*My first story, and it’s long. Please be gentle.*
I first started swimming when I was a child. I was pretty active, back then. But as I got older, I started to focus more on academics and less-athletic pursuits, and by the time I was in my mid-20s I wasn’t exercising all too often. I started hitting the weight room three times a week and after two or three years I had developed some pretty good strength, but I will still a little chubby. I decided I had to lose some of the excess body fat that I had put on over the years, and the best wayh to do that was with diet and swapping in cardio for weights.
That’s when I started swimming again. I joined the gym near my house and started swimming a few times a week. First 500 yards, than 1000, than 1500, then I started swimming about 2000 yards every few days. Being in the pool was both a throwback to my childhood spent on swim team and a tranquil way to clear my head: no distractions, just me and the pool.