hat

Just like everybody else

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Would you believe I forgot my hat and goggles, and left my floats in the car. The only training aid with me was my watch. I had planned a nice 4000m set, based on 800m swims, working down through the distances to 8x100m on freestyle, followed by 4x200IM. I decided to go for a swim as I was to save time. Besides, most ladies my age swim without hat and goggles, and I am supposed to be able to swim. So I left my watch in the changing rooms and entered the pool just like everybody else.

The pool was quiet and the slow lane empty, so I began to practice my best head up breaststroke. This is not the best technique and the British Swimming Swimfit site has recommendations and a video showing how to swim breaststroke (Improving Breaststroke for Maintaining Health | Swimming)

Soon began to make my neck ache, so I relaxed a little, abandoned all hope of keeping my hair dry and closed my eyes until I realised that I could still swim with my eyes open.

An older lady joined me in my lane telling me how active and busy she had been before swimming – since retiring she decided to swim every day.  She pushed off with a length of frontcrawl, wasn’t wearing a hat, or goggles, what had I been worrying about? She looked exhausted at the end of two lengths and asked how many lengths would make half a mile  – that was the goal for the day.

Swimming is an excellent sport and pastime with the body’s natural buoyancy extending the range of activity, a sport that can be taken up at any time of life. The lady without the hat was an advocate of the healthy lifestyle, a swimmer. She was immensely proud of her grown-up son, who lost over 5 stone in the last 9 months through good diet and exercise. (She seemed a little disappointed that the exercise was golf rather than swimming – I suppose there’s always time) 

I didn’t spend the whole session chatting, but managed to do a couple of IMs and other stroke work. When it was nearly time to go, one of the lifeguards who had just finished his swim lent me his goggles. Amazing clarity and kindness.