Hi, Mike Walker from Gold Medal Swim School. I’ve been watching our teachers lately and I am so excited to see them work with your child and really understand and deliver our message about Relaxation.
Relaxation is one of our five core values and it’s something which connects everything we do at this school. However, often times when I sit with parents in the lobby and talk about relaxation, I’m positive they think I have four heads. So, why is relaxation so important? Why is it something I get excited about when I watch our teachers teach it? Why is it something I incorporate in all my private lessons? Why is it something I incorporate when I coach?
Relaxation is simply a relationship with the water. People often ask me how relaxation will affect what they are doing. They’ll say their child is 9 months old, how does relaxation or their relationship with water change anything? Well, to start, they are able to problem solve quicker. In a stressful situation, such as falling in the pool, they are able identify where they need to go, reach, grab, and save their life.
At the Learn to Swim level, relaxation is the idea that students will gain skills quicker. They are more relaxed and not as stressed. On the Completive side, swimmers who are relaxed and have a relationship with the water are able to swim faster and easier. It is always about swimming faster and easier. It’s always about how much energy it takes to go a particular speed. Even at the Olympic level, it’s not about all-out energy at one time, you really are measuring effort. The idea is that relaxation at top speed equals peak performance.
That’s what I want your children to have, regardless of their level. They can travel further even when they are in a developmental level of swimming. I’m proud of my teachers for getting it and understanding it. And most of all, welcome to Gold Medal Swim School. I’ll see you around the pool.
