Beliefs That Underpin My Approach
The more I teach clients and develop my online programme, the clearer I become on what I’m trying to achieve. It’s simply a question of whether my beliefs match those of anyone else:
So, to start off…
My original goal of Intuitive Swimming was to empower struggling swimmers. As someone who’d looked for everywhere for all the answers, I realised that I could be the solution. This led to my first belief – after all, I did it…
- I believe that you can learn to take responsibility for solving your swimming problems once you have the tools and skills to observe, notice and make a change
The way I changed my swimming wasn’t through changing my technique, but how I changed my thinking:
- I believe that swimming is as much about your mind as it is your body
The more I teach either Alexander Technique or Intuitive Swimming, the more I’ve become convinced that your thinking is the answer to swimming problems.
So, I’ve defined more clearly what I mean by an ‘understanding’.
- I believe that this understanding comprises of a connection to the water, an awareness of your movement through the water and control of your thinking in the water
The tendency when learning something new is looking to others for help. It’s natural, after all experts are experts for a reason. However, a natural swimmer won’t be able to relate to a struggling swimmer. It took me a long time to realise that to Swim My Way, I had to ‘adopt and adapt’ what I had been told.
- I believe that constantly trying to swim like someone else is limiting your swimming potential
The other tendency when learning something new is to ‘get things right’, or do things ‘properly’. We don’t trust ourselves. Why should we? We know nothing. But for me, once I realised that I was the answer to my swimming problems, I felt able to pick and choose what technique worked for me and what different and from there, I developed my own swimming style.
- I believe that trying to swim correctly, with perfect technique hinders your learning potential
A lot of things related to swimming changed for me over two years of experimenting in the water. Yes, my swimming performance improved but what kept me going to the pool, twice a day, five (well, four and a half ) days a week, was the enjoyment that I started getting from the water.
- I believe that swimming can be joyful through an enhanced awareness of the water: feedback from the water, movement through the water, support from the water.
So, in short:
- I believe an understanding of your swimming is more important than aspiring to have perfect technique (#understandingvstechnique)
In a future article, I’ll explain how I used my unconventional approach to Alexander Technique to bring about this change in my approach to swimming.
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Main – Photo by Pixabay
About the Author: Brian Holliday
