Can I learn to swim (better) by swimming or do I need training?

I can swim, like the kinda swimming you learn when you're a kid, but I've never improved it and am not really good at it. It's enough to keep me from drowning in a pool or lake and maybe give me a few more seconds in a river (never swim with shoes on - reminder), buuuuut, I'm certainly no "swimmer"

That said, I'm thinking of starting a bit-o-swimming as exercise, but I'm wondering how much I know is good enough to start and get some exercise (just swimming back and forth in my HOA pool) or would I need to really take swimming classes or something (which I won't do). Ultimately I'd like to get "good" enough that I could do laps at the community pool and kinda feel like I know what I'm doing.

Thoughts?

david

swimming for fitness a couple of years ago, I just did breast stroke because I knew I could do that without running into anybody. After I found out I enjoyed it and was staying with it, I wanted to swim freestyle and had only fifth and sixth grade lessons long ago to draw from. Because I swim at the local YMCA and had gotten to know some of the lifeguards, I asked one that taught lessons for a single session for an assessment and advice on my swimming skills.

It was really good because it corrected some things at the outset. I didn't reinforce some bad aspects of my stroke and have to unlearn them later. So, if you have access like that to a single session where they know what you want to get out of it, I think it's worthwhile.

If, on the other hand, thinking about lining it up is a deterrent to getting in the water, forget about it and get in the water and move!

You might also find that someone will offer you advice if they see something easy to correct. Try to be open to that. I've gotten some great tips from fellow swimmers!

Good luck!

I thought maybe I'd get some tips from the kids on the swim team. (The pool I will be going to is a college pool and the swim team practices there.)