Swimming

Swimming. It gets your hair wet and your heart pumping. It's not exactly the environment you're built for as a human being but somehow humans have adapted to it nonetheless. People swim in swimming pools and in oceans, risking drowning and chemical exposure as they do so (as well as the other things they have to ingest when they accidently take a swallow).  Freshmen are required to spend at least one marking period of it. Of course, gym is every other day so every other day I am required to get into the water.





I actually like swimming today much better than most gym classes for some reason. Somehow it's more bearable in the water and I get exercise in without sweating. Unfortunately, we're taking up a lifeguarding class because most in my class voted for it which basically means less exercise for me (he expects us to "practice"). Of course, I have to say that it's producing and has produced quite a bit of anxiety in terms about having to worry about getting ready for it and everything but other than that, it's pretty great.


I had to make up a swimming class that I missed today. Even though I had acting (it alternates between gym and your elective),  I still had to go and swim anyway. Fortunately, I didn't have to go through with the lifeguarding aspect of it but instead I swam sixteen lengths of the pool (this translates to eight laps in my book). Because of the swim team, I got relegated to the lane that wasn't really a lane but the space between the other lane and the rail at the side of it (I was kind of freaked out of the possibility of drowning, especially since I was getting more tired and didn't have that much space to swim).

All of this, of course, got me thinking about everything about swimming.

Swimming has a lot of health benefits to the average person. It's good for your bone health, your flexibility, etc. Also, it even burns more calories than you would get on the treadmill or something because you have to work against the water.

I'm not going to say that doing laps is a great feeling. It's better than working out on the treadmill but it's still exhausting. It gets tiring pretty easily and it's not like you can't even drink any water. I was also a little embarrassed at my mediocre swimming skills and how pathetic is looks. On top of that, I had to deal with the waves the swimmers made and being splashed by them (in my tiny lane where I was afraid of drowning).

I do admit to getting in the zone, to feeling pumped. It was the greatest feeling having finished a lap and knowing that I was getting some exercise out of it too. Swimming is pushing your body as far as it can be pushed, though. It's of mastering the water and somehow making your way through it; it's pushing past physics to stay afloat and to trudge on.

I probably could have lied about my time. I did during the mile in gym when I cut a lap or two. At one point, my gym teacher even asked me if I was done because he wanted to make room for another swimmer. However, the reason that I didn't was because I figured I could get another exercise day in (I've been trying to lose weight since about May. So far, I've lost seven pounds or so). Once I was done, I was quite glad.

I survived swimming and got out of the pool. I have to say, I'm quite glad I did it and much prefer it to regular swimming.

I survived swimming, yes. I beat it and I even got some exercise in.