Sam is loving her swimming classes

They’re just two nights a week, for a half hour. But I’m loving it. Monday night I was sitting in my office reading the horrible news about the Quebec election. I could have kept reading but instead, I walked to the athletic centre and put on my new swimsuit and my new goggles and worked on my breathing while doing lengths of the pool. Swim classes start at 8 pm but there’s no one in the small pool before us so I usually get there 15 minutes early and practice. I needed that.

What do I like?

Time flies when I’m learning to swim. Right now swimming takes all my concentration so all the worries of my day disappear. There isn’t room for them. Swimming clears my mind and I don’t work again after. I’m more relaxed after and that’s a valuable thing these days.

I love the learning curve when you start something new. I’m better each week. That’ll slow down and drop off soon but it makes the first few weeks fun.

Learning to swim isn’t about fitness.. It’s technique focused. I’m learning new skills. We’re giving so much attention to skills that I sometimes forget it’s exercise at all.

For me, swimming, in particular breathing takes a lot of concentration. I have to be very deliberate in my breathing.

Also, so far while swimming, my knee doesn’t hurt. It’s nice to have exercise other than cycling that doesn’t involve pain.

I love that there’s so much body diversity in the pool. My instructor is larger than me and also obviously much faster than me. She’s a former competitive swimmer.

I love being a student. My instructor is a fourth year student. The other person in my semi private lesson is a second year student. Here I am the Dean but in the pool I’m the student. It’s fun being a beginner again!