Swimming: You Might Want to Give it a Try
John Craven

The most satisfying thing I've done since my TM attack is swimming. It felt good. It gave me exercise. It got me out of the house. It made me feel whole like nothing else I've done. While I'm swimming, I feel normal. I'm proud of myself.

If you have the use of your arms, you can swim. It doesn't matter whether you "know how to swim." You can learn. I was amazed the first time I tried swimming a lap again; I didn't get exhausted! Normally, the smallest physical activity causes complete fatigue. My guess is that I overheat quickly, and tire from the pain. In the water, that doesn't happen.

I was a swimmer before my life changed. I had to learn to swim so that I could compete in triathlons. I was an average runner. I was above average on a bicycle, but I tended toward the bottom when swimming. I mean the bottom of the pool. That wouldn't do. The swimming part comes first, so I wouldn't even get to start with the others!

So I learned to swim, and discovered something surprising. Once I could swim horizontally, I could get this wonderful relaxation. No impact, no noise. It is extremely peaceful. I joined "Masters Swimming" which is all over the world. The "Masters" part means you're old. I was old, so I qualified.

I actually competed in Masters swim meets. I would come in last, but I competed. Actually, I won once. There were only two of us in the event, and the other guy got disqualified. I won! I kept the blue ribbon. I just never told people the details.

So in a triathlon, if you can actually do all three, you are above average. My first was called the SpudMan. I live in Idaho. The Ironman is in Hawaii. That's a long way from Idaho.

My problem now is pain from my chest down. If I can relax, the pain decreases. Meditation works to get relaxed, but doesn't let me do anything.

Then I tried swimming. My sister-in-law, Carol, suggested it while we were visiting them. I was still coordinated. I still had the muscle memory; like riding a bike! I just let my legs drag.

That's the point: you can let your legs drag in the water, and swim just fine!
In fact, in my life "before," I was such a lousy kicker that if I just kicked while holding a kick-board, I would go backwards!

Lesson 1: Breathing

This is the one thing that bothers most people. It's best if you inhale when your mouth is up. Look at a picture of a real swimmer swimming. You'll see that their head is down in the water, always. That's important. If you pull your head up above the water for a breath, it will fall down and go way under. Makes for very awkward swimming. The real guys keep their head down and roll to the side. You can try it standing or kneeling still in the pool. Lay your torso and head in the water. Now roll your head and shoulders to one side until your mouth is in the air. Inhale. Roll your face down. Exhale. Repeat.

Your shoulders naturally roll as you stroke. You can try it in the air. (Not completely in the air: you can't fly. Remain sitting or standing. Safety tip.) Pretend you are swimming, with your arms stroking. Your shoulders have to roll. (If someone sees you and asks what you are doing, tell them it's "classified".) You may continue breathing during this exercise. You might even think about breathing while your mouth is sort of up.

Lesson 2: Get swimming lessons

There's probably a YMCA near you. Hopefully they have a pool. If they don't have a pool, you can't swim there. Go somewhere else.

Assuming you find a Y with a pool, tell them you want to learn to swim, and you'd like a little help. It's amazing how nice some people can be.

I felt really bad when I got TM. The best I've felt since then was when I discovered I could still swim. I can still do something athletic. I'm okay. In fact, I can swim better than my wife.

John is not the only person with TM who swims and loves to swim. Netta Gaynor is a TMA member from Israel. Netta is quadriplegic and she has figured out a way to swim without the use of her legs or her arms. Of course, Netta has also figured out how to paint without her arms and hands; and her paintings are beautiful. As you know from the last newsletter, Cody Unser and Pauline are scuba divers and Paula goes snorkeling. Pauline has always loved the water. Her most effective physical therapy and most enjoyable therapy has been in the water. She is able to achieve greater range of motion in her exercise and she has no gravity to deal with and so movement is easier. And she's just a total babe in a bathing suit. In order to get her scuba certification, she had to swim 25 laps in the pool. She did and it was a wonderful accomplishment. Try swimming. Try exercising in the water. You might really like it. And as with all exercise and activity of this nature, please talk to your doctor before you try it, and be sure there is a really great looking lifeguard vigilantly scanning the pool before you get into the water.