It’s that time of the year and I am reminded, as usual, that it’s been a while since my last post. So here we go again folks! Every time I teach a new person to swim it always amazes me to know that I will be learning something new too about swimming instruction and the importance of communicating the instruction through visualisation. By this I mean that every individual is different in their ability to pick up the various skills needed to swim. When I see a student being ch

I was thinking the other day what was the biggest challenge to my students when setting out to learn to swim. Well, apart from the giant step of finally deciding to take lessons and to contact me! - the challenge is one of overcoming the fear,- not just about the water but the process involved including trusting the instructor and freeing the mind to the learning experience in an alien environment - water!. It is very important therefore for me to spend time to subdue this f

Summer is here once more in the UAE and I reminded that its been a while since my last blog - so here goes folks! I guess the most common thing students worry or get nervous about when learning to swim is 'sinking'. This is of course a perfectly natural instinct and again its what keeps us safe on land until we adapt to the water by learning to swim! So to try and offset this fear I explain to them from lesson one, that to a degree, the body will sink down to its natural floa