The Science Behind Mastering Playground Swings: Insights and Strategies.
Physicists have determined the most efficient way to swing on a playground swing, which is to lean all the way back just as the swing moves forward past the equilibrium point at the beginning stage of the swing session, and to begin leaning back at the highest point in the backward swing once you really get going. The scientists suggest that our bodies are attuned to the centrifugal forces at play, and we're subtly shifting our movement in response to the forces acting on us without really being conscious of it.