Cavorting

A special feature of levels 2 and up is cavorting, where playful activities are incorporated into the workouts. Ever notice that kids in a swimming pool behave differently than adults do? They jump, they bob, they do flips, they do cannonballs, they sit on the bottom, and they make up silly games. In other words, they play. They are always learning about their environment and are always expanding their comfort zone within that environment. Because of this constant unintentional physical learning, kids are more capable of intentionally grasping and executing new skills when the opportunity presents itself. Adults tend to repeat patterns of behavior during every visit to the pool—same number of laps, same strokes, same pace, same equipment, same lane, same thoughts, same, same, same. Adults find a comfort zone and stay well within it. Very little learning takes place when one never does anything new or different.

I challenge you to do something different in the water every day—perhaps something that you’ve never done before, perhaps something silly. Play! Cavort! You will become more comfortable and relaxed in the water. You will have more confidence in your ability to learn and execute new skills. You will learn these skills more rapidly. In the long run, you will be a better swimmer and you’ll have more fun.

Toward this end, I have included a number of cavorts in the workouts. Some may seem entirely unrelated to swimming; some may seem antithetical to effective swimming; others may simply be an interesting variation on a drill or skill that you have been working on. Don’t feel limited by what I suggest or how often I suggest it. If the cavort I suggest is not workable in your situation, make up something different. Cavorting is also a great way to warm up or cool down. If you are so stodgy and grown up that you simply can’t bring yourself to play or cavort, then think of it as practicing improvised aquatic skills instead. You can always pretend that you aren’t having any fun doing it.