Have a break, No Kit Kat though

Well we have closed the Pool at the Dome for few weeks and there is a lot of work taking place behind scenes,
We are replacing the Air handling system which will improve the air quality and heating within the Lagoons areas.
All the info about the pool closure can be found on http://www.the-dome.co.uk/lagoons

Although I have the opportunity to continue with my lessons at any other DCLT pools I've decided a break is needed.

I managed to learn a lot during my first few Swimming lessons, going from a non swimmer to someone who's very comfortable in water without any fear, that's right I'm a daredevil hah.

This break between my lessons will show me if I have actually learned something for long term or was it something that was stored on my short memory, ( Hopefully not because I did put a good effort in ).

I guess I will find out on my first lesson back which I think it'll be after the new year after getting the festive period out of the way.

Question is, can I pick it up from where I left? DUM DUM DUAAAAMM .....

20 Meters Challenge.... Done

Hello Stage 3.

It was only couple of weeks ago that I passed stage 2 of ASA national plan award, 2 weeks onwards and I've passed my stage 3.

And just to prove it here I am biting into my stage 3 badge like an Olympic gold medallist. 

I can easily say if i wasn't enjoying these 30 minute lessons every week as much as I am, I would have never been anywhere close to where I am now.

My first lesson was only the 2nd time I have ever been inside our pool and I've been working in leisure industry for the last 6 years, so looking back on how much I knew when I started and how much I can do now, amazes me.

Its hard to calculate the progress in the first few weeks however it's something that you just pick up naturally I think.

In my previous post I did mention that I was going to upload a video to show my progress, so here it is,

20 METERS - DONE

I think i need to focus on my technique a little more but apart from that I'm nearly there.

If you have any questions regards to Swimming lessons please ask, leave me a comment or email me to nik.pey@dclt.co.uk or you can tweet me to @nikpey101.

Thanks

Nik 

If you don't try it you won't know

Tuesday's lesson was awesome.

I have lost count on how many lessons I have had so far but i think it's still under 10, I'm genuinely surprised how much you can learn in such short period of time.

I have been working at the Dome for some time and my first lesson was only the second time i have ever been inside the pool at the Dome.

It's amazing how much you can achieve when you set your mind to it,
I've got to give some credit to Alison, my swimming instructor because she is absolutely fantastic at what she does.

 So here is me with Alison, just to make sure you don't get confused on who's who I'm the guy on the right, looking sharp as always, oj.

Since I enjoy setting myself challenges so much, I have challenged myself to swim the length of the pool next week.

I did try it this week but I stopped just before I reach the end of the pool, I have never felt so out of breath and tired before in my life.

If I manage to swim it without stopping I try to post a video of how I got on just to prove I did it,

 NO PRESSURE AT ALL 

Look out for next week's update, should be interesting.

Nik

Powering through

I'm sure you all have heard all about it, but just in case you haven't I passed my stage 2 swimming lessons and powering through stage 3 now,
For this achievement I have been awarded a stage 2 certificate and badge which I have added to my "I can Swim badge"

So here I am stood by the baby pool showing off my certificate.

Impressive I know......

I'd love to do my pool life guard course after I pass my level 8 which is the last level, it would be a great achievement to go from a non swimmer to a life saver. It also be a great challenge for me, hopefully by setting targets like this I'll be able to focus on my lessons more and get to the top level sooner than expected.

I love a challenge, 

Pair of legs needed

Me and treading water do not get on at all,

This week I struggled as much as this guy struggles to fly

I don't know whether it was the fact that I was very tired or the fact that I'm just not used to tread water, either way it was a difficult lesson.

I knew as soon as I got in the water I had to swim the big length of the pool, at least once, It is something I've been wanting to do,
I tried it and it was going all well until I passed the middle point, where my legs just didn't have any energy left in them to push onwards,
I did learn something that day though, if you have a swimming lesson and you are planning to do a full length when you are not the strongest of all swimmers, don't go to the gym then decide to go for a 3 mile run then try to do your lesson.

I felt the same as this guy feels,

Up to last week, every lesson has gone pretty smooth, however for the first time I felt challenged by what I was doing,
should I choose to accept the challenge????

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED

Nik

Olympics fever

I felt bad for Michael Phelps last night since his record breaking 19 Olympics medals was over shadowed by my awesomeness in water.

I went to my lesson last night with extra motivation after spending the week watching the Olympics, ( If you'r reading this Carl "the Gaffer" it wasn't during work hours.....Honestly )

It was all about treading water last night, It's something that I have always struggled with and could not get the hang of it.

Just in case you don't know what treading water is here is a picture with description.

Treading Water is an aspect of swimming that involves a swimmer staying in a vertical position in the water while keeping his or her head above the surface of the water. Treading water provides the swimmer an opportunity to keep the head from becoming submerged while not providing sufficient directional thrust to overcome inertia and propel the swimmer in any specific direction.

I can't say I have mastered the technique however I think I did OK for a first timer, It is defiantly something that I have to practice over & over again to get it right, 

More on that next week.

If you would like to know more about DCLT adult swimming lessons scheme please email me on nik.pey@dclt.co.uk or check out our website www.dclt.co.uk/learnetoswim

Thanks

Nik 

Back at it

I know how most of you have been waiting impatiently for me to update my blog and here it is,

So I didn't have my lesson last week since I had to attend a seminar, however last night's lesson was outstanding.

Even though I had one week out, I remembered everything from the previous weeks, it was the first time I felt comfortable in water from start to finish.

I started the by practising breast stroke, this is something I want to get it spot on before i move on to other techniques.

To make the lesson even more special Alison Awarded me with a " I can Swim " badge at the end of the lesson, I have been waiting for this badge for the last couple of weeks if I'm honest.

So 5 weeks into the lessons and I already know how to swim, I never thought I can pick it up this quick but then I am pretty smart after all i did manage to get a job in marketing, ahem 

Not too sure what i'll be doing next week but i will keep you updated.

Meanwhile if you have any questions regards to swimming lessons please contact me on nik.pey@dclt.co.uk or contact the reception team on 01302 370777.

cheers

Nik

No lesson this week

I know how you all have been waiting for me to update my blog, telling you all about my lesson, but sadly there was no lesson this week.

I had to attend a seminar after work roughly about the same time as the swimming lesson, however I will be attending my lesson next week.

The seminar was pretty good btw

Nik

It's all about Breast stroke

So yesterday was all about breast stroke.

After a few push and glides to start the lesson with, we started practising the Breast Stroke technique,

Just in case you don't know how it works, I've found this beautiful demo animation to describe it.

My breast stroke looked nothing like this btw,  but then I was my first attempt.

If I'm honest when I started, the idea on breast stroke was pretty easy but when it came down to me doing it, my brain was telling me one thing and my arms and legs were doing something else.

Having confused limbs in water did not help the situation at all. but then like everything the more you try it the easier it would get.

I think I was destined to be a under water diver because I spent a lot of time under water yesterday.

Goggles came handy once again.

Towards the end I managed to do one or 2 good runs, but more on that next week.

If you have any questions about Swimming lessons, please leave your questions and comments and I will try to get back to you as soon as possible.

Thanks

Nik 

Getting Carried away!!! Nahhhh

Well if you read my previous post you would know I am a big fan of goggles now, I have my reasons...

This week I am trying something different, For someone who has not done much swimming in the past I have got plenty of swimming gear.
So this week a long with my awesome goggles I'd be trying out my Quicksilver Swimming vest, which I have had for couple of years and only wore it once on holiday,

We just didn't want to feel left out so we went out and bought some surfing kit. More on that later.

The point is, I'm enjoying myself now I know the basics, Alison has helped me gain my confidence in the water, At first it felt like I had to attend these lessons because I couldn't swim but now I can't wait for them.

I no longer have that hat btw, it rained that night and ruined it.

Nik

Goggles are awesome

I was wrong about goggles,

For start, anything that lets you see under water is cool and oh yeah my lesson went really good too, but it was over shadowed by the awesomeness of the goggles.

So I'm four weeks into my lessons now, although I'm no fish in a pond, I cant say I'm doing too bad in the water.

Alison, my swimming instructor said. "she is very happy with my progress, few more lessons and I should be swimming comfortably."

To make things even better, I get to do my lessons while listening to the best of 80s cheesy music, since the Aqua natal class is at the same time as my lessons in the next pool. 

I'd be busting some moves in water next week

Nik 

Got some Goggles

I think I'm getting slightly carried away,
I've been out today, and bought 2 different type of goggles.
I thought if I can see where I'm going under the water, It would help me relax a little more and master the breathing technique quicker.

Not sure which one to go for??? Either way goggles are not cool. hah

or

Not a good look... I know,

Nik

2nd Lesson

Another great lesson yesterday, Cant believe it has taken me this long to start swimming,

After a quick recap on what I learnt last week we started working on different breathing techniques, and it was exactly how I expected it to be, not easy.

After spending 23 years keeping my head on top of the water, it was a bit difficult to keep it under for a while.
At first i did think it would be a lot easier to grow gills rather than learning this but then as soon as I got comfortable with the idea of having my face under water,I got used to it.

We'll be going through what I learned yesterday next week again, and hopefully I can remember everything, 

One thing I did manage to master was the push and glide technique. That is when the swimmer's body is fully extended to become as streamlined as possible. The movement is used to push off from the poolside to glide through the water.

A big success overall I say.

Nik 

Second Lesson

Well as it happens my second lesson is on the same day as England V Ukraine game,
Knowing me I'd try to learn the new techniques Alison is teaching me tonight faster than usual so I can get home before the kick-off .

Nik

Swim Shorts

I just could not resist not sharing this image with you all. I have to say the swim shorts are lot more comfortable than my day to day cloths.

Still exited about My next lesson next week, hopefully it would not take me too long to become a comfortable swimmer.

Nik

First lesson

Well I had my first Swimming lesson yesterday, and it was a success.

After a slow start to the lesson, thanks to my swimming instructor Alison I managed to gain my confidence in the water and start making some progress.

It was not long before I let go of the Woggle, the piece of foam that kept me on top of water and started swimming.
I am very happy with the progress i  made after one lesson and already looking forward to next week's lesson.

I think we will be working on my breathing techniques next week, which is something I have always struggled with while swimming.

So far so good.

Nik

Getting Started

Hello

I'm Nik and I work as a Marketing Coordinator for Doncaster Culture & Leisure Trust.

Not long ago I decided to take up the challenge to learn how to Swim through our adult swimming lesson scheme.

I might have opened the door of possibilities here by taking up this challenge, since this could be the start of my many DCLT challenges but until then i have to face one my weaknesses ( not shamed to admit it) and learn how to swim first.

I will be updating my blog every week after my lessons to try to share the journey I am about to take with you all. 

So the first lesson will take place at the Dome on Tuesday 12th June , I'm exited and at the same time unaware of what i should expect.

I will keep you all updated on how i get on,

Speak soon

Nik