A personal reflection by Mandy Coggins
I’m back in the pool after having only partaken in the odd training session over the past 12 months, due to Covid and other responsibilities. I have been training with Tuggeranong Masters for over 15 years, was never a squad swimmer, learnt to swim in a river but loved swimming. It’s winter, cold outside, but being back in the Tuggeranong pool, comfortable air/water temperature, looking outside the glass to the cold, fellow swimmers/friends beside me, and struggling with the program as I am not as fit as I would like. I am back in lane 2 where I am aiming to improve my fitness. Our coach Brenda has been coaching us on Thursday mornings for many years now, a real treasure to the club. Thank you, Brenda.
Mandy Coggins
Being in the club has given me a great extension in my swimming skills, for example… how to swim butterfly and breaststroke; learning starts and turns for the different strokes, and as a result extending myself to partake in some of the racing events, within the ACT and beyond. Totally going outside of my comfort zone but I have shared the challenge of racing and fun with swim friends and meeting new swimmers from other clubs. This has included being at the World Masters Games in Sydney, Nationals in Melbourne, and the Alice Springs Games, not to forget ocean swims!
Thursday morning swim sessions finish with a feeling of accomplishment, coffee, and chat; a very pleasurable way to exercise!
