Swim-With-Me

Hyponatremia

swim-with-me — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 20:02:11 +0000

Hyponatremia, commonly called water intoxication, is a potentially fatal condition resulting from extremely high levels of water in the body.Water intoxication can be the result of swallowing large amounts of water during swimming lessons.It is not known whether the actual trigger factor that causes hyponatremia is excessive sodium loss, excessive intake of free water, inappropriate secretion of anti-diuretic hormone or a combination of all these factors. Whatever the cause, the condition is easy to prevent, all it takes is a little common sense and awareness. Repeated dunking under the water and allowing the child to drink the water because their mouth is too close to it should be avoided.The adult must be aware, at all times, of the position of the baby’s mouth in relation to the water surface. In most common cases the baby who has swallowed an excessive amount of water will vomit or pass large amount of urine.This is the body’s way of ridding itself of the excess water. If the child does swallow a lot of water, becomes restless, lethargic, irritable, weak and nauseous and has abnormally wet nappies, they may be suffering from hyponatremia and a doctor should be consulted.

Get me to 19341ft – My Journey

swim-with-me — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 19:29:32 +0000

Summit kilimanjaro

Having received an e-mail about climbing Mount Kilimanjaro for charity with my university – Loughborough I decided I had nothing to lose by attending the information evening and by the end of the presentation had signed up for the challenge, not then realising the daunting task I had just set myself; to raise £2500 for the nominated charity, Practical Action, in just 6 months and then climb the tallest free standing mountain in the world.

After a lot of hard work, organising several fundraising events which included hours spent bag-packing at Tesco’s and running a very successful pub quiz at The Cat and Fiddle in Radlett, I finally reached, indeed, I surpassed the fundraising target and was eligible to go on the trip. All this would not have been possible without the continued support of my employer Swim-With-Me (http://www.swim-with-me.co.uk) who helped with promoting my initial fundraising efforts and helping me plan my fundraising goals. Also I must thank Phil Calnan at Goodyer (http://goodyer.co.uk) without his generous support I would undoubtedly not have reached the fundraising target.

A couple of weeks later after some painful injections and lots of last minute shopping trips to purchase items from the endless list of equipment I was given, I was ready to begin my African challenge. Arriving at the airport I was very nervous to meet my fellow trekkers and was hoping I would make friends quickly! We left Heathrow on 2nd September on our outbound journey to Nairobi airport, having arrived in the morning after our interminable 9 hour flight, we walked out expecting some fresh air but instead walked out into what I can only compare to a dusty sauna. A very bumpy journey ensued along what seemed to be the one and only road in Kenya with cars creating their own lanes! Arriving at the Tanzanian border I thought my journey was about to come to an abrupt end – my Tanzanian visa was in my ‘old’ passport, the Post Office having lost it some two months before – and my entry stamp into Kenya was in my new passport! A few bribes later, thanks to a very resourceful coach driver, I was finally allowed into Tanzania and joined my fellow trekkers for the rest of our journey to Arusha where we would spend the night before embarking on our expedition to Mount Kilimanjaro.

Four and a half days of intense climbing lay ahead, often rock climbing, whilst also having to acclimatise to rapidly decreasing oxygen levels. The mood in the camp changed on day three, altitude sickness had struck! I was one of the lucky ones and I knew if I paced myself I would be alright. After a long drag upwards to 4800m we finally descended down into a valley reaching Barranco Camp at 3950m where we ate and rested for an early start on day 4. Being woken at 5am wasn’t pleasant and then to be told at breakfast that we had to scale the Barranco wall, a 200m high rock face. Finally we reached the top of the wall and that was the best feeling so far! Then it was on to Barafu Ridge Camp at 4800 meters; exhausted, hungry and aching from every joint, we had to try and sleep, preparing for the big Summit night that lay ahead; it was so cold, minus 20 degrees and sleeping was a far off dream.

At 10pm that evening our guides came and awoke us to get ready for our long night ahead. We left camp at 11pm to attempt the climb to the summit (it’s safer doing it at night because of the dangers of melting ice that is prevalent during the day) Also by commencing the climb at night you cannot actually see the daunting task that awaits and are less likely to give up! It was without doubt the worst 9 hours of my life; the minus20 degree weather meant that I had lost feelings in my hands and toes even under 3 pairs of thick socks!

Nevertheless, I was determined that I was going to reach the summit and after what felt like an eternity we arrived at the summit on 8th Sept 2012 at 8:30 in the morning. A group of 17 students from Loughborough University had conquered the world’s tallest freestanding mountain. I immediately fell to the ground. Due to the exhaustion and de-hydration I don’t think it quite hit me at the summit what I had achieved. We arrived in time to witness the sunrise, I can honestly say that is a treasured memory that I will never forget! Was all the pain worth it; absolutely!!

If I thought climbing up was bad then the descent was horrific! With every step my toes were pushed forward to the tip of my boots! Combined with exhaustion I found myself stumbling and kept falling over and found myself sliding down the mountain on my backside. But I had overcome all the obstacles that had been thrown at me, my challenge of a lifetime was complete.

To summarise, my journey up and down Kilimanjaro was without a doubt the best experience of my life so far. It taught me that I can accomplish anything I put my mind to, and I made some great friends that I am sure we will share this great experience for many years to come.

I would like to send a message of thanks to all my friends, family and the local people who supported me in the challenge raising over £2500 for Practical Action. Special thanks too must go to my neighbor Ralph, without whose knowledge and expertise – and the loan of the majority of my kit. Special thanks also to the GB Synchro girls and their manager Adele Carlsen who took time out whilst training for the 2012 Olympics to sign my t-shirt that raised over £800 towards my fundraising.

Without their support I would undoubtedly have struggled to complete the challenge.

The question is: What will be my next challenge?

Georgie Hardy

UKCC Level 2 Teaching Aquatics Certified

Games Maker 2012 Olympics

Games Maker 2012

Kids Mini Polo – Snorkelling – Kayaking Lessons

swim-with-me — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 20:19:33 +0000

Snorkelling Fins

Kids Mini Polo – Snorkelling – Kayaking Lessons

Adult Only PAYG* Leisure Swims

Colchester Academy

Hawthorn Avenue, Colchester, Essex, CO4 3JL

Tuesday Evenings

Senior Coaches Tracie & Jean-Michel Jack

Please call 08455 080990

or e-mail Swim-With-Me to reserve your place

*PAYG – Pay As You Go

Colchester Children’s University

swim-with-me — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 19:16:47 +0000

Colchester Childrens University

We are proud to be assoicaited with Colchester Children’s University™, where every child aged 7-14 years, without exception, can study.

Children’s Universities are working to provide children aged 7-14 years with exciting and innovative learning activities and experiences outside of the normal school day. Celebrating and rewarding achievements in learning is important …. learning can be the satellite navigation to better places in life! Issued with a Passport to Learning, children can travel around Colchester and the UK with their Passport to Learning, collecting stamps in recognition of their learning as they go, after all travel is what a Passport is for!

Get me to 19341ft on 3rd September 2012

swim-with-me — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 23:00:15 +0000

Kilimanjaro Trek Georgie Hardy

Let me introduce myself my name is Georgie Hardy and I live in Watford, currently studying Graphic Communication at Loughborough University. For those that don’t already know me I teach for Swim-With-Me on Saturday afternoons at Marlborough School and have covered numerous sessions at Astley Cooper in Hertfordshire.

On 3^rd September 2012 I’ll be undertaking a trek to the summit of Kilimanjaro, known as the rooftop of Africa, standing at 19,341 feet in height. Setting myself the challenge to tackle the landscape and the altitude and reach the summit. I am aiming to raise a minimum of £2500 for my chosen charity Practical Action before my Trek.

I’ve chosen to support Practical Action because this charity believes that the right idea – however small – can change lives. It can create jobs, improve health and livelihoods. Since 1966, they have been working with third world countries to develop the skills and technology that will enable them to build a better future. More information on what the charity does can be found at http://practicalaction.org/

For example by raising just £40 this can build a clean water tap – Clean water taps are lifelines to the poorest communities where water is scarce. Placing a tap stand high above the water level can help save lives by providing a vital source of clean, safe drinking water all year round.

As well as the main event, I’ll be raising money through various fundraising activities in the lead-up to the big day. Including a Sponsored Cycle ride from London to Brighton and a Quiz Night along with a Charity Auction.

Now this is where you could help me reach my target and support Practical Action by making a donation through my fundraising page at: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/GeorgieHardy Make sure you put your name or your company name on the donation message so all other donors can see you’re supporting me. You can also donate by cheque made payable to Practical Action and forward it onto me.

In Addition, you are all welcome to attend my Quiz night or Auction (I will keep you posted with the date and location)

Thank you in advance for your generosity and support and taking the time to read my blog

Georgie Hardy

Practical Action

Website: http://practicalaction.org

Charity Registration No: 247257

Please visit: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/GeorgieHardy

GB Synchro 2012 Olympic Signed t-shirt

Synchro Team GB 2012

I still need to raise £1165 to meet my target of £2500 to enable me to get to 19341ft on 3rd September 2012

I am offering a once in a lifetime opportunity to bid for a framed GB Synchro / Practical Action Kilimanjaro signed t-shirt. This t-shirt has been signed by the GB Synchro girls that will compete at the 2012 Olympics.

GB Synchro Practical Action Swim-With-Me

If you would like to bid please visit: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/GeorgieHardy and donate to my cause, the largest donation received by the 19th August 2012 will be given this awesome piece of British Synchro Olympic memorabilia 2012

Good luck and please donate as much as you can, every pound will count!

Thank you Georgie xx

swim-with-me donates £250.00

03.08.12 Rebecca Adlington wins Bronze for Team GB and Georgie gets Gold with her fundraising target for Kilimanjaro – Congratulations Georgie on reaching your fundraising target for http://practicalaction.org just 19,341ft to conquer now … we are so proud of you xx

Twitter update – Total raised £2,818.82

@samwilson_48 @AshaRandall @synchroD @HannahGreen33 @Anya_Tarasiuk @SynchroKS @jknobbs @JennaRtweets @Olivia_Federici @KatieC_23 @VickiLucass @yvettebaker91 BIG thanks for taking time out to support @georgie_hardy – over £1000 raised for GB Synchro signed shirt 19341ft #Kilimanjaro

@adelecarlsen BIG thanks to GB Synchro girls for taking time out to support @georgie_hardy #kilimanjaro over £1000 raised for signed shirt

Twitter update – @georgie_hardy The day has arrived! I’m off to summit Kilimanjaro thank you to everyone who has got me this far

Twitter update - @georgie_hardy Arrived safely after travelling for 14hrs! An early start tomorrow for the first day of the trek

Get me to 19341ft – I made it!! ………..read the full story

Intensive Courses

swim-with-me — Fri, 27 Jul 2012 06:52:03 +0000

Tollesbury Cruising Club
27 August – 31 August 2012
9.30 – 11.30
£25.00

Lifestyle Health Club
20 – 24 August 2012
9.00 – 11.00
£20.00

IOS Teaching Turns CPD

swim-with-me — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 16:08:43 +0000

IOS Teaching Turns CPD

Special Offers

swim-with-me — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 15:40:26 +0000

: 9 for 6 private swimming lessons

Bringing you the best offers in Adult & Child, Children & Toddler, One to One, Teenage & Adult swimming lessons in Luton, Stanstead Abbotts, Hertford, St Albans, Hemel Hempstead, Colchester, Snaresbrook, Woking.

For prices and more information on private swimming lessons please contact us here

Mini Polo Lessons

swim-with-me — Tue, 29 May 2012 19:42:54 +0000

Kids Mini Polo – Snorkelling – Kayaking Lessons Adult Only PAYG* Leisure Swims

Colchester Academy

Hawthorn Avenue, Colchester, Essex, CO4 3JL

Tuesday Evenings

Senior Coaches Tracie & Jean-Michel Jack

Please call 08455 080990

or e-mail Swim-With-Me to reserve your place

*PAYG – Pay As You Go

NPTS – National Plan For Teaching Swimming

swim-with-me — Thu, 10 May 2012 19:53:04 +0000

National plan for teaching swimming.

The NPTS is a comprehensive, integrated, progressive teaching programme based upon sound technical and educational principles and provides a standard reference for those responsible for planning swimming programmes.

The NPTS aims to:

Set a national standard for performance – local schemes can equate to local standards. The NPTS aims to provide a degree of consistency throughout the country with regard to what the ASA expect swimmers to do and how they expect them to do it.

Challenge lesson providers to structure the progress of swimmers based on achievement and not organisation convenience – progress through some learn to swim schemes is often based upon low interpretation of awards or criteria along with demands to move through the scheme as quickly as possible.Integral to the NPTS is a clear assessment process with progression through the scheme based on the achievement of clearly identified outcomes. Inevitably, therefore, some children will move through the scheme at a faster rate than others.

Develop a wide range of skills – the content of the NPTS prepares swimmers to participate in a variety of different disciplines and in so doing develops a more rounded and more skilful performer. This will increase the range of opportunities open to the swimmer in terms of future development whilst at the same time provides a sound skill basis for those wishing to progress to the competitive aspect of the sport.

Emphasise the importance of initial orientation – time devoted to initial orientation, to generating a feeling of being at ease in the water will enhance the development of more complex skills. Great emphasis is given, therefore to water confidence activities particularly in the first two levels of the plan.

Develop high reliability through repetition, revision and consolidation – if you take the opportunity to look around a busy swimming pool, particularly if lanes have been allocated to allow for people to swim up and down, you could be excused for thinking that, whilst we may be a nation of swimmers, in reality we are a nation of poor swimmers. Incorrect head positions, poor body alignment, ineffective kicking and pulling and the sight of people fighting against the water are all too common place.The NPTS attempts to address this problem through improvements in the quality of learn to swim provision. Implicit in this is the raising of expectations of teachers, parents and swimmers. The NPTS aims to raise these expectations to a new level; to emphasise quality in stroke execution; to establish a situation whereby all children learn how to dive effectively; to have some awareness of other disciplines in which they might participate and to enhance their understanding of the benefits which swimming can add in terms of a healthy lifestyle.

Identify the correct standards of skill performance – for too long there has been ambiguity in respect of what constitutes the correct standard of performance over a range of aquatic skills. This is particularly the case in terms of the swimming strokes where the standard expected becomes very much that of the individual teacher and will, therefore, inevitably vary from teacher to teacher and from scheme to scheme.The NPTS identifies very clearly the standards expected at different levels of performance and willhopefully develop, over time, greater consistency in the application of standards.

Provide assessment against clearly identified outcomes – assessment is a critical aspect of the NPTS as this forms the basis for progression from one level to another. The outcomes are clearly stated and provide a reference point by which progression can be easily measured.

Provide a direct link to the ASA Awards Scheme – the ASA incentive Awards Scheme provides an excellent means of motivating swimmers of all abilities whilst at the same time provides a simple way of measuring progress. The development of the NPTS has provided the opportunity to produce twelve new awards, the criteria for which match the outcome of the various levels of the Plan. The provision of the awards now becomes a logical consequence of the teaching process.

SUMMARY OF THE EIGHT LEVELS Foundation – Adult & Child

Fun and enjoyment are critical at any stage of learn to swim but particularly at this stage. The mainemphasis is placed on developing water confidence whilst working with the parent of accompanying adult.The stage takes babies from the initial introduction to the water through to achieving independence.Children who complete this stage may be ready to move straight on to level 2, the beginner stage.

Level 1 – Non Swimmer

This category covers the initial process of introducing those with no previous experience of swimming to the new water environment, developing confidence and being at ease in the water. Achieved to a great extent through informal play, the main outcomes involve moving around quite freely, submerging and opening the eyes, floating, and using the arms and legs to achieve a simple form of travelling through the water.

Level 2 – Beginner

In this category, the emphasis moves from initial confidence to building a sound foundation in thoseaspects of “watermanship” which later on will underpin the performance of sound swimming technique. As well as becoming completely “at home” on and under the water, these include developing control in water breathing and beginning to experiment with the different methods of using the limbs for propulsion.

Level 3 – Improver 1

The focus is now on building competence in the basic elements of propulsion, using the main swimming strokes with a continuing emphasis on the importance of good streamlining and breathing control. This is accompanied by the introduction of a range of aquatic skills such as sculling, treading water and swimming underwater.

Level 4 – Improver 2

The aim here is essentially to consolidate the aquatic skills along with controlled breathing, so that pupils can swim competently, using correct basic techniques on three of the main strokes over the standard distance of 25 metres and on Butterfly over 10 metres. In addition, turns and essential safe foundation practices for diving are introduced.

Level 5 – Advanced 1

Once an acceptable degree of basic competence is achieved in the fundamental skills at Improver 2, it is time to progress to the development of more efficient swimming. This level also consolidates the wider range of associated aquatic disciplines, synchronised swimming, water polo and diving as well as providing for the development of a greater awareness and expertise in personal water safety and survival swimming. From this stage, pupils with the interest and enthusiasm will be ready to move on to participation across the range of swimming and aquatic sports with a solid foundation.

Level 6 – Advanced 2

As well as the further development of the main swimming strokes, this category acts as an introduction to the early stages of training in competitive swimming; provides a basis for swimming as part of a healthy lifestyle and continues with some more advanced activities in the other disciplines. The development of both basic aerobic swimming endurance and of swimming speed are integrated within the programme.

Level 7 – Pre-competition development