How To Prepare For Lifeguard Training

Are you searching online for a Lifeguard Training Near Me? Then you have reached the right place.

Enhancing as a lifeguard is a compelling and edifying service. The prospect of hanging out at the pool, playground, or campsite forges most days on the work feels more like enjoyment in the sun than drudgery. You can register for a wide range of lifeguard training and water safety courses from trained professionals who can help you gain the skills and confidence necessary for providing care and instruction when it’s needed most.

You can act on your tan, interact with swimmers, get into and remain in good physique and relish some people-watching. There is also a consequential view and a lot of competence that takes place with lifeguarding. You are liable for the protection and lives of the swimmers and pool-goers. But the authorization that transpires with existing a lifeguard provides a lot of complacencies. You’re the law enforcement agent, the influencer, and the compassion.

Setting up as a lifeguard is no easy occupation. It needs a boatload of effort and persistence. You must be a well-built swimmer and capable of making rapid choices in place under self-assertiveness. And you should acquire a few recognitions that will assist you in your part as a lifeguard.

But the hard work will ultimately pay off. Lifeguarding is a fun and gratifying job, and the benefits will stick with you throughout your life.

Objectives to Work as a Lifeguard

For instance, if you’re still not certain of the benefits of the role, here are a few more causes why lifeguarding is a great occupation to choose :

1. Most lifeguarding tasks are periodic. If you’re in high school or college, working in the summer season is a great way to earn some cash, have a lot of fun, and still have an open schedule once school starts again.
2. There are loads of masterwork possibilities. Once you complete your training and certifications, it’s pretty easy to land a job as a lifeguard in a variety of places. Community pools and recreation centers are great places to start. Once you have a bit of experience — and some additional certifications — you can look for jobs at waterparks, camps, lakes, and beaches.
3. Lifeguards get to encounter new people. Working as a lifeguard is an excellent way to meet new people — your fellow lifeguards and other staff members as well as regulars to your swim area.
4. Lifeguards are eminent role mentors. Do you remember how cool you thought the pool lifeguards were when you were a kid? They commanded respect and looked cool doing it. Becoming a lifeguard means kids look up to you and parents respect you.
5. Lifeguards get consistent coffee gaps. The United States Lifeguard Standards Coalition released a report in 2011 with the purpose of creating positive standards for lifeguard training. They concluded that having regular breaks and ingesting caffeine helped improve lifeguards’ vigilance. And that’s based on science.
6. It is regarded as prodigious on a resume. That’s because you have to be CPR, first-aid and automated external defibrillator (AED) certified — meaning you’re a safety expert — and having lifeguarding on your resume shows that you can take responsibility and work well under pressure. It also proves that you can be a team player while also being in charge of others.

Now that we’ve convinced you that lifeguarding is a fantastic career, let’s talk about the training, certifications, and skills required to become a lifeguard.

Arrangement and Essentials

Being a lifeguard is both physically demanding and mentally challenging. While lifeguard certifications lasted for two years in the past, every guard will now need to renew their certification annually before it expires. We understand the importance of keeping our guards close to training and confident in their skills every season.

Each trainee is also required to pass a swimming pretest to demonstrate they will be adequately prepared for the training and job demands to come. You’ll need to be prepared to:

• Swim 100 yards continuously using the front crawl and/or breaststroke
• Tread water for one minute using only your legs
• Dive feet-first to the deepest part of the pool to retrieve a 10-pound “brick”

We’re keeping the number of physical touchpoints during all in-person training exercises at a minimum to ensure a safer training environment. Here are some of the steps we’re taking to train responsibly:

• In-person classes will limit the number of students so that social distancing can be maintained
• Mannequins are used whenever possible to ensure limited touchpoints
• All lecture and video segments will be taught virtually
• Socially distanced instruction at a minimum of 6 feet
• Increased frequency of hygienic and sanitation procedures
• Minimized person-to-person and person-to-object contact
• All sick individuals are required to stay home

Requisite Instructions for Lifeguards

Before you can supervise a crowded pool full of kids and adults, you have to prove that you have the skills and knowledge necessary to react appropriately to medical emergencies. One way to learn what skills you’ll need is to complete training courses in both lifeguarding and first-aid.

You can find training courses near you through national organizations, especially the American Red Cross and YMCA family centers, or by reaching out to local recreation centers, which often offer their own lifeguard training and certification courses.

1. Lifeguard Tutoring Strategy

Lifeguard training will equip you with all the skills you’ll need to ensure water safety and prevent injury and accidents. You’ll also learn response techniques so you’ll know exactly what to do in case of a water emergency. Throughout the training, you’ll be presented with a variety of scenarios — ranging from minor infractions to severe medical events, such as cardiac arrests or drownings — so you can learn what to do and practice your skills.

To register for most lifeguard training programs, you must be at least 15 years old. You must also pass a pre-course swimming test to prove that you have the swimming skills, strength, and stamina to safely complete the program.

The pre-course swimming test usually requires students to:

1. Swim 300 yards without interruption while demonstrating breath control. You can use the breaststroke or front crawl, but backstroke or swimming on your side aren’t permitted. Feel free to wear goggles during your swim.
2. Tread water for two minutes using only your legs. Pro tip — place your hands under your armpits while you do this.
3. Starting in the water, swim 20 yards, surface dive 7 to 10 feet, retrieve a 10-pound object, surface, return to the starting point with the object while swimming on your back and grasping the object with both hands, then exit the pool without using steps or a ladder. This test must be completed within one minute, 40 seconds or less, and you cannot wear goggles.

Training options vary depending on your area. Most lifeguard training programs take three to seven days — about 30 hours — to complete, and many now feature a blended online and classroom format, so you can do required readings and tests at your own pace online before you jump into the pool for the physical aspects of the course.

Often, completing a lifeguard training course will encompass all the training and certifications you need to become a lifeguard, so once you go through the training and pass the course tests, you’ll be ready to start working. And if you complete the American Red Cross lifeguard course, your certification will be valid for two years and is accepted at pools nationwide.

2. First-Aid Coaching

First-aid helps you recognize the right level of care that should be provided during times of crisis. It teaches you how to provide medical aid to someone in need until medical professionals arrive at the scene.

These courses typically only take a few hours to complete. Many communities offer both in-person sessions and simulated learning courses that combine self-paced online modules with in-class lectures.

Many programs offer blended training programs, meaning you complete both the lifeguard training and first-aid training in one single course.

Bottom Line

Lifeguards are responsible for the safety and well-being of people at pools, water parks, and beaches around the world. Some become lifeguards as after-school jobs, while others make careers out of being a lifeguard. Regardless of why you want to be a lifeguard, you need to train your body, learn necessary life-saving skills, and then find a lifeguarding job.