FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND THEIR ANSWERS

Will this class work for me?
The class works for everyone who tries it. Just as 2+2 can only equal 4, if you try our method, you cannot get any other result but freedom in the water. This is why we can guarantee our work. It's a system based on universal learning principles. Yes, the class will work for you if you are there, you ask all your questions, and you try it. As one student put it, "It cannot and does not fail." (Mary Alice Yund, Chemist, Berkeley, CA)

Why are your classes 3 hours long?
Because it takes that long to do the job the way we'd like to do it: superbly.
It gives us an hour on land to discuss what's coming up for you in the pool and our technique. Our technique is very simple and it makes sense to everyone, yet it takes practice. For example, you probably think that working hard at something is the way to learn it. This belief will be debunked and you'll come to understand what works best for overcoming fear.

Secondly, a two-hour pool session allows you to review what you did last time, settle into how you feel that day in the water, practice, learn more, and practice. In warm water, we're always comfortable for two hours. It's the ideal way to learn. People often wish the pool session were 3 hours.

What is the course format?
Eight three-hour sessions, one hour on land and two hours in a warm-water pool. If you take a class in Berkeley, CA, the format also includes eight 75-minute practice sessions on 8 consecutive Sunday afternoons after your first weekend of classes, from 4:30-5:45 p.m. Berkelely class sessions are Thursdays from 6-9 p.m., Fridays from 6:30-9:30 p.m., Saturdays from 3:30-6:30 and Sundays, 4:45-7:45 p.m.
A few times each year, we offer the course on weekends only during the Saturday/Sunday times listed: four weekends in one month.

If you take a vacation class (fly or drive, stay in a hotel where the class is taught) the class is 5 days long, usually Monday-Friday. We have morning and afternoon classes Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9-noon and 3-6. We have morning classes only on Tuesday and Friday. Friday's class ends at 11 am in time for hotel checkout at noon.

From time to time, a vacation class is a bit longer when it's taught in conjunction with an Instructor Training. At such classes, instructors from other states or countries learn to teach our method: they participate in a Beginning class as trainees. This means more instructors for the Beginning class. It also means that the number of classes you take in one day is reduced since trainees must attend both your classes and theirs.

Will I learn to swim?
To us, Swimming means being able to rest calmly in deep water, moving from here to there as you please for as long as you wish. This is what we teach.
Stroking and swimming are different things. In our class you'll learn how to be one with the water. When you're confident, you'll learn to float, move from here to there, rest in the deep, play in water, jump and dive in. The point of our classes is to make you confident. Once you're at ease in the water and no longer focused on survival, you'll be ready to learn strokes. We teach Freestyle in our Freestyle and Flip Turn class.

Please convince yourself of this truth: you cannot learn freestyle while you're still out of control in water. People who "learn" freestyle while they're still out of control in water do not swim: they stroke. Their strokes are stiff. They can't learn to breathe, tread water or rest: nor can they swim in deep water. Swimming implies comfort and oneness with the water. This is what you'll learn from us. You'll learn to swim in our Beginning or Next Step classes. You'll learn freestyle in our Freestyle class. This is a distinction you'll most likely not find in any other swim school or YMCA/Red Cross offering ...until they've read our book, seen our video, and come to our trainings.

I just need to learn the breathing. Do you teach it?
One of the many beliefs of people who want to learn to swim is that they already have the armstroke and kick, they can go from here to there, but the breathing isn't comfortable yet: they JUST need to learn to get air. If you feel this way, we ask you these questions: are you tense as you move through the water as above? Are you swimming "uphill", in other words, are your feet a foot or two lower than your head? Do you lift your head up and out of the water to try to get air? Do you push down on the water to get air? Do your arms and legs feel disconnected from each other?

If the answer is yes to any (or most likely all) of the above, it is not breathing that's holding you back. Learning to breathe is not your next step. Learning to let the water do all the work you're doing is the next step: in other words, overcoming your fear that it won't. Swimming only takes as much energy as walking ...unless you're doing far more work than you need to on account of being tense. You can learn why you don't need to be tense. When you're no longer tense, it's simple to learn to breathe, and yes, we'll teach you.

What is the age range of class members?
20 to 90. Older students are welcome! And, we have had some high school students by special arrangement. Most students are 30-65. All adults welcome!

What if I wear contacts?
You may wear them under goggles if you wish. Or, you can buy goggles that have your prescription ground into them. Choose a pair of goggles that fit your face and don't leak first. THEN have them ground.

Should I eat before class?
The amount you can eat before class and remain comfortable is different for each person. We recommend eating lightly but enough that hunger won't distract you in class. Remember we are on land for an hour before we get into the pool.

What's the difference between your video and your book?
The video/DVD is a portrayal of our introductory half-day class: the problem faced by afraid swimming students and the solution that works 100% of the time in the only video where you can find it. It's the picture that's worth 1000 words. It's 47 minutes long, not 24 hours long, of course, which is the length of the Beginning class. The book is "48 hours long" in that it teaches every concept and skill covered in the 48 hours of the Beginning and Next Step classes, give or take one or two. It has all the information that will make you free in deep water as long as you read it and practice what it gives. It speaks your language and it's friendly and simple.

What's the difference between a licensed instructor and a trained instructor?
The licensed instructor has been through our 55 hour 8-day training and twelve months of teleconferences while he/she was practicing the teaching at his/her swim school, and has taught at least 3 Beginning classes.

The trained instructor has taken the same 55 hour 8-day training, but has not yet completed the 12 months of teleconferences or 3 Beginning classes taught on his/her own. S/he is working toward completion of the licensing process.

I can't tread water, breathe, or float. Do you teach something different from what my previous lessons taught?
Yes, we teach what you need to know rather than swimming mechanics. Skills like treading, breathing, and floating all come predictably when you are completely in control in water. Why? Because then, you'll be able to follow instructions. You'll be in control of what you do with your arms, legs, and breath.

Do you know of any similar classes on the East Coast or anywhere else?
We have trained instructors in Tampa Bay (Brandon), Sacramento, Seattle, Dallas, Redondo Beach (California), and Bowie, Maryland . We are attracting and training more instructors each year.

Stay tuned to our Instructors page to be updated with new instructors.

What do your different classes teach?
Please see our Levels page under the Classes button.

I've been swimming like this. How do I fix it?
Often people ask us what's wrong with what they've been trying. Funny thing is, the answer is almost always the same: you've been thinking that what you're doing with your arms and legs is what's keeping you from becoming free. This is not how it works. If your swimming needs fixing, chances are very high that it's not your stroke...it's your swimming. Once you've overcome your fear, your problem will be gone. You may then want/need to learn strokes like freestyle once your attention can be focused on mechanics rather than survival. So, if your freestyle needs fixing, become confident first. Then take the Freestyle class.

Why do some vacation classes cost more than others?
The biggest price differences are determined by the varying rates from one hotel to the next. Prices are also affected by airfares and meals for instructors to reach and teach classes and the number of instructors and spotters covering a class.

How can I maximize my chances for success?
By letting yourself be yourself. By going slowly and not pushing yourself. Go at your own pace and don't even think about what someone else is doing. Ask all your questions. Play. Be a kid. Give yourself time. Suspend deadlines.

Can I take BART to class?
Yes, the Berkeley class is five blocks from downtown Berkeley BART

What does "Miracle" mean?
According to A Course In Miracles, a miracle is a collapse of time that results from the use of universal laws. Achievements that would ordinarily take arduous effort and significant time are suddenly accomplished without effort in a short time. This is the experience of students at MSI.

Your web site sounds too good to be true. Is it for real?
Yes, it's for real. There are ways you can check it out further before taking classes. Feel free to call and ask your questions at 800-723-SWIM (7946). You can read our book and see the video. We can also give you references.

Why do your classes cost what they cost?
First, our classes are three to five times longer than traditional classes. They have to be, in order to deliver what you want and what we promise. Secondly, we incur pool rent wherever we teach and we often have travel expenses. Third, our full time employees' salaries, instructors' fees, and all our annual overhead are paid by your course fee. Whereas the YMCA covers some of their costs via United Way donations, other YMCA programs, and local fundraising efforts, and other traditional swim classes are subsidized by tax bases say, in municipal learn-to-swim programs, we do not and are not. It's all on you. Lastly, we researched an original, breakthrough teaching technology that isn't available anywhere else. Yet it's virtually the only way to learn to truly prevent panic and overcome your fear in water. We have 25 years' experience doing one thing: teaching adults who are afraid in water to swim and to prevent panic. There is no one with this experience and no greater value than our classes in the Learn-to-Swim world. You get the value you've paid for because only here will you find every answer you've sought. Read our book: be convinced.

Am I ready to take your Freestyle Class?
You're ready to take our Freestyle class in a shallow pool if you're at ease in shallow water. You can float, unfloat on front and back, do seal rolls, stand on your hands (or feel comfortable trying), do somersaults (or feel comfortable trying), do whale jumps, and play freely.

You're ready to take our Freestyle class in deep water if you can do the above skills in deep water (not whale jumps) and rest in deep water, unfettered by depth.