Our RATS Swim Squad will continue at 6am on Tuesdays and Thursdays indoors since the outdoor pool closed on 13th September. If you are still sitting on the fence whether to join a RATS swim at the pool or not – have a read of what our Coach Jamie has to say about it:

“I think sometimes people are a little bit scared to join a swim squad. This probably comes from thinking I am not good enough, or it will be too hard, or I don’t know the drills, or it’s just too early in the morning.

Yes, to start it can be a bit hard and some of the terms we use are somewhat foreign, but most people actually enjoy swimming with other people and the biggest improvement I see over time is the increase in confidence.

Some people I have helped over the years have struggled to swim 50m when they started but within weeks are swimming 800m without stopping. Others have had problems with people swimming close to them and have overcome those fears. It’s all about taking the first step. Come down to the pool and jump in. We all try to help the newcomers as we have all been there before. You don’t need to do a full session.

I will help you with your technique and try to make you more confident in the water. We do some weird things at times just to help with that confidence and to show you that when you change things a bit everyone struggles. Fins and wetsuits are OK. The main thing is that you get in and swim!

If you are struggling with your stroke or body position or swim fitness there are some fantastic YouTube videos. Have a look for Effortless Swimming and also some of their Feedback Friday videos. You will find some that show the problem you have and an explanation on some drills to fix things. Brenton, who runs Effortless Swimming is based in Australia and runs clinics in NZ. Well worth doing if you want expert tuition.

Oh! and the best thing is that we have a swim brekkie every now and then. Great to have a chance to talk about what everyone is up to.”
Jamie