Swimming: The Ultimate Escape From the Stresses of Life
Swimming: The Ultimate Escape From the Stresses of Life
People tend to overlook the importance of taking a mental break from the reality of life. A break never hurt anybody but can promote a positive sense of well-being. Everybody deserves an opportunity to pour their focus into something that positively impacts their physical and mental state. Swimming steps in to give people the mental break everybody deserves.
Focus On Training
When you swim, you have many things to focus on: your breathing pattern, your stroke technique, how many laps you’ve done, and avoiding other swimmers to prevent a collision. For competitive swimmers, you even have to take the time to revise your stroke and maintain a proper speed to make the interval. Focusing on these elements of your workout leaves no room for worries to worm their way back into your mind. Competitive swimmers applaud the sport for the ability to steal their attention away from the stresses of life and turn them to focus on their training.
Disconnection From The Internet
Every time we check the news or social media, it appears something negative is happening once again. Piled on top of our personal stress, the Internet continues to negatively affect our mental health. It shows that people need more opportunities to justify setting their phones down and disconnect from the Internet. Swimming steps in as the perfect opportunity to disconnect, as phones aren’t waterproof and our mind is filled with the focus of exercising. Our lives are often connected by the Internet, especially due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so we must remember to give ourselves a break. A break that proves swimming is best, since your phone cannot work out with you and steal your attention.
Opportunity For Socialization
When thinking of the mental break that swimming provides, people overlook the benefits of socializing with your teammates. Your teammates can be viewed as a second family that does not focus upon school nor your personal stresses. Instead, you spend time discussing the latest joke, how badly you want to go home, asking when the set ends and creating inside jokes that only you and your teammates would understand. When we are with our friends, we are able to take a mental break and enjoy the time we have together. Fostering positive relationships with your teammates is one of the most overlooked benefits of swimming upon our mental health.
So, how does swimming provide you with a mental break from the reality of life?
All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.