You've probably seen kids at the local pool splashing around with colorful foam tubes or gliding through the water with the help of those same toys. It's hard to imagine swimming in your backyard or at the beach without picturing someone with the toy in hand. While the pool noodle may be synonymous with summer days lounging by the water, the uses for the toy extend far beyond being a flotation device. If you're interested in learning more, keep reading to learn the many benefits of swimming noodles.
Swimming
The noodle is most widely known for being a fun toy at the pool. While that is true, it is also incredibly versatile for all aspects of swimming. Whether you’ve got one noodle or a bunch, there are plenty of ways to use them.
Learning To Swim
If you have a young child ready to learn how to swim in the water without assistance, a swimming noodle is a great tool to ease them. Kids love the noodle’s design, color, and flexibility, making it easy to get them to try and use them. Once they have the pool noodle under their arms, it will keep them upright as they use their arms and legs to propel themselves through the water.
Exercise
You may have seen one of those group exercises with people waving a noodle around in the pool. That's because the buoyancy of the toy allows you to push and pull against the resistance in the water and strengthen different muscles. The noodle supports an adult's body weight and lets you move other parts of the body while keeping another piece of the body stationary.
Having Fun in the Water
You can use the flexibility and buoyancy of a swim noodle in creative ways to play various games in a pool. You can get a group of people and play tug-of-war without falling on the ground or getting a rope burn on your hands. Kids can climb on top of their noodles like they are riding a horse. When everyone has a noodle, they can use their hands as paddles and race each other to see who can get to the other side of the pool first. Your imagination is the only limit.
Outdoor Activities
Just because they are called pool noodles doesn't mean you can't play with them outside of the pool. You can play an endless number of games while ensuring everyone has a fun, safe time. You can also give a handful of noodles to kids and let their imaginations run wild. They might pretend they are knights defending a kingdom or pirates taking over a ship without harming each other. Here are just a couple of examples of the games you can play with pool noodles.
Ring Toss
A straightforward yet entertaining game you can have fun building is ring toss. Cut a pool noodle in half and stake one of the pieces into the ground. Take two or three more noodles and cut them in half as well. Then take the new half-pieces, bend each piece into a circle, and attach them from end to end. Now you can throw the circle pieces at your staked noodle and see who can land the most.
Don't Let the Balloon Fall
With a balloon and some noodles, you can form a straightforward and inexpensive game young children can play. Gather a group of kids and give them each a pool noodle. Blow up a balloon with air and let them know they can't let it fall to the ground. They will have a lot of fun trying to keep the balloon in the air using their noodles.
Design an Obstacle Course
Design an obstacle course that will keep kids entertained for hours. Grab anything you feel would safely work as a stake and use them to keep the noodles in the ground. You can also tape the noodles together to create unique shapes for different games. These are just some basic supplies you can use, but many other tools and materials will work for the obstacle course, too.
Arts and Crafts
Pool noodles are one of the most inexpensive, resourceful crafting tools you can get. Kids will love bending, shaping, and molding the noodles around a variety of different tasks. You can create projects as simple as decorating the noodle like a lightsaber, building a blanket fort, or even a racetrack for toy cars.
Safety Proofing
If you have small children, you worry about keeping them safe. Home has many dangers that can cause harm if you're not careful. Pool noodles can give you peace of mind by proofing many of the hazards that can crop up. If you have any furniture such as coffee tables or kitchen counters with sharp corners, cut up a pool noodle and use the pieces to apply a protective foam layer on the outside. If your child has an issue with rolling out of bed, add a pool noodle to each side of the mattress to act as bumpers.
Highly Affordable
One of the great things about pool noodles is that while there are so many ways to use them, they can also fit anyone's budget. Whether you're buying a single noodle or noodles in bulk, they are incredibly inexpensive.
Extremely Durable
Not only are pool noodles inexpensive, but they handle plenty of usages. If you have very rambunctious children, a pool noodle should last them a long time, even after some intense play sessions. A noodle's durability is perfect if you like to take the toy to the pool one day and then use it for outdoor activities the next.
There are so many benefits of swimming noodles you might not even think of right away. If you have crutches that feel too hard and jut into your body, applying pool noodle foam can help the grips become much more comfortable. If you have issues with doors slamming shut, you can attach a small piece of foam at the top to soften the door when it is closed.
If you're ready to add some fun at the pool or want to tap into your creativity, contact FoamNoodles.com for all your swimming foam tube needs. You can order single pool noodles or buy in bulk. Hopefully, learning about the benefits of swimming noodles has inspired you to use them for various purposes.