I’ve got people asking if they can really swim after they had 4 or 5 learning sessions with us.
My answer is it’s depends on them.
If they are comfortable with water, yes.
If they have fear of water and willing to overcome that fear, yes, they will swim.
If they fear water and unwilling to get pass that fear, then no, they won’t swim. We’ve got few students who don’t swim even after 6 sessions with us.
And some people asked me if we can help to get rid of their fear.
My straight answer is no.
So many people want to put that kind of responsibility on us as instructors rather than them being held responsible for their own success and progress.
We’re not teaching children here. Most if not all of our students are adults. As adults, aren’t each and everyone is responsible for their success and progress?
If you’re one of those people who think that we have the tool of getting rid of fear, you’re mistaken.
As instructors, our job is to teach people to swim and to give feedback to the students.
As students, their job is to have the willingness to learn to swim which includes getting pass that fear.
A common example in my swimming class is I teach students to swim relaxed.
Some of the students blatantly refuse to do it. And they continue rushing with their swim and they ended up tired and out of breath after just 1 try or worst didn’t manage to finish their swim.
Some who are able to do it, they feel so relax, they’re calmly took their time, they’re able to catch their breath in peace and they are ready to continue swimming even after they’re done.
I tell all the students the same thing. NO NEED TO PANIC and just SWIM RELAXED.
It’s often the fear and panic that causes students to rush with their swim. They think that they’re going to drown. And then they come up with excuses why it’s so hard for them to swim and justify how it’s difficult to put all the movement together.
I tell you what, when you are focusing on the fear and the drowning, it will only make you fearful of water.
Often than not, focusing on the fear itself IS NOT going to help to you to learn to swim.
I can tell you the three things for you to do so you can learn to swim but if you don’t take them and listen, you’re not going to swim.
No matter how much effort I put in and if you choose to not want to listen and you’re listening to the fearful voice inside of your head instead, that’s when you become what I label as the “full cup”.
With a full cup, whatever that I pour into that cup, is not going to make any difference because that cup is already full and unable to take in anything new.
My effort is wasted just like the spillage of extra liquid on the table in the picture on the right.
To learn to swim, you MUST be able to OVERCOME that fear.
You CANNOT get rid of fear.
FEAR WILL ALWAYS BE THERE. It’s not going to go away.
BUT once you overcome that fear then you will be swimming.
I’ve taught several women who had not only once but twice drowning experience, and because their desire to learn is so much bigger than their fear, they are able to swim after learning with me.
I cannot take all the credit. These women are willing to overcome their fear and I saw the determination that they have so they can swim. This inspires me to give my best when I teach each one of them.
Hayatti Rahgeni The Effortless Swim Team