It’s not often that you think of Swimming while cooking, or 
vice versa, but if you really think about it, many of the same ideas work for both activities.
- Learning from Others: It seems that the best recipes are usually passed down from generation to generation. Take my mother’s crock pot chili for example, she learned it from her mother and has passed it down to me and I’m sure one day, I’ll pass it along as well. Swimming techniques are taught by skilled instructors, yet each individual instructor brings their own take on how they teach that technique, passing along that unique way of teaching to their students.
- There’s no Right or Wrong Way to Get There: Swim lessons are commonly started at a young age, though many people don’t begin lessons until well into adulthood, some students have knowledge of some swim techniques while others have never been in the water. I know I didn’t learn my mother’s recipes all the same way; sometimes I assisted with the prep and watched while other times I followed the recipes from a hand written card. Whether it’s jumping right into something, or wading in from the shallow end, do it at your pace!
- Adjust Along the Way: Trying to cook something new will always take some adjusting, after tasting your dish along the way you will tweak different ingredients before you find the perfect combination! My grandmother would always say “add a pinch of this and a dash of that!” until it’s perfect! When learning to swim you will also find you will need to adjust along the way in order to improve your technique and develop stronger strokes.
- You Can Do it with Friends: This one is pretty self-explanatory, everything is always more fun when you involve your friends and who knows, you may learn something new!
- From Simple to Complicated: At the beginning, learning to swim is as simple as learning the basic swim strokes and lifesaving skills. After learning the basic techniques advances to higher levels and one day, possibly joins a swim team or swims competitively. As with learning to swim, cooking starts out learning the basics, trying out easy recipes and after becoming more comfortable it’s a smooth transition to more difficult recipes with more steps and details.
Swimming and cooking are two of my favorite activities, it’s great to know that everyone is capable of participating at their own pace and able to have fun doing it! Both activities can teach you something new, creates fun family and friend time and, depending on the ingredients, can be a very healthy experience.
One of my favorite recipes is crock pot chili, and not to brag, but I have been known to make a mean pot of chili – maybe because the recipe has been handed down so many generations, it’s sure to be perfect by now right?! The recipe is simple and any cook at any level can do this simple dish and it will turn out delicious! If you are short on time, consider throwing this together for a warm, delicious meal, and, as you enjoy making our family recipe please remember to add a pinch of fun and a dash of love.
