I discovered 2 important things today at our Family Reunion Pool Party:
1) Swimming is NOT like ridding a bike. You CAN forget how to do it!
Two years ago I was pretty much coerced by my doctor to learn how to swim so that I could strengthen my back muscles in a low impact manner. I finally had to overcome my biggest fear and at 25 years of age, joined the YMCA to take swimming lessons. Watching 5 years olds swim circles around me was pretty humiliating, BUT after 6 weeks I could swim! I could not only get from point A to B (shallow to deep end and back) but I could also tread and even jump into the deep end all by myself, *gasp!* For someone who almost drowned as a kid and never wanted to get back in the water this was a major accomplishment, I'll have you know! So yeah... hooray for me, I learned how to swim. Unfortunately, we discontinued out Y membership and I quit going. Fast forward 2 years and there I was today... unable to stay afloat for more than about 10 seconds! Not good... I practiced though and by the end of the night could stay afloat for about 20 seconds and then float on my back to rest and continue treading. I guess thats cheating, but at least I didn't sink right?
2) There is NO point in opening your eyes underwater!!!
I used to think people wore goggles just because they were wusses like me and didn't want the burn/sting of the Chlorine. Going back to my fear of water/drowning... one of the biggest factors for me is the disorientation underwater. When I took the swim lessons at the Y I did so with goggles at ALL times. I refused to open them otherwise, which would throw me in a panic mode... so yeah, goggles were essential to my staying calm, especially when they had me start pencil diving into 9 feet of water. Today Iwas trying to "re-learn" how to swim, but guess what? No goggles! Uh-oh... so after a few panicky moments, I decided it was time to concquer that fear as well. I stuck my head in the water, opened my eyes and... COULDN'T SEE A THING! What is the stinking point? I expected everything to be nice and clear! Maybe I should have kept my glasses on, sheesh! Oh and the irony? All these years I was afarid of the Chlorine, right? It didn't burn/sting at all! Go figure.
2 comments:
Well, it also didn't help that the water was a bit gross and cloudy so that would prevent you from seeing under water. Don't worry, I don't open my eyes either and swimming is my profession...:)
THanks, that does make me feel better! By the way, is that the beginnings of a blog I spy? Yay! :)
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