swimmer learning backstroke will often have one float under each arm, and progress to a single float held on their chest or held out ahead of their head.

More advanced swimmers may use a float between their legs to give buoyancy when working on their arm stroke. There are specific ‘8’ shaped floats for this purpose, but a traditional thin rectangular float offers more challenge as they more easily come adrift if the swimmer is tempted to use their legs.

A float can be a useful training aid for front crawl, where the swimmer holds a float in one hand while the other hand/arm executes the stroke. This offers both buoyancy as the swimmer slows down their stroke to practice their arm movement. If both arms are used with the float passed from one hand to another during the stroke the technique forces the swimmer to bring their hand in to shoulder width when they are passing the float from one hand to another.

For the very young (and not so young) a float can be used to inject a bit of fun into swimming by being used as a tray to carry a floater. This can take their mind off the mechanics of swimming and help them focus on smooth propulsion, and the younger swimmers will try really hard to look after their charges!