In late 2021, we asked our members, “What’s Your Day One?” Dozens of members shared their 2022 fitness goals with us, and we chose four members to follow on their journeys from Day One to Goal Accomplished! Juan is now halfway through his journey to learn to swim and we catch up with him below.
It’s been six weeks since Juan had his first private swimming lesson with FFC Personal Trainer Joy Miles. In these first six weeks of training, Juan has learned how to balance his body in the water, both on his back and prone with his face in the water, how to breathe comfortably in the water and how to develop his swim stroke. Let’s take a look back at weeks 3 – 6 of Juan’s training.
Week 3
During Week 3 of his journey, Juan takes us along as he prepares for his training session with Joy. Juan is also practicing on his own to work on the drills and skills Joy has been teaching during their sessions. With swim practice, “sometimes you’ve gotta dive right in,” Juan said.
Related: Click Here To Learn More About Juan and His Goal
Week 4
In Week 4, Juan takes a trip to the FFC Spa to get his first Deep Tissue Massage with FFC Massage Therapist Michelle Mendoza. Michelle herself is a swimmer, and she said when she is working with swimmers, there is typically a pattern of tightness on the back of the body, including the glutes, shoulders and neck.
Michelle recommends that swimmers get a Deep Tissue Massage at least once a month if not twice a month.
“What you’re doing is bringing more blood to muscle groups with a deep tissue [massage],” she said. “The blood then is supplying those muscle tissues with more healing benefits.”
Massage can benefit everyone’s daily lives, and Juan is already looking forward to his next appointment.
“[The massage] went really well, it was very relaxing,” Juan said. “I will definitely do this again in the future.”
Week 5
Each of the participants in our Day One program is paired with a FFC Registered Dietitian to help guide them as they take on a new fitness routine. In Week 5, Juan meets with FFC Registered Dietitian McKayla Braender.
After his first meeting with McKayla, Juan had a number of takeaways, mainly that he needs to prioritize taking a lunch break during the work day and increase his protein intake.
McKayla asked Juan to keep a food journal to get a better idea of his eating habits, his likes and his dislikes in order to best individualize her nutrition guidance. This practice will also help Juan become more aware of his nutrition habits.
“She has taught me to be more mindful of what I’m eating and what nutritional value that could provide,” Juan said.
Because swimming is a total body workout that burns a lot of calories, McKayla said swimmers should focus on having a great pre-workout snack that is easily digestible – like a banana, apple sauce, a plain bagel or fruit snacks.
Post-workout, McKayla said swimmers should focus on refueling carbohydrate stores and adding in more fiber. Brown rice, whole wheat toast or whole wheat pasta are great choices to replenish energy stores when paired with a protein.
Week 6
As Juan reaches his halfway mark in Week 6, he shares that he is getting more comfortable in the water and can see that progress is being made.
“I feel more comfortable as a swimmer, thanks to my instructor Joy,” Juan said. “Joy’s taught me the importance of working with the water and not trying to fight against it.”
One of the things Joy suggested to help Juan get more comfortable putting his face in the water is to grab a large mixing bowl, fill it with water, put his face in the water with his goggles on and exhale out in the water.
After he is more comfortable with breathing in the water, Joy will be working on stroke development with Juan.
“I feel great about the program so far,” Juan said. “I feel like I am gaining new life skills, and we’ll see how it all plays out in the end!”
Keep an eye out for new episodes weekly about Juan’s journey at youtube.com/FitnessFormulaClubs.
Post written by FFC Contributor Natalie Casper.