Swim It Out

A few weeks ago I looked into switching gyms. I pay more to be a member of the YMCA than other gyms. I joined there thinking I could take my kids to classes, but that hasn’t quite panned out yet so I thought I could save myself some money every month by joining one of the larger chains around here.

After investigating I decided to stay put because of the quality of child care available at the Y and also the Y is the only place with a pool.

When I made this decision I had set foot in the pool exactly zero point zero times.

I figured about a week ago that it was time I started using it. It has only been about four times, but I am learning a lot of grown up lessons from my biggest childhood sport.

Lesson One: There is no place for vanity in the gym.

Now of course, I lost all vanity years ago when I realized at my City Gym I was the only one who hadn’t done my hair and put on makeup to work out. The ladies I shared that Baltimore gym with had more than one thing on their agenda and I-with my over sized t-shirts and bike short clearly did not belong in their club.

But with swimming, I found a whole new level of vanity traps. I mean first off, you’re in a bathing suit that most certainly can not have a skirt. That is just the beginning for me. There is also the “unwanted hair” issue that-let’s be honest-becomes less of a priority in the cooler months. Not anymore.This swimming thing is wrought with vanity excuses not to do it and I am the queen of “not today” exercise excuses. Swimming seemed doomed to fail.

The one thing it has going for it-time. It takes way less time to swim half a mile than it does to run on a treadmill, lift weights and stretch. Oh yeah, I could change out of my suit and go upstairs and do those things after swimming, but… I mean c’mon.

So, I drop the vanity and squish my pale, hairy legged bod into a very unflattering swimsuit, don my cap and goggles and hit the pool-at least three times a week.

As a grownup-and particularly a mom-I find I have to remind myself to slow down and catch my breath. In the pool, I was quickly reminded that you can’t go all out as soon as you dive in. At least I can’t if I intend to last for any length of time. If I want to swim for time and distance, I have to give up my old sprinter ways and pace myself. This involves long slow breathing-not something I do on a regular basis. I have found when you concentrate on doing something that usually comes without a thought-all the stressors that have been swirling around your brain just float right away.

Lesson Three: Sometimes interesting dudes share your lane–swim on sister.

OK so this is more of an observation than a lesson. Usually, unlike the cardio room, people at the pool are all business. They range in age, shape and size way more than the folks on the elliptical machines and mostly they are there to swim-that’s it. However, I recently had an occasion where one of Jersey’s finest came in his Birdwells (that were a little low in the waist if you know what I mean) and sat on the bleachers for a few minutes watching the lanes. He decided mine was the one for him. He was perfectly nice, if a little chatty-managing to throw in how he’d been in the ocean swimming the day before and how he intended to last for an hour in the pool. Alrighty cool guy.

He preceded then to do this weird swim half a lap then turn over on his back or stop and fix his goggles then breaststroke it the rest of the way to hang on the wall at the other end. No problem, except he would start-RIGHT NEXT TO ME-at the same time I did. So I had all sorts of weird wave incidents and swallowed my share of water. Not to mention I had way too many plumber sightings as his ill fitting shorts traveled down each time he pushed off the wall or the bottom of the pool.

Fun.

If ever there was a better excuse to quit, I don’t know it.
But, alas, I soldiered on-butt crack and all. I have benefited from the non-judgement vibe of that pool, so I decided I better get my butt on board the non-judgement train.

So I kept going-chlorine up my nose and all.

I can’t wait to see what lessons await me today at the pool.