Gerald, 58, came to me and practically begged me to teach him how to swim. He is new in our community and had been watching me swim while he lifted weights in the gym. Although Gerald used to fool around in the water with his identical twin brother when they were kids, he had only swum underwater and never learned any of the strokes.
Well, Gerald recently heard from his brother that he learned how to swim. To rub salt in the wound further, Gerald's brother bragged about swimming at hotel pools when they travel. :blah: Needless to say, Gerald is highly motivated to catch up to his brother, especially before bro comes to visit Gerald and his wife here in the community.
Although I have taught two people how to swim, I am not a certified instructor, but I have been using the USMS Swimming Saves Lives Foundation Adult-Learn-To-Swim Volunteer Teacher Swim Lesson Guide.
We started just three weeks ago, and here is a video from today's 7th lesson:
www.youtube.com/watch
(Although he has also added breathing, this video shows his stroke better.)
As you can see, when he is kicking and moving forward, he is able to stay on the surface. The thing is, he can't float! This former football player is solid muscle, and he sinks like a rock! Seriously. Air in the lungs? Check. Chin and belly up? Check. Shoulders and lungs pressed back? Check. Relaxed? Check. He is very comfortable underwater, so he doesn't mind going under, but he won't rise to the surface once he's down! On a push off the wall and a "Superman" glide, he looks great-- until he comes to a complete stop on the BOTTOM of the pool (which is 5 feet deep). He'll just lay there until he runs out of breath. When he does stand up, we both just laugh!
This guy is DEDICATED and wants swimming to become his main fitness focus. He has practiced every single day since our first lesson in late May, and he is determined. Between his dedication, determination, size 15 feet, and long fingers; I think he'll be a really good swimmer. In fact, I told him if he keeps up the good work, I'll bring him with me to compete at the Georgia Senior Olympics, in September! :cheerleader:
Any ideas on how I can get Gerald to float without supporting him? :help: He even sinks with my pull buoy! :bouncing:
Great job! I think he looks really good and agree he could become an excellent swimmer. I agree with the fins recommendation, but I personally think that the medium/long blade fins lend themselves better to ankle flexibility and keeping the legs loose. Those short fins can be torture, and we want him to have fun.
You might consider switching gears when you meet next time, doing some other strokes and types of kicking such as flutter and dolphin kicks on the back. This will help build his ankle flexibility and overall fluidity in the water, while adding some nice variety to his lessons. When I teach, sometimes if I switch gears and move to a skill that is completely different, when we switch back to the original skill, the student shows improvement. Tell him the dolphin kicks will help him beat his brother (-:
Thanks! I wondered the same thing about fins, so I went "shopping" at Swim Outlet's site and recommended these to Gerald: www.swimoutlet.com/.../ Tyr says, "FlexFins are designed to increase leg strength and foot flexibility. Color coordinated by size for easy identification. This fin is ideal for all swimmers with an added flexible sole that creates less blistering factors."
The only problem is Gerald's size 15 feet! The largest size Tyr makes is for feet "13+," so I hope the "+" is enough room!
I like the idea of switching gears. When Gerald looked like he was pressing and trying too hard, I would take a break from the full stroke, and focus on just the kick or the pull. He is just so determined to learn FREESTYLE, though! Still, I would love to at least teach him backstroke, too, but we're having sinking difficulties at the moment. :whiteflag: As for breaststroke, he can't turn out his feet AT ALL just yet, but I'm hoping he will work hard on getting some flexibility in those ankles. As a breaststroker, this nothing more I would love than to teach him my stroke! Neither of the two people I taught in the past wanted to learn it, so I'm hoping he will change his mind about it! :cheerleader:
Great job! I think he looks really good and agree he could become an excellent swimmer. I agree with the fins recommendation, but I personally think that the medium/long blade fins lend themselves better to ankle flexibility and keeping the legs loose. Those short fins can be torture, and we want him to have fun.
You might consider switching gears when you meet next time, doing some other strokes and types of kicking such as flutter and dolphin kicks on the back. This will help build his ankle flexibility and overall fluidity in the water, while adding some nice variety to his lessons. When I teach, sometimes if I switch gears and move to a skill that is completely different, when we switch back to the original skill, the student shows improvement. Tell him the dolphin kicks will help him beat his brother (-:
Thanks! I wondered the same thing about fins, so I went "shopping" at Swim Outlet's site and recommended these to Gerald: www.swimoutlet.com/.../ Tyr says, "FlexFins are designed to increase leg strength and foot flexibility. Color coordinated by size for easy identification. This fin is ideal for all swimmers with an added flexible sole that creates less blistering factors."
The only problem is Gerald's size 15 feet! The largest size Tyr makes is for feet "13+," so I hope the "+" is enough room!
I like the idea of switching gears. When Gerald looked like he was pressing and trying too hard, I would take a break from the full stroke, and focus on just the kick or the pull. He is just so determined to learn FREESTYLE, though! Still, I would love to at least teach him backstroke, too, but we're having sinking difficulties at the moment. :whiteflag: As for breaststroke, he can't turn out his feet AT ALL just yet, but I'm hoping he will work hard on getting some flexibility in those ankles. As a breaststroker, this nothing more I would love than to teach him my stroke! Neither of the two people I taught in the past wanted to learn it, so I'm hoping he will change his mind about it! :cheerleader:
