Presidio Sentinel San Diego
February, 2013
It’s a sad commentary on my powers of persuasion that
despite being a poster person for the merits of swimming,
I have yet to persuade my friends and family to undertake
this amazing diversion, this superb exercise. You’d think my umpteen years in
P. R., selling stories and
features to cantankerous journalists would prepare me for hard-sells of any
kind? By comparison, selling swimming ought to be a walk-in-the-park.
In the interests of the general health of San Diego’s
population,
I’ve decided to try it on those of you who have yet to
ignore my advice.
I’m objective; here are a few downsides, all of which I’ve
learned the hard way:
-
do not swim if you are suffering from any
respiratory illness, like, for instance,
bronchitis.
-
do not swim if you are mending from broken
bones, strained muscles, tendons
or sinews.
-
drench your hair with cheap conditioner, to
offset the negative effects of chlorine, water, etc.
Short list, right?
A hot day makes swimming all the better, of course. If it’s cold, make
sure your feet are freezing; that will make even a moderately heated pool feel
really, really good. The downside
of swimming in cold weather is getting out of the water. This requires extreme
courage and a satisfying vocabulary of profanities. If it’s raining, never
mind: you’re already wet. If
windy, fear not: a ferocious wind
further challenges your swim, your strength.
(Disclaimer: I
only swim in pools. That’s because
I have an
enduring fear of the sharks in the ocean who lie in wait for
me. This has been true ever since I saw the trailer of the movie,
“JAWS!”)
Don’t swim by the clock; that leaves you too much time to
think about the state of the world, say, or, heaven forbid, the state of
yourself: those things you should do or say, or shouldn’t have done or
said. That kind of thinking will
offset any calming effects of your swim. Instead, count laps. The monotony of counting will add to
the water’s meditative benefits. Occasionally, my count gets interrupted by a
brilliant creative thought (like, why don’t I write a column?), or something I
absolutely must do (like, call my cousin Jay, which I’ve forgotten, anyway,
despite repeated counting interruptions).
There’s plenty of research that shows that physical activity
may make our brains bigger. Smarter!
OK, it’s unprovable.
Physical Education writer Gretchen Reynolds, however, quotes Harvard
biologist Dr. Daniel E. Liebermann, who fundamentally agrees …” that there is a deep evolutionary basis for the
relationship between a healthy body and a healthy mind.” The absence of this particular effect
in me may be the reason my friends and family have not yet been persuaded.
As I write this in January, any number of colleagues report
colds, coughs, fevers,
flu. I’m willing to bet
none of them are swimmers. While I hesitate to jinx myself (!), I confide that
for many years I would’ve been the first on that list for one kind of ailment
or another. In fact, I only
started swimming in the aftermath of a foot injury, looking for any exercise
that wouldn’t “hurt.” Walking gingerly
through a pool proved to be healing. As I advanced to actually swimming, the
activity revitalized my general health, and as far as I can tell, has boosted
my immune system. Compared to those early years, today I hardly ever get
“sick.” (Note to God of Jinxes: I did NOT say I “never” get sick!)
You could lose weight by swimming, but sorry, that’s not my
expertise. My former puny self was a sickly, 98-lb. weakling.
Within a few months of steady swimming, though, I gained
five lbs. – all muscle! Everything
looked better, everything felt
better! So, whatever your weight issues, you’ll be stronger,
more sculpted. You’ll
even enjoy the exhilaration of enhanced moods.
That’s what I told the postman last month during our
freezing cold snap, when rushing from the pool, clutching my towel, muttering
obscenities, bursting into the condo’s
foyer, he took one disbelieving look at me and barked, ”What
is the MATTER with you?”
###
Different strokes for different folks... literally. I love it when people are confronted with the unexpected. I firmly believe that rush of oxygen to the brain while working out fuels those unanticipated creative thoughts I solve all my client's problems while I'm in the gym, sucking wind.
ReplyDeleteLaura, I'm with you about the benefits of swimming. I paddle around the (indoor, heated) pool at the Plunge a couple of times a week with several dear friends in their 70s and 80s who look decades younger. They credit their good health and continued mobility to regular pool workouts. I agree that the pool is the best way to rehab pesky injuries!
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