To the Wall – What’s Your Approach?
Because the wall in a swimming pool becomes a destination, it's symbolic for people learning to swim. How we approach the wall says a lot about our...
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Sing When You’re Winning – and always in the first lesson
When learners first attempt to breathe out into water, nervous tension gets in the way. But relaxation and enjoyment are more easily experienced th...
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A Man Made Pool’s What You Make It, It’s Up (And Down) To You
"The pool became an aquatic yoga or dance studio instead of a sports hall, gym or treadmill...I left the leisure centre feeling free and remained s...
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Control Freak? Cant Swim?
Are you a non-swimming adult who describes yourself as a control freak? Successful at what you do, you're usually able to achieve you...
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Floating Is A Feeling – When You Think About Its
About 15 years ago I was giving lessons to Christopher, aged ten. Ten's a bit late for a child to learn to swim and it took him a while. For severa...
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Holiday Breaststroke – Getting away from getting it right
This week I've been working with Kerry and Roger. They hope to enjoy swimming breaststroke in long, deep pools on holiday in Cyprus next month. The...
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Mediocrity and Excellence – Two Paths, One Direction And Your Choice
"Think of life having two paths: one leading to mediocrity, the other to excellence. What do we know about the path to mediocrity? Well, we know it...
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View Review – Ian rates Japanese goggles
We've introduced to our range of goggles two great models from View, made in Japan. One of them is available with an extensive choice of prescripti...
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Front Crawl’s Simple. So What’s The Catch?
For most front crawl improvers, it's difficult to understand exactly what the hand and arm should be doing under water. It's even more difficult to...
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Knowing Your A-Side and B-Side – Is bilateral breathing best for balance?
It's a popular assumption that bilateral breathing in front crawl is a good thing, for 'a balanced stroke'. If we were all capable of perfect...
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Rescued: Learner Lost With Woggle At Leisure Centre
Adults Need More Than A Polystyrene Float! This week I've been working with Paul whose wife bought him a few lessons for Chr...
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Transform your day in 10 seconds
Ian Fends off New Year Sluggishness... 'The first sixty years are the worst,' Patrick MacDonald used to say about learning the Alexander Techn...
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Swimming with a Hangover
Drunken dreams of swimming and the water as a cure... 'Beer-drinking's not to be underestimated', an old friend of mine said. And sometim...
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360 Front Crawl
Benefits of Breathing on Your BackBefore children learn front crawl breathing, it's a good idea to get them rolling all the way on to the back. It'...
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Try Nose Breathing – to slow down and stop gasping
Conventional swimming instruction will always advise you to inhale through your mouth. I went on holiday with my brother about 15 years ago and he ...
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