private lessons

Swimming is one of the few sports in which you can participate at nearly any age. And, while those who learn early in life are usually at an advantage, learning to swim as an adult can be a great way to add variety to workouts, or recover from injuries suffered in sports that are harder on the body.

The key to enjoying swimming begins with developing a comfortable relationship with the water. The Red Cross and YMCA offer programs that can provide basic aquatic skills, but neither can compete with the benefits of a private instructor who can facilitate rapid progress through one-on-one attention and tailor lessons to individual levels of ability.

My swimming and coaching philosophy concentrates on developing and improving aquatic skills that build confidence and promote fitness both in and out of the water. In addition to the mechanics, I teach people how to think like efficient and skilled swimmers.

kids

Children tend to adapt to swimming much more quickly than adults who've never swum. And, the sooner a child begins swimming, the easier it is for them to progress, retain skills, and develop a sense of accomplishment.

Good exercise habits start early, and can set a pattern for lifelong health. The majority of students improve most significantly, and retain skills best, in a program of lessons scheduled for twice a week for a minimum of five weeks.

I begin all lessons with a skills assessment, and tailor the remainder of lessons to build on, and improve, those skills. Parents are encouraged to participate in goal-setting and support, but are asked to refrain from instruction to avoid confusing students with possibly conflicting information.

I usually tap a combination of techniques, including the basics outlined by the Red Cross and YMCA. These methods are supplemented, however, by a number of other approaches I've found useful to me from years of teaching and swimming.

Finally, swimming should be FUN. Games are an essential part of learning aquatic skills and becoming comfortable with the water. All of my lessons for children include at least one game per session.

adults

Lessons for adults often differ from those for children. This is because many adults need to 'unlearn' bad habits they've reinforced over years of swimming (or not swimming). The goal in this case is to rethink how your body relates to the water, and gain a sense of confidence in a set of new skills that are likely to feel different at first. In this sense, if you are entirely new to swimming as an adult, you are actually at somewhat of an advantage.

I begin adult lessons with a skills assessment and goal-setting session. This establishes the groundwork from which you'll build your new abilities.

Teaching techniques for adults also include some of the basics outlined by the Red Cross and YMCA, but more often concentrate on other approaches designed to best help reconfigure how you think about your body in the water. For this reason, I often provide adult students with specifically tailored reading material, so that new skills are reinforced out of the water as well.

Ten lessons (twice a week for five weeks) will usually maximize improvements and retention of skills.

private lessons

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kids

adults

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