Swimming not only benefits physical health but also enriches one’s understanding of life.

•6 min read
Swimming not only benefits physical health but also enriches one’s understanding of life.
When it comes to the benefits of swimming, many articles highlight its advantages for fitness and wellness. But a strong body is only part of what makes a person whole—how do we pair that robust physique with a resilient, positive mindset? Everyone has their own answer to this question. For someone who truly loves swimming, the act of immersing themselves in the sport can lead to profound insights: as they connect with water’s natural essence, they gain a deeper understanding of their own inner nature, often experiencing moments of sudden clarity or enlightenment along the way.
Let’s set aside the empty, lofty rhetoric about how "the highest excellence is like water, which benefits all things without competing." When it comes to swimming, at least it helped me gain some clarity on the "7 o’clock rule," and now I’d like to share how incorporating swimming into my life has taught me some of the most fundamental—and crucial—lessons.

1. The gap between wanting and getting can only be filled by effort.
Whether in your career, in your personal relationships, or even across different sports, swimming teaches people the importance of hard work, humility, and teamwork.
Swimmers who excel—whether in a pool or open water—often put in far more effort than others. After all, something truly worthwhile always demands hard work. Yet, people frequently find themselves making excuses for why they can’t push harder, only to realize those excuses ultimately boil down to: "It’s just not worth the effort!" But here’s the straightforward reality: "You don’t deserve it!" As the movie line goes, "No guts, no glory!"
Let effort become a habit in how you approach tasks, and the process will naturally fall into place.
2. Sometimes, unfairness simply exists in such a blunt, harsh way.
When learning to swim, you sometimes encounter swimmers who seem to glide effortlessly—swimming better and faster than you do. What’s most frustrating is that they often haven’t even put in as much effort as you have! It just doesn’t seem fair—simply because they’re taller than you, or perhaps because their hands are wider!
It’s worth looking further ahead—cultivating a calm and realistic mindset, rather than relying solely on talent, can help you go farther and reach more places in life.
If your mind is filled only with height and hand size, making progress will become even more challenging.

3. Learn resilience by facing failure and setbacks
Reality is harsh—unfairness not only persists stubbornly but also refuses to align with our expectations. Especially when we’re watching closely, it can even trigger a terrifying sense that the entire world is somehow working against us.
Many swimmers have experienced this feeling—no matter how hard they try, the results just don’t measure up. Their performance fails to reflect the effort put into practice, leaving them with the unsettling sense that all their training has been for nothing! This lack of understanding—and refusal to accept—the outcome can leave swimmers feeling anxious, confused, and inexplicably irritable.
But once you learn to accept and develop coping strategies, your spirit will grow stronger again, making you more resilient. At the same time, reflecting on the fact that others may also face this same challenge will help you cultivate humility—after all, sometimes it’s simply bad luck on the other side.

4. As individuals within the team, hoping for others' success can lead to unexpected miracles.
I absolutely love watching videos of all kinds of swimming competitions—whether it’s individual races or team relay events. Both pool-based and open-water events offer their own unique highlights. Sometimes, you’ll notice that swimmers often perform better in team relays than in individual races, with their speed seemingly skyrocketing in ways that defy expectations.
I simply can't understand this—it can only be summed up as a miracle: when you compete for something other than yourself, unexpected performances tend to emerge.
As a certain celebrity once said, when everyone’s efforts and determination come together to work toward a shared goal, incredible things happen. When one swimmer pursues a goal, they become powerful—but when a whole team rallies behind a common purpose, their momentum becomes unstoppable.

5. Everything takes time to unfold.
Swimming isn’t just about reaping exciting rewards—sometimes, a profound lesson is the far more valuable takeaway. For instance, wanting something doesn’t necessarily mean achieving it.
A person’s time and energy are limited—investing more in one area inevitably means less for others. That’s why there’s never such a thing as "missing out"; making choices always involves consciously letting go of certain things.
Sometimes staring at the goal can be exhausting, but focusing on the process becomes enjoyable—swimming is a perfect example. Setting a swimming goal might make it seem daunting to reach, but if you fully immerse yourself in the joy of the swim itself, the goal naturally unfolds as just the next step in the journey.
6. Self-discipline is truly deadly.
Swimming isn’t like going to school—when you oversleep in the morning, your parents are there to wake you up. With swimming, it’s all about personal interest, passion, and your alarm clock; there’s no external pressure or force—it’s entirely self-motivated. And though I once was a devoted follower of the world’s largest religion—let’s call it the “Rebound Church”—the moment I fell in love with swimming, my chronic struggle to get out of bed suddenly vanished.
Once you can discipline yourself to get out of bed, everything else will seem much easier.

7. How you play is just as important as how you win.
Winning makes you happy, losing can be frustrating, but later I gradually realized there are things more important than the outcome.
Whether it’s a swimming competition or practice, losing is an everyday occurrence—no one enjoys it. But being able to sincerely shake hands with the winner while standing on the lane line shows that even if you didn’t conquer the race itself, you’ve already triumphed over yourself. After all, only those who can embrace defeat are truly worthy of victory.

Failure to respond to message messages in a timely manner:Due to the high volume of messages and comments from swimming enthusiasts on our official public account, I sometimes fail to respond promptly. Most of you are eager for more videos—so moving forward, I’ll speed up the process of adding subtitles to my videos, aiming to upload them more frequently. If you have specific questions about improving your swimming techniques, feel free to leave a comment directly under the relevant article. This way, your message won’t be limited by the system’s time constraints, and I’ll make sure to reply as soon as I see it.

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