Summer of Swim

Going into the final week, I developed this sort of anxiety to really excel and finish strong. I was hoping that I would be recommended to move ahead to the next level, Adult 2.

One thing that I wish I had done differently was switch my personal training schedule because every Monday and Wednesday I started out the day at the gym and ended it in the pool, leaving me completely exhausted. I always woke up the next morning sore from head to toe. I was also probably trying too hard, forgetting to relax, which resulted in me over-thinking things.

I put a lot of practice time in the pool the prior weekend and while it showed in my backstroke, my freestyle was frustratingly still in need of improvement. It was really motivational though that everyone showed me a lot of support–one co-worker even congratulated me on my efforts, having been a former lifeguard herself. She said that the trick is timing and once I got that down, then it will be a great way to zone out and relax. Ironic how I have to learn how to relax in order to reap the benefits of relaxing.

Then, something amazing happened in our very last class: for the first time in four weeks, it finally made sense and all came together! I was really worried because I had worked out my shoulders with my trainer in the morning, so I wondered if I’d have difficulty with my arm movements. Apparently, that didn’t matter because my performance in the pool was the best it had ever been and our instructor kept throwing compliments my way which felt awesome. I spent the entire day visualizing success, kept thinking through the technique–and it paid off. 

I was able to freestyle at least half the length of the pool without any trouble and backstroke the entire way. It’s an amazing feeling when it all clicked which almost makes me wonder why I didn’t do this earlier in life.

After just four weeks of training, I’ve learned that swimming isn’t solely a function of your body, but also your mind. It does take proper technique but also confidence and relaxation to make it all work. It wasn’t until I fully engaged my mind that my body complied. I’m proud to say that not only did I graduate but I was top of my class.

I feel extremely accomplished learning something that was once so daunting and is now so attainable. Next stop on my road to becoming a triathlete: the Long Beach Duathlon!