How To LEARN TO SWIM As An Adult

I want to go step by step how you learned how to swim. I knew nothing. I was really afraid of the water. When I swam the first time, I was jumping up and down, up and down, and just like splashing water. I was ecstatic. The biggest thing holding you back is actually your own fear. As you get older, the more fearful you become. But I didn't want to let that fear stand in my way. What was the hardest part of learning how to swim? And did you ever feel like quitting? This is it. This is the beginning. This is my stepping stone. And for my age, I'm really proud of myself that I was able to do this. It felt like flying. I will never forget that moment. What's going on, swim fans? Today we have a special guest. It is my mom, who just learned how to swim for the first time. And I'm so excited for her to share her story with you guys. And I am so proud of her for learning how to swim as an adult. So let's kick it off. My name is Hala Basma. I grew up in Damascus, Syria. I came to the U.S. when I was 19. Growing up, we didn't really have many pools around. And people didn't really focus on swimming. Just some men would go, and girls didn't really look into that. And so I came here. I got my three kids. I used to take them swimming, enroll them in swim lessons, because I want them to do everything they can do. Give them the safetiness, give them the confidence, learn everything they can that will help them in their lives. I never thought about myself, watching people having fun. It was enough for me. Watching my kids having fun, getting their lessons, improving, cheer them on, take them to swim meets, always volunteering in every way I could. I was there with them every step of the way. And it made me happy. Until now, at the age of 62. Did you feel like you were missing out at that point? Or did you see others and you thought, oh, I want to do that? Or was it not really important to you? I didn't know what I was missing. I love it when I see people having fun. It gives me fun and joy. But me be a part of the fun, it's like, you know, like going to a birthday party, sing happy birthday, and leave without eating a piece of the cake. It was really all I cared about at the time. But I don't regret it at all, because it was a joy to invest in my kids. It was. And I mean, look what he did. He is giving back and more. And so do I have regrets? No way. I'm just the luckiest mom on earth. I look forward now to summertime when I can really like enjoy the outdoors. I'm just like ecstatic. I'm so happy. So I want to go step by step, how you learned how to swim, because I think this is what most people are, they're scared to get started. They think they can't do it. The first lesson. Do you remember the very first swim lesson you had and what that was like? My son came and said, I have something for you. And I open it and I see a swim cap. And I said, but I don't swim. And he said, well, there is more open. And I see goggles. And I said, but I don't swim. And then he said, one more thing. Look down deep in the pack bag. And I found a body suit. And he said, it's for you. You are going to learn how to swim. And I was not expecting it at all. And he really meant it. And I took him up on it. I want to. It's time for me. He said, you invested in everybody around you. Now you need to invest in yourself. Going step by step in the pool, on the side of the pool. I knew nothing, nothing at all. I was really afraid of the water. And he said, what are you afraid of? You can always stand up. He was patient. And I was embarrassed because it was taking me a long time to get comfortable with the water. And he would say, take your time. It's okay. Take your time. And when I first started to blow bubbles, he was so patient. It's the opposite way of breathing. It's like you always have to blow out. And I'm not used to that. That was a struggle. Doing this simple step. And I felt like I'm never going to be able to float. And he said, no, no, no, it's too early. No, no, give it time. You will, you will. And I learned how to go step by step to the water. How to wear goggles. How to wear the swim cap. And how to breathe. How to kick. It's like step by step building up to where I am now. 15 lessons in 27 days. It was intense. It was serious. It was right to the point every single time. We really like did business in the water. We took it seriously. And he didn't waste any time. And having him next to me, giving me the confidence and encouragement, was really the biggest thing that helped me to do this. After he gave me all that, I had to take it on me now to keep it up and to improve. Do you remember the first time you actually felt like you were floating? What was that like? It felt like flying. You feel like you are doing something you have never done in your life. The biggest joy ever. And he used to give me high fives and all right and stuff. It was epic. I always remember when I would give you instruction and I would show you what to do, you would want to try it before I even finished showing you what it looked like. I'd be like, this is what we're going to do. And then you would want to do it right away. I'd be like, no, hold on, watch me do it first. And then you would practice it. Besides having me next to you, why do you think you were able to build the progression so quickly? There are so many chances people get in life. And opportunities. And they waste them. And I felt like this is something I am not going to waste. It's never too late to learn. I wanted to do this. I wanted to do this investment in myself. I feel like I missed out. And now it's time. And with all the guidance and encouragement, I was able to do it. And I watched beautiful videos making me notice, yeah, yeah, this is a better way. And let me do that next time I go into the pool and improve on myself. There's always a chance for improvement. And I want to give that to myself. How about floating on your back versus your stomach? Which one do you think is more difficult? You know, I had a hard time with floating on my stomach with the breathing. It's like I lift up my head too much to take a breath. And so going on my back is a lot easier, I notice. I love going on my back because I make my body so stiff and straight. I enjoy backstroke. It is less stressful because I don't have to think about taking a breath. I will do two on my tummy and then do one on my back or like alternate when I am practicing now at the pool. You mentioned something that's really important about you don't want to fight the water because if you panic, it's not going to work. You're going to sink. So you have to stay relaxed. Can you talk about the difference and how to find relaxation in the water? I notice that if I'm not too stressed out and just take it easy, enjoy the ride. It's just like when you are driving, thinking about every step or just like put your pedal on the gas and go and just be careful of the surrounding. But if you think about every little thing, it's very stressful. So what I noticed in swimming, it's the same. I will just start to move my arms the right way. I'm supposed to breathe the right way, make my body really, really solid. It strengthens the back also. It makes it easier. You do better. You can go faster and get less tired when you are not too stressed out about it. What was the hardest part of learning how to swim? And did you ever feel like quitting? I never did. I just wanted to make it happen. I wanted to get to the point where I can really float, really make it happen. I was upset. I wanted it to happen after a few lessons, but it did happen. I didn't want to quit because you can't. If you quit, you never learn anything in life. And this is something so important. It's a gift of life. I had to learn. Do you remember when we were learning, we would go like 10 meters off the wall and then eventually we got to the middle of the pool and you could stand up and then you finally made it the whole length of the pool. Do you remember the first time you swam a full length of the pool? When I swam the first time, the full length of the pool, when I got to the wall, I was jumping up and down, up and down and just like splashing water. I was ecstatic. It was an amazing feeling. I did it. Yes, yes. It was just amazing. It was amazing. And every time I went to the pool, I would come back really happy. Sometimes I swallowed water and I would just keep going. It's a part of the learning experience. I didn't want to give up on those little things. I mean, it's okay. I hate it when the water goes inside my nose. I will just like cough it out and keep going as if nothing happened because you can't. If you want to do something, you have to take the good and the bad until you perfect it. It was worth every second, every moment. And when you were swimming the first time and I knew you could swim the whole length, I was nervous because I thought, just keep going. I know you can do it. And I didn't want you to stop too early because I knew you could do it. And then when you got to the end, I was so proud of you. I was so excited. You were jumping up and down. I was jumping up and down as well. It was amazing. To me, it actually happened even faster than I thought it would because when you're learning how to swim, you can make progress really fast. But the biggest thing holding you back is actually your own fear. And a lot of people quit too early. You can keep going. Yes, you're tired, but relax. You know how to rotate onto your side, roll onto your back to breathe. You don't need to touch the bottom. And you kept going and I was so proud of you. So when you did the one length, how did you think about the next steps? It's like, okay, I'm done. Or we can go home now? No, it was the beginning. I mean, when the child starts standing up and start walking, does he quit? No. He wants to jump. He wants to run. And that's how I felt. It's like a little child. Okay, I learned, but it wasn't good enough. I need to be strong enough to protect myself if I was in a situation where I needed to swim. I knew it was a beginning, but it was not enough. I had to get better at it. That means I have the chance to improve. Now, this is it. This is the beginning. This is my stepping stone to go for it. There is room for improvement. And I want to give myself that chance. I remember when we were learning, you were sharing with other people. You would tell people that you're learning. Why do you think you wanted to tell people that you're learning how to swim? Because a lot of people, they hide. When they're working on something, they're embarrassed. They don't want to tell anyone about it. Why did you want to share that you were learning how to swim? I was proud that I'm learning something new. And at the same time, surprised that most people I was talking to about swimming, they didn't know how to swim. And it's so important. I love it. I cannot express how much I love being a swimmer now. I can, it's like when I tell my family, okay, I'm getting ready to go for a swim. It's like, this is something I have never said in the house in my whole life. It's just, it is so, so beautiful. I'm so happy. How has learning how to swim and preparing to go to the pool changed you outside of swimming? I'm full of energy. My mind gets cleared up in the pool. I come back, like I feel my body is refreshed. I move all my joints. I really feel younger. It's like, because I'm doing something I haven't done before, especially for an artist like me. I spend a lot of time sitting down, but I am doing better as an artist now after I learned how to swim because I get this special energy, clearer mind, creativity comes to me after I'm done swimming. And the way I'm dealing with time now, I make time for it. Therefore, I need to be faster doing other stuff and not just slow down and, okay, later I will do this. So, oh, there is time. And it's been the best. I do feel younger now after I learned how to swim. And now I just got a new bodysuit. It's time to invest in some swimwear. I am so happy to choose colors, to choose sizes, to do all that. And when you were telling other people, your friends, and that you're learning how to swim, do you feel like initially embarrassed to tell them? Or was it, you know, what kind of support did you receive? What did they say? Did you feel like it was encouraging? Or maybe you have to explain to yourself? I was full of joy, proud, and they are so impressed. They tell me, good for you. Wow, you are learning. And I show some videos to some of them. I say, oh my God, you did this in just a few weeks. It's like, really? It's like, they are really, really impressed with my progress. And they tell me, oh, I wish I could do that. I'm afraid. I have fear of water. Or I have tried and I didn't get better. And it's like, you have to put the effort yourself from inside. OK, yeah, there are beautiful videos, like Ferris' videos. My swim pro videos are really epic. But at the same time, you have personally to put some effort. Not just rely on them. Oh, I didn't do well. That means they are not good. No, you have to do what they tell you and practice and put the effort and be totally in. You are either in or out. You can't just go in between. Oh, I will try or I will see how things go. No, no, no. You have to go for it and make it happen. What do you think is the hardest part of learning how to swim as an adult? You are more fearful of your life because you have a family and you are older. Your brain and everything, you are not as fresh as a child. I remember like Ferris used to throw himself in the water and try to swim by himself without anybody teaching him. He had no fear. And as you get older, the more fearful you become. But when he told me, let's learn how to swim. I didn't want to let that fear stand in my way. No, no. I'm going to do everything I can and see what happens. And good things happen. What advice do you have for someone who doesn't know how to swim and they're afraid of the water? Once you try it, this fear will be gone. Don't make this fear an obstacle of getting you to fulfill your dreams and enjoy this big, big part of life as a swimmer. I realized after all this that I have missed out on so much. Yeah, I was happy for other people. But for me to be the one in the water, to be the one experiencing this, it's something I never really thought about. It's because I didn't think I have it in me. He gave me the confidence and he didn't give up on me. This is something I'm gonna carry out with me for the rest of my life and something I never dreamt I will be doing. And now that you know how to swim, do you feel more confident next to the water? Because before you used to go on a boat and you don't know how to swim. So now if you're in these situations, do you feel more confident or how do you think about being near the water, but not necessarily swimming in the water? You know, you might get into situations where you don't think that you're gonna be in the water. Like if you are in a boat and something happened to the boat, whatever happens now, I feel like I can manage to float. I might not be able to swim a lot, but I can save myself. I'm not as fearful as I used to be right now, which is the best because I can enjoy life now. Because the more things like if you are fearful of this and this and this, it adds up to make your life so complicated. And this is something really as important as learning how to drive. Driving gets you to places. Swimming gets you to swim and go here and there in the water and enjoy water. And why deprive myself? Now I am enjoying it. And how important do you think it is to follow the right program when you're learning how to swim? Do you think you just jump in the water and see what happens or how much more beneficial is it to have a little bit more structure? You need guidance. It is so important. You need to get better at yourself, invest in yourself. And without guidance, you stay at the same point that you are. You have to improve. Get Faris's book. It's the best to improve on yourself. Now get off your butt and get at it. Learn how to swim. Improve on yourself. It's you. You will be so happy. You will never be sorry. It's an investment in your life and well-being. Is there anything else in your swimming journey that you think is really important for people to know who are considering taking that first step, but they're not really sure it's worth their time? They don't really think they're going to need the skill because they don't go swimming. Why do you think someone should really take action and get over their fear and make progress? I mean, some people will sit and watch TV for hours and sitting on their butt and then complaining they didn't do much or their joints are stiff. Just like do it. Swimming is really the best thing for you. Just get out there and go to a close pool. Do something about it. Invest in yourself. It's really the best thing that you would do. Do you remember the specific moment when you felt you could call yourself a swimmer? When I was able to float, I can call myself a swimmer. It was the biggest moment, the biggest joy ever. I will never forget that moment. It was so special. Priceless is something I never thought I would do, but I did it. I go into the water. I'm not thinking about the outside world anymore. I am like taking a break mentally from everything out there. I'm just focusing on, okay, how many laps am I going to do? This is what number? Okay, let's do two more and let's do this. And I'm not thinking about the outside world, about all I need to do or all I need to catch up on stuff, no. I'm there fully in the swimming pool, enjoying my time. Like investing in myself, like Ferris says. And this has been the best investment I have ever did in my life. Really. I'm just so grateful. Thank you so much. Thank you. I'm so proud of you. And I'm so excited because I'm happy that you learned how to swim after investing decades of your life to help me follow my dreams and become a swimmer. And now I'm in a position to help other people. And I think you will inspire so many people because you're so relatable that you didn't learn how to swim. And now as an adult, you took action and you were able to learn how to swim in such a short amount of time. Sure, you had my help, but you did it. You learned how to swim. No one can do it for you. And you took action. And I know you inspire me and you inspire my siblings and all of our family because you learned a new skill. And I think the world will greatly benefit from stories like yours. So thank you so much. Thank you for sharing your story. And I encourage everyone to take action, follow the programs that we have, because like you said, it's an investment in yourself. It gives you life and it's priceless. Thank you so much. Oh, Molly, you're so amazing. Do you remember we were working on a swimming skill? And then next thing I know, I see you doing butterfly. And then I ask you, I'm like, what are you doing? What was going through your mind? I saw it in one of your videos and I wanted to try it.