We’re officially 6 months out from the Chicago Triathlon, and we know many of you are debating signing up for your first tri… “Oh, I should sign up…” “But I don’t like to run.” “Lake Michigan is cold!” “What if I get a flat tire?” We say: Tell your fears…
Who among us loved report card day in school and woke up early in anticipation of all the A’s that were soon to come? OK, maybe not so many of us. But when it comes to swim lessons for you or your children, we want you to understand that it’s…
As the owner of Chicago’s only local, non-franchise swim school, I take immense pride in the quality instruction we offer adults and children alike. I also know there’s always room for improvement. That’s why my team and I listen carefully to what our clients tell us. And we’ve taken all…
Question: My child loves her class at Chicago Blue Dolphins, but the focus is on songs, games and toys. I feel like we can do a lot of that on our own in the summer. Wouldn’t she learn more from a skills-based approach? Answer: Great question! I hear that…
Last night, I helped coach the last of Lifetime Fitness’ free open water swim clinics for the Chicago Triathlon coming up this weekend. The water temperature in the lake, in the 70s last week, has dropped into the low 60s. Many of the swimmers I led into a sprint distance rehearsal…
I was doing one of the long distance swim training practices that I’ve been writing for my triathletes yesterday, and the main set called for a 1,500 yard aerobic swim. It was a recovery week, so I thought a longer swim would help work out the kinks and help to…
I was checking out my company’s Facebook page this morning and saw that my office manager had posted an article entitled “3 Reasons You Should Be Doing More Kick.” To preempt any comments such as “I’m a triathlete. I thought that I wasn’t supposed to kick.”, I thought I would put…
I’ve had some conversations with some of my swimmers recently about swimming “effortlessly.” When we use the term “effortless” we are using it in the sense of the Taoist term, wu wei. Wu wei is an complicated philosophical concept debated for around 2,500 years, so I will apologize up…
I came across an article through Facebook on the learning mindset that helps children be successful learners. I don’t usually like to publish articles about parenting. I recall bristling at the advice I would get from total strangers in elevators about how to help my baby daughter stop crying. However, Carol…
My coaching staff and I recently had Cindy Freedman from Swim Angelfish train us in her company’s “Swim Whisperer” method. The name SWIM WHISPERER is an acronym for the 14 road blocks to learning to swim common in children who are autistic or have sensory or physical difficulties. To get more…
