Underwater Distance Swim: 10 to 25 Metres, Built Up Safely

Build the underwater distance swim safely: push-off, pull-through, 10 to 25 metres for Silver and lifesaver badges. With breathing rules and a hypoxia warning.

Sport: Schwimmen · Level: Intermediate

Introduction

The underwater distance swim means: you push off and cover a set distance entirely underwater. The honest answer to "How do I learn to dive long?": Not with more air, but with less resistance and more calm. And: this skill is the riskiest in this catalogue. Anyone who "shortcuts" it with hyperventilation risks unconsciousness underwater.

The distances come from DLRG tests: 10 m with a push-off from the pool wall for Swimming Badge Silver, 15 m for Lifesaver Bronze, 25 m for Silver and 30 m for Gold, where you collect at least 8 of 10 rings spread over 20 m [1]. Ten metres is about the length of a city bus.

The examination rules are strict here. Before all diving exercises at most four breaths are permitted, continued hyperventilation is not allowed [1]. Every diver must be under constant supervision until at least 30 seconds after surfacing [1].

Be realistic: many manage 10 m after a few sessions. Increasing the distance must never become a race (experience, not a study value).

What you need

Surface dive and gliding: you can dive down, stay calmly underwater and glide stretched out (previous skills).
Supervision watching you from the surface. That is a duty, not a luxury [1].
A clearly marked pool: floor line, rings or hoops as orientation. The Swiss teaching material uses hoops and floor lines for this [2].
Ear equalisation (see surface dive). The DLRG requires it to be taught before the first diving exercises [1].
At least 1 to 2 m of water depth: the test asks you to swim close above the bottom, diving depth 1 to 2 m [1].
Time to recover: between attempts you breathe normally and calmly again.

Step by step

1. The technique: push-off, glide, pull

The underwater pull is slower and calmer than the breaststroke rhythm. You push off, glide, make a strong arm pull (pull and push) and glide on [2]. Gliding as far as possible is the idea [2]. Milestone: 5 m with one push-off and one pull.

2. Orientation on the bottom

Follow the floor lines. The teaching material names an exercise: after the first line one strong arm pull, at the next line bring the arms close to the body forward and draw the legs up, at the third line the kick [2]. Milestone: you recognise where you are by the lines and dive straight.

3. Hoop diving

A partner holds a hoop in the water about 3 m from the wall. You push off and dive through the hoop in a stretched position [2]. This teaches straight, flat diving. Milestone: through the hoop without touching it and without drifting upward.

4. The 10 m distance

Push off from the pool wall (Silver) and cover 10 m underwater. Your body must be completely underwater at all times, you dive straight; only in murky water a deviation of at most 2 m to the right or left is permitted [1]. Milestone: 10 m, calm, without panting afterward.

5. More distance: 15 and 25 m

Increase the distance slowly, never several full-length attempts on the same day. Silver requires 25 m [1]. Technique comes before distance (practice standard). Milestone: 15 m in good technique, then rest.

6. From swimming position (Gold variant)

For Swimming Badge Gold you dive 10 m from the swimming position without pushing off the wall [1]. This is not a bonus level but a technical variant: you have to push off yourself. Milestone: 10 m from the swimming movement, straight.

Common mistakes

Hyperventilating beforehand. The most dangerous mistake, see safety. Fix: one or two calm breaths, never more than four.
Too fast, too hard. That uses oxygen. Fix: calm, long glide phases.
Rising mid-distance. Fix: keep depth 1 to 2 m, swim near the bottom [1].
Diving crooked. Fix: fix your eyes on the floor line.
Competitive diving. Fix: don't. See safety.

Safety notes

Hypoxia warning: whoever hyperventilates before diving can become unconscious underwater without warning. A series of 58 cases found: almost only men, mostly 16 to 20 years old, all known as good swimmers, about 80 % in supervised pools. Breath-holding experiments indicated that the time between unconsciousness and death may be no longer than about 2.5 minutes [3].
A US review of drowning cases in New York State over 24 years found 16 cases with dangerous underwater breath-holding. Those who combined several of these behaviours had a higher risk of dying [4].
The term "shallow water blackout" is misleading, because unconsciousness can happen at any depth. The medical field speaks of hypoxic blackout [5].
Never alone, never competitively, never with hyperventilation. The observer at the edge best goes along at the surface. The examination rules require constant supervision until 30 seconds after surfacing [1].
This guide explains and motivates, it does not replace supervised training.

Pro tip

Your goal is calm, not a record. Whoever wants to reach the surface at the end of the distance already dives too fast. Try a mantra: "Long, loose, straight." And when the urge to breathe presses, you ascend. That is no failure, that is the plan.

FAQ

How far do I have to dive for the Silver badge?

10 m of underwater distance swim with a push-off from the pool wall. For Lifesaver Bronze it is 15 m, for Silver 25 m [1].

May I breathe fast and deep before diving?

No. A maximum of four breaths is allowed, continued hyperventilation is prohibited [1]. It can lead to unconsciousness underwater [3][5].

Why is the underwater distance swim dangerous?

Because oxygen shortage can cause unconsciousness without warning, even in good swimmers in supervised pools [3][5].

Do I need supervision?

Yes. Every diver must be under constant supervision until at least 30 seconds after surfacing [1].

Key Takeaways

The underwater distance swim is extended through technique (push-off, glide, one pull) and not through air: 10 m for Silver, 15 to 25 m for lifesaver badges.
At most four breaths beforehand, no hyperventilation; it can lead to unconsciousness without warning, even in supervised pools.
Always supervised, never competitively, and ascend as soon as the urge to breathe presses.

Next guide

Grab Start from the Block: Flat, Tensed, Safe

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