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Lifeguard Swimming Requirements
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The lifeguard swimming requirements are three specific skills, and none of them is about speed. They exist to prove you can stay functional in water while doing something else, which is the actual demand of the job.
Lifeguard Swimming Requirements in Detail
1. A 300 yard continuous swim. Front crawl or breaststroke, or a mix. Your face must be in the water on the front crawl portions and rhythmic breathing is required. There is no time limit, but you cannot stop, stand or hold the wall.
2. A two minute tread using legs only. Hands out of the water, held at or above the surface, usually crossed at the chest or held above the head. The point is to prove your legs alone can hold you up, because in a real rescue your hands are holding a casualty.
3. A 10 pound brick retrieval. Swim 20 yards, surface dive to 7 to 10 feet, retrieve the brick, return 20 yards on your back holding it with both hands and your face clear, and exit without the ladder. Standard limit 1 minute 40 seconds.
What is not required
Competitive speed, a racing start, flip turns, butterfly, or any particular stroke technique beyond being effective. Candidates who swam competitively have an advantage in fitness, not in eligibility.
Why hands out of the water for the tread
This is the requirement people are most surprised by, and it is the most job-relevant of the three. A guard supporting a casualty, holding a rescue tube in place, or managing an airway has no hands available for buoyancy. Two minutes on legs alone is a realistic minimum.
Goggles
Permitted for the 300 yard swim. Not permitted for the brick retrieval, because a submerged casualty has to be found in whatever visibility actually exists.
If you cannot meet them yet
The screen sits at the start of the course precisely so nobody pays for a course they cannot complete. Four weeks of structured training moves most candidates who can already swim comfortably into range of all three lifeguard swimming requirements.
For the full guide, see lifeguard certification requirements.
Lifeguard swimming requirements: frequently asked questions
What are the lifeguard swimming requirements?
The lifeguard swimming requirements are a 300 yard continuous swim with rhythmic breathing, a two minute tread using legs only with hands out of the water, and a 10 pound brick retrieval from 7 to 10 feet completed within about 1 minute 40 seconds.
Is there a time limit on the 300 yard swim?
No. The 300 yards has no time limit, but you cannot stop, stand or hold the wall. Only the brick retrieval is timed.
Why must hands stay out of the water when treading?
Because a guard supporting a casualty or holding a rescue tube has no hands available for buoyancy. Two minutes on legs alone is the realistic minimum for the job.
Reviewed by Jackie Stern, Lifeguard Instructor, Firefighter and EMT. Jackie Stern has taught lifeguarding for more than 20 years and works as a firefighter, EMT and swim instructor. She reviews course content, prerequisites and rescue standards against current certification requirements.
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