Swimming - what really matters...
I was chatting recently to some of my fellow coaches and the subject of exactly why we swim came up. As the summer draws to a close and temperatures start to drift downwards I was curious to know what motivated them, particularly when it came to open water swimming. Was it the feeling of being at one with nature?; the calm meditative nature of the stroke?: the feeling of freedom and weightlessness from being supported by the water? I was predicting a range of answers along these lines.In fact, the answer was unanimous and unequivocal. There was no debate with regard to the best bit about swimming:It's the cake.Specifically ginger cake apparently.
Now I am aware that not all open water swimmers will agree with this, some might see it as quite a controversial view. Particularly those who favour a Battenburg. However, there can be little doubt that, whatever the exact type, there is very little that can beat a nice thick slice of cake after a swim. Preferably accompanied by a hot chocolate or at the very least a strongly brewed cup of tea.But is any of this relevant? And if so, how? Are Swim Mastery swimmers not here to exercise, to practice and improve, to train and travel on the road to higher learning? Well, yes, clearly. That's definitely part of it. A pretty large part of it. And indeed if you want to make that your sole experience then good luck to you.
However, there is a whole other side to things to consider. SwimMastery is all about making connections. Connections in the body when we're in the water to ensure that we are moving as one coordinated unit. But connections are equally important out of the water. Social connections, bringing people together who have a shared love of the sport. People who would probably never meet any other way. Just in my own relatively small circle of swimming friends I have met government advisors and grannies, prison officers and stay at home Mums, acrobats and architects. Plus people I consider that I know quite well yet have absolutely no idea what they do for a living. Because swimming, like many sports, is a complete leveller. It doesn't matter what folks do away from the water. All that matters is the enjoyment which is had within it. And success in business is no guarantee of success in the water (but no barrier to it either obviously). Normal hierarchies can be completely overturned. Not that it really matters; in my experience most swimmers focus on the challenges presented by the water and are less focused on the performance of their colleagues. Some competitve element may creep into affairs from time to time but rarely is this representative of serious rivalry.
I observed a coach the other day who was drilling a group of youngsters in the pool. I was horrified. If he felt they hadn't swum a length well enough the whole lane had to get out and do press-ups or crawl on all fours back to the other end It was meant to be fun I'm sure but looked simply degrading and humiliating. None of the kids seemed to be enjoying themselves. I had no idea why they didn't push him in. Needless to say, he was not a SwimMastery coach. Perhaps he was having success in creating a few swimmers capable of winning a race in a school gala. However, I am certain that he was completely failing to nurture a life-long love of swimming in any of his pupils which would have been a preferable outcome by far and may well have been a more successful strategy in producing successful race swimmers to boot.
Photo by Angelo Pantazis on-Unsplash
Because if you aren't enjoying your swimming, if everything becomes a grim-faced slog, then it's unlikely that you will build those all-important bonds which unite both formal and informal groups. It's probably no coincidence that the SwimMastery swim groups I see tend to have a lot of fun and laughter together. And cake.
