Swim, Swim, Walk

Training is going well - I swam 1/2 a mile on Thursday (32 lengths) and over 1/2 mile on Friday (40 lengths). My arms felt like lead on Sunday morning though, so instead of swimming I went for a walk. It was such a lovely day, and I thought my legs could do with a bit more of a workout.

When I swim I do breast-stoke, but I have a terrible screw kick - it looks as though my right leg knows what's going on, and does a nice frog-like kick, but my left leg thinks we're doing crawl, and refuses to go out - it just goes up and down! I'm sure this slows me down, but even if I concentrate really hard, I can't make it do the right kick! It must look really bizare - like swimming with a limp.

I would like to put this down to an old injury - I dislocated my left knee when I was 17, spent 8 weeks on crutches and it's never been the same since. I say I'd like to put it down to this, but I have such strong memories of one particular swimming lesson at school.

The gym mistress (yes, it was that kind of school) asked everyone else to get out of the pool and then asked me to swim 1 length breast-stroke. Feeling proud to be singled out, I did my finest length - going as fast and as elegantly as I could. Imagine my horror when she then turned to the rest of the class and said "and that's how you don't do it - what a terrible screw kick!" She never did help me fix it, and so here I am, decades later, still limping through the water like a half-frog/half-fish creature.

I must see if I can find her and get her to sponsor me - it must be worth £1 at least!