Swimming

Swimming describes a large variety of aquatic activities: competitive swimming, recreational swimming, aquatic exercise, water sports (such as water polo, synchronized swimming, underwater hockey), or keeping afloat in order to survive.

It is hard to say if swimming is an instinct; human beings develop for nine months while living in amniotic fluid and while we are babies, the "swimming movement" happens by reflex when we are in a non-static freeform environment (such as being held up in the air, or when being bathed). This motion usually starts two weeks and lasts around five months post-birth.

The athletic merits of swimming are great; the mass of water provides an element of resistence with every stroke, providing a cardiovascular workout.

Competitive swimming

There are a few different categories for competitive swimming. The most common form are distance swims, which are judged in various meter-length categories; the amount of times actually traversed from one end of the pool to the other depends on its length and the distance of that heat. Swimming races are held in the summer Olympics.

Additionally, there are so called "iron-man" competitions where the distances are much greater. There are records for individuals that have swam such bodies of water as the English Channel.

Recreational swimming

It is not uncommon for either owners of houses equipped with pools or local community pools to host "pool parties", in which participants are encouraged to show up with appropriate swimming attire and various pool toys, such as dive rings, air cushions, foam noodles and inner tubes.

An unusual form of recreation comes from swimmers that choose to swim during the winter. These are known as "Polar Bear Clubs". One such organization, the The Coney Island Polar Bear Club is the oldest winter bathing organization in the United States.