-if you ever do "Ask Me Anything" or a survey or something -I'll participate. I've some questions that don't belong here in this format. They're not really formed, they're kinda...at the "rare" point of being ready. They do steam from fascination though.
Cool! Like you I never had real swim lessons as a child: my family spent summers on the lake, in boats, so I just had to learn to swim. It is cold water but as soon as it became even slightly endurable we were in it. I love swimming in the wild, whether lake or ocean. Back when I lived in Greece, I was always in the water.
I most often do the “Sochi breaststroke” hahahaha. But you make a good case for actually learning to swim.
Thank you and I’m the same with cold water, charging right in! Think it’s the best for swimming, perks you up and propels you to move. On my only trip to a warm ocean area (Caribbean), I felt like I was in a hot tub, it was bizarre and not for me. Also has this brain melting effect on me when I feel as collected as melted ice cream. Greece must have been aquatic paradise!
Thank you and lots of respect to you! I have to get it together and study the wealth of videos and info out there. It’s sometimes hard for me to understand what I am doing wrong because of the lack of perspective from the side. AL would sometimes film me swimming and show me, which really helped. It is an incredible achievement to master everything yourself!
I belonged to a gym at the time that had an outdoor pool that was open all year but only rather minimally heated so no one used it. I used to memorise one drill at a time. Before that I’d always absolutely loved being in water but could only dog paddle, my own swimming lessons as a small child having been uninterrupted by the prolonged hospitalisation of one of my elder sisters. Only once have I met someone else who taught themselves to swim front crawl from a book, and they were also an academic!
I sincerely mean it when I say how impressive it is to teach yourself and am not surprised that the other person you met who did this was exceptional too. As an adult with over two decades of doing everything wrong, it was very ingrained and hard to break for me. I’m still not good with flip turns and if I do a lot of them, feel like one of those bubble levels for hanging pictures that is suddenly painfully broken with the bubble out of whack.
I also feel that having a lane to yourself matters a lot (the pool you said no one used). I notice I reach complete Zen only when there isn’t anyone doing a murderous windmill next to me that I have to constantly clock.
Yes absolutely. Mostly empty pool much better. When I first moved to London I tried lots of outdoor pools, and particularly remember going to a (huge! but very neglected) municipal lido somewhere in North London one day when it was chilly and raining. The lido was notionally open, but only very minimally heated, if at all, and obviously everyone was safely in the indoor pool. I asked the women at the ticket office if I could pay for a lido swim and she looked at me with some disdain, before grudgingly accepting my money then turning to her microphone and intoning "Lifeguard to Lido. Lifeguard to Lido." Some poor guy then trailed out and stood under an umbrella watching me swim back and forth for half an hour.
Envisioning the “”Lifeguard to Lido” moment made me laugh out loud! James Bond aura, with the personal lifeguard under an umbrella watching solemnly over you. Also, thanks for the word “lido”, which I didn’t know.
Swimming in the rain is its own poetry! I once had this experience on Costa Brava when it was pouring rain one summer day and the otherwise crowded beach was entirely empty, and I had the whole cove to myself. The husband watched forever from a cafe and then asked if “I was satisfied, my little otter”. There’s something unforgettable about water pouring in from above and being in the water yourself.
I loved swimming AND hanging out on the beach when I was little, a lot. Hours upon hours upon hours
It's strange that I grew into an adult who actually likes to swim, preferably with some goal(mine is snorkeling if possible), and gets really impatient on the beach. Unless the beach itself is fascinating -I dunno, black sand, huge see turtles...pure white sand, colorful crabs...
The fish voyeurism was a revelation (I just did goggles, don’t like the tube)! Only ever tried it for the first time a couple of years ago. I was as tongue-out-puppy excited as my kid seeing all the creatures. Our butts were comically burnt with marks for months, even with all the mad digit spfs, from floating arse up all day. Think we purged the coast of all sea glass and sand dollars in the area.
one great guy once gave me advice on which mask to buy, knowing I'm the same. since then, I bought it and just bring it whenever. that solves the problem. I can look it up. if you want me to.
last whenever was ..omg 7 years ago??? no real vacations since. like, none. should have stayed more if I only knew
I’m a pool rat too! Still swimming as much as I can. Mainly indoor pools but this immersion camp looks interesting. I love the quiet time and the chance to exercise with little impact on the joints. I’ve always thought of it as meditative but never knew the science behind it. Thanks.
Thank you! I also really like the minimal impact on the joints, find things like running very aggressive and hammering on the knees. I think it must be the rhythmic breathing too with swimming, like in yoga, that makes it meditative.
-you've an amazing skill at writing
-if you ever do "Ask Me Anything" or a survey or something -I'll participate. I've some questions that don't belong here in this format. They're not really formed, they're kinda...at the "rare" point of being ready. They do steam from fascination though.
Thank you so much, this means a lot to me and is very encouraging and appreciated, especially emerging from a rather shite couple of weeks!
Cool! Like you I never had real swim lessons as a child: my family spent summers on the lake, in boats, so I just had to learn to swim. It is cold water but as soon as it became even slightly endurable we were in it. I love swimming in the wild, whether lake or ocean. Back when I lived in Greece, I was always in the water.
I most often do the “Sochi breaststroke” hahahaha. But you make a good case for actually learning to swim.
Thank you and I’m the same with cold water, charging right in! Think it’s the best for swimming, perks you up and propels you to move. On my only trip to a warm ocean area (Caribbean), I felt like I was in a hot tub, it was bizarre and not for me. Also has this brain melting effect on me when I feel as collected as melted ice cream. Greece must have been aquatic paradise!
Loved this! I taught myself to swim properly in my mid-20s using the Total Immersion book. Still pretty much my proudest achievement!
Thank you and lots of respect to you! I have to get it together and study the wealth of videos and info out there. It’s sometimes hard for me to understand what I am doing wrong because of the lack of perspective from the side. AL would sometimes film me swimming and show me, which really helped. It is an incredible achievement to master everything yourself!
I belonged to a gym at the time that had an outdoor pool that was open all year but only rather minimally heated so no one used it. I used to memorise one drill at a time. Before that I’d always absolutely loved being in water but could only dog paddle, my own swimming lessons as a small child having been uninterrupted by the prolonged hospitalisation of one of my elder sisters. Only once have I met someone else who taught themselves to swim front crawl from a book, and they were also an academic!
I’m sorry about what happened to your sister.
I sincerely mean it when I say how impressive it is to teach yourself and am not surprised that the other person you met who did this was exceptional too. As an adult with over two decades of doing everything wrong, it was very ingrained and hard to break for me. I’m still not good with flip turns and if I do a lot of them, feel like one of those bubble levels for hanging pictures that is suddenly painfully broken with the bubble out of whack.
I also feel that having a lane to yourself matters a lot (the pool you said no one used). I notice I reach complete Zen only when there isn’t anyone doing a murderous windmill next to me that I have to constantly clock.
Yes absolutely. Mostly empty pool much better. When I first moved to London I tried lots of outdoor pools, and particularly remember going to a (huge! but very neglected) municipal lido somewhere in North London one day when it was chilly and raining. The lido was notionally open, but only very minimally heated, if at all, and obviously everyone was safely in the indoor pool. I asked the women at the ticket office if I could pay for a lido swim and she looked at me with some disdain, before grudgingly accepting my money then turning to her microphone and intoning "Lifeguard to Lido. Lifeguard to Lido." Some poor guy then trailed out and stood under an umbrella watching me swim back and forth for half an hour.
Envisioning the “”Lifeguard to Lido” moment made me laugh out loud! James Bond aura, with the personal lifeguard under an umbrella watching solemnly over you. Also, thanks for the word “lido”, which I didn’t know.
Swimming in the rain is its own poetry! I once had this experience on Costa Brava when it was pouring rain one summer day and the otherwise crowded beach was entirely empty, and I had the whole cove to myself. The husband watched forever from a cafe and then asked if “I was satisfied, my little otter”. There’s something unforgettable about water pouring in from above and being in the water yourself.
Yes and as I’m always tediously telling the children in true British fashion, “the water feels much warmer when it’s raining”.
I stand by every word!
I lived for 10+ years in biking distance to the sea and never swam there (or, indeed, biked there) once.
But why?
Never much cared for it, I guess. We used to hang out on the beach, shashlyki and the like, but never really swam there.
I loved swimming AND hanging out on the beach when I was little, a lot. Hours upon hours upon hours
It's strange that I grew into an adult who actually likes to swim, preferably with some goal(mine is snorkeling if possible), and gets really impatient on the beach. Unless the beach itself is fascinating -I dunno, black sand, huge see turtles...pure white sand, colorful crabs...
The fish voyeurism was a revelation (I just did goggles, don’t like the tube)! Only ever tried it for the first time a couple of years ago. I was as tongue-out-puppy excited as my kid seeing all the creatures. Our butts were comically burnt with marks for months, even with all the mad digit spfs, from floating arse up all day. Think we purged the coast of all sea glass and sand dollars in the area.
one great guy once gave me advice on which mask to buy, knowing I'm the same. since then, I bought it and just bring it whenever. that solves the problem. I can look it up. if you want me to.
last whenever was ..omg 7 years ago??? no real vacations since. like, none. should have stayed more if I only knew
Yes please! Though similarly no such vacations planned in the near future(
I’m one of those people who has an imprinted raccoon mask on my face all day after any and all goggles/masks
I’m a pool rat too! Still swimming as much as I can. Mainly indoor pools but this immersion camp looks interesting. I love the quiet time and the chance to exercise with little impact on the joints. I’ve always thought of it as meditative but never knew the science behind it. Thanks.
Thank you! I also really like the minimal impact on the joints, find things like running very aggressive and hammering on the knees. I think it must be the rhythmic breathing too with swimming, like in yoga, that makes it meditative.