Non-fiction book of month: Leap In by Alexandra Heminsley

[RachelMumsnet]

Alexandra Heminsley joined us for a webchat on publication of her last book Running Like a Girl - where she shared the pain and joy of running her first marathon. Last year she embarked on a new challenge; she decided to learn how to go from a head-above-the-water-slow-lane-swimmer to a full-on wet-suit-clad sea-swimmer. Leap In documents her experience of learning to swim and looks at the benefits of cold-water swimming for both mind and body. She rounds off with a fascinating look at the history of swimming.

If you'd like to read this inspiring, funny and insightful new book, apply for one of 50 free copies. Once you've read the book come back to this thread and let us know what you think.

Whether you've read the book or not, we're offering everyone the chance to put your questions to author Alexandra Heminsley. Post your Qs up before Monday 13 February and we'll post up Alexandra's answers before the end of the month.

I'm half way through and am liking the way she describes her fears and reservations as well as her challenges. I am not a swimmer as I don't like putting my head under water so tend to breast stroke if I get into a pool. This book has made me think that I could get lessons to improve and as I like the idea of wild swimming and we live very close to the sea so I just need to lose a few pounds (stone!) to get into my wetsuit.

I'm up to chapter three and I am already keen to read Alexandra's first book because I'm enjoying this one so much. I started running last year (with nhs podcast) and last summer been using a local lido more and more with a day in the sea in broadstairs last summer I've thought of sea swimming ever since so I can really relate. I'm enjoying the imperfection so far and the humour it's very reassuring and makes me feel like sea swimming is not as inaccessible as I thought. I will enjoy reading more ... great inspirational book

Finished and inspired ! I didn't know that front crawl (as we know it) has only developed over the last 100 years. I even enjoyed the facts at the back especially the recommendations for other books.

We're so pleased to hear you are all enjoying Leap In. Please post your questions for Alexandra on this thread before the end of day on 20th February and well get them over to her. Thanks

At first I thought I might not enjoy this book as I found some of the language a bit repetitive and slightly overblown, for example the stuff about the sea being an enemy and something to conquer. She referred twice to strands of her hair whipping across her face in the wind in as many pages and I was wondering if this was deliberate or not. However, I really got into the book as she started to describe her training. As someone who can only do breaststroke with their head sticking out of the water, I had no idea there were varying degrees of good swimmers. I kind of thought anyone who can do decent front crawl could probably do sea swimming. It was therefore fascinating to read about her quest to obtain the correct technique and I really felt her frustration. I loved her description of swimming in the dark tarn, and of the river swim. I only skimmed the second part of the book as I’m not planning on doing any outdoor swimming of my own anytime but I didn’t mind that being there as I’m sure many people will want to give it a go.

Hi Alexandra - what a wonderful book. It may just be that so much of the book resonated with me through shared experiences or if it was because it was the opposite of the last few self absorbed autobiographical works that I have read but I found it difficult to put down, so thank you for such an informative and genuine story. I have a child who struggles terribly with stroke technique and loves Greek mythology so will be passing this onto them as I think that this might just provide the impetus to realise that they can overcome their troubles.

As a swimmer who swam competitively for years but always within the safe confines of a pool, I can relate to the fear of the unknown in open water that you describe. To this day, I cannot go into the sea as soon as I feel the sand begin to shift around my feet; in a pool, you are cosseted by the "box" that you are in and come to rely on that security too heavily. I have swam abroad in the sea but cannot get past the fear of what might be lurking beneath or behind me, or for a rogue wave to appear and for me to swallow water.

A previous poster mentioned hearing you speak about feeling dehydrated after a swim and it might already have been answered but that certainly is the case during training or a race. Because you are pushing yourself to the limits of your ability, your heart rate has increased dramatically and although your submerged body might not feel the effects so much, your face certainly does and I remember well the burning of my scarlet face and swollen lips.

You never will forget that first embryo of yours and it will have an equal footing to the baby that you miscarried. I still remember all of mine many years on but they are of no less consequence than the baby that officially implanted for a short while. IVF is such a physical as well as emotional experience that you do need something else to focus upon so I am glad that you found your swimming to help with this and I sincerely wish you all the happiness and love in the future regardless of which decision you make.

My question is - why the sea? From that moment when the ring was lost and you embarked upon your training, what was it that kept open water as your focus rather than joining a swimming club when the enormity of the situation sank in? Was the feeling of having to overcome the sea so overwhelming that swimming in a pool was the means to an end and being able to continue doing that just didn't register or was it more the openness of outside swimming? I'm not articulating myself well here at all but natural versus artificial?

Thanks again for such an enjoyable read and I wish you all the best for the future.

I'm not an avid reader of non-fiction but starting with a few of the mumsnet suggestions I'm really starting to enjoy this genre, and this is thanks in no small part to Leap In. How engaging could a book about swimming really be? The answer, very! I loved it.

The descriptions of the getting to grips with swimming made me want to dig out my old costume and go for a swim (despite my post-baby physique). As someone who loved sport as a teen I especially identified with some of the passages commenting on the reasons so many women give up sport.

Alexandra- you made me want to swim again.

Hi Alexandra, I am really enjoying Leap In. I was particularly struck by the description of your husband losing his wedding ring in the sea, as the same thing happened to me when I made my first ever attempt at swimming in the sea. And like you, I felt furious (and never found the ring, of course). You write like a novelist and the sea was definitely a character in your book. Do you still feel after your amazing swimming achievements that it is an entity - dangerous, unpredictable, ultimately impossible to conquer?

I have another question for Alexandra if that's ok - I know it defeats the object of ghost-writing to tell us straight but is there any chance of some clues to previous works as I really like your style of writing?!

Thanks to everyone who has posted up feedback - it's great to see so many people enjoyed this book as much as we did. We've passed the questions on to Alexandra Heminsley and as soon as we have the answers back, we'll upload them to this thread.

As a further update - I 'requested' ( from DH) a birthday book - Running Like a Girl. As a runner I found it a fab read. I have no intention of ever running a marathon now - will stick to half marathon thanks - but it was very inspiring regardless.

We now have Alexandra's answers to your question and will post them up on the boards. Thanks again for all your feedback.

@BellFromBow

Do you still get scared that weeds brushing on your leg are massive sharks?! I get shark fear in the bath. Wonder if some open water swimming would help!

Haha, I am not scared of sharks, but sister is terrified of them to the point where if one is in a film she has to check the stairs before bed! I don’t like the feeling of the weeds though - more because I worry they’ll be hiding a jagged branch or a dead body. I call them the tendrils of terror. But I think that’s all part of the fun - I’d rather be scared of a branch than a gross floating plaster in an ill-kept pool…

@Lovelybangers

I finished my book yesterday.

Loved it - was one of those books that you can't put down. I do like to read about other people's personal challenges and life journeys.

I am still at the beginner stage of swimming I guess. Can do breaststroke until the cows come home- but anything more professional like front crawl and i splash about in an ungainly manner, getting nowhere. So have been considering swimming lessons to improve on this - hence a timely read.

One thing that resonated with me was your dislike of bare feet on anything dirty i.e squelchy mud, and slimy reeds etc. Ugh. I am similarly weird - I don't even like to walk on grass wearing shoes.

Another thing which made your story more enjoyable to me- was that it is all set in Brighton and Hove. I don't live anywhere near, but have visited often - as a good friend lives there. It helps to visualise the route that you swim between the piers and the seafront.

My question for the thread: What's next ? You have conquered running (must read that one as I am a runner) and swimming. Will you go for cycling?

Thank you for an entertaining, very well written and thought provoking read Alexandra - and good luck for any future challenges.

Thank you for being so lovely about Leap In! And do take some swimming lessons… As far as what next goes, book-wise I have just finished writing Judy Murray’s memoir with her which is out in June. It has been an amazing experience as she’s operated at the very top end of sport but seen all of the same prejudices and anxieties as I have down at my end. I just hope we’ve managed to convey it all and do her story justice! Activity-wise, I really want to learn to surf. It seems to be almost the opposite of swimming: small bursts of massive exertion, a lot of waiting, very little, actual swimming, but then … still a lot of communication with the sea, which is what I have really loved about swimming. I am not sure if I will have five lessons and hate it though. It’s entirely possible: when I started swimming I was trying to write a book about thai boxing and ballet and it was a disaster!

@Hygellig

I finished Leap In yesterday and found it very inspiring. I am a reasonably competent pool swimmer but, although I've always liked the idea of open water swimming (well, maybe not in winter in the UK without a wetsuit), I've never done very much of it. I swim in the sea a little on holiday, and have had the occasional cooling dip in a river, but haven't swum any long distances outdoors.

Some further questions:

1. Are there sea swimming meet-ups in Brighton that people can just join in on an ad-hoc basis? We live in the Midlands nowhere near the sea, but go to Hove a few times a year to visit my husband's family. And is the water generally clean enough to swim in in Brighton - my husband is convinced it is very polluted (not that he would go in anyway, as he hates cold water).

1. Is it easy to learn to change your swimming style when it has been ingrained for years? I always breathe on my right when doing front crawl, and try as I might I just can't breathe on the other side. Nor can I do tumble turns.

Thank you.

Yes, the water is award-winningly clean in Brighton & Hove. (a bit further west apparently Southern Water are not quite as reliable, but they do report when there has been anything ‘dumped’ in the sea) It’s always worth posting on the Outdoor Swimming Society or Hove Sea Swimmers if you’re coming down here ad hoc for a swim. There’s nearly always someone around who will answer. There is Brighton Swimming Club too but they are more formal/insured/private with their swims.

And, re the swimming style - yes and no. It’s hard, but it’s absolutely doable. When I was in Greece there was someone training for the Coniston Water swim who was determined to pick up bilateral breathing (breathing on each side, ie every third or fifth breath), and they had mastered it by the end of the week. And I swim with people in their 40s and 50s who have embarked on changing their stroke or breath and have managed it with a few good lessons and some grit. It’s absolutely doable, but if by easy you mean “can I sort it in an hour?”, then no. (I can’t help you with tumble turns though!)

@Celama

Hi Alexandra - what a wonderful book. It may just be that so much of the book resonated with me through shared experiences or if it was because it was the opposite of the last few self absorbed autobiographical works that I have read but I found it difficult to put down, so thank you for such an informative and genuine story. I have a child who struggles terribly with stroke technique and loves Greek mythology so will be passing this onto them as I think that this might just provide the impetus to realise that they can overcome their troubles.

As a swimmer who swam competitively for years but always within the safe confines of a pool, I can relate to the fear of the unknown in open water that you describe. To this day, I cannot go into the sea as soon as I feel the sand begin to shift around my feet; in a pool, you are cosseted by the "box" that you are in and come to rely on that security too heavily. I have swam abroad in the sea but cannot get past the fear of what might be lurking beneath or behind me, or for a rogue wave to appear and for me to swallow water.

A previous poster mentioned hearing you speak about feeling dehydrated after a swim and it might already have been answered but that certainly is the case during training or a race. Because you are pushing yourself to the limits of your ability, your heart rate has increased dramatically and although your submerged body might not feel the effects so much, your face certainly does and I remember well the burning of my scarlet face and swollen lips.

You never will forget that first embryo of yours and it will have an equal footing to the baby that you miscarried. I still remember all of mine many years on but they are of no less consequence than the baby that officially implanted for a short while. IVF is such a physical as well as emotional experience that you do need something else to focus upon so I am glad that you found your swimming to help with this and I sincerely wish you all the happiness and love in the future regardless of which decision you make.

My question is - why the sea? From that moment when the ring was lost and you embarked upon your training, what was it that kept open water as your focus rather than joining a swimming club when the enormity of the situation sank in? Was the feeling of having to overcome the sea so overwhelming that swimming in a pool was the means to an end and being able to continue doing that just didn't register or was it more the openness of outside swimming? I'm not articulating myself well here at all but natural versus artificial?

Thanks again for such an enjoyable read and I wish you all the best for the future.

Thank you so much about your lovely words about Leap In, and the journey that it describes. Your story reminds me so much of the one in Leanne Shapton’s Swimming Studies: she was a competitive swimmer, and her book describes how she almost had to relearn swimming entirely in order to enjoy it for its own sake once she was unleashed from the pressure of teen training, Olympic try outs and 5am starts. I can’t recommend it enough as she’s now an illustrator and it’s filled with the loveliest drawings and photographs as well.

As for me, learning to swim in the pool was always with an end game of getting in the sea in mind. If could have safely learned in the sea I would have done! And I wanted to swim in the sea because it was there - I saw it every day, it’s a huge part of my life and I realised it always had been, but then I just couldn’t take part! However, I have really fallen for the Lake District now and have one eye on tackling some of the bigger lakes, or maybe Exmoor too…

@BrianBettyGrable

Thanks v much for the copy of Leap In. I thoroughly enjoyed it and read it over a couple of days. I like her writing style and I enjoyed Running Like a Girl despite never having run (and probably never will!).

I am a keen pool swimmer and her experiences in open water are inspiring. I still don't think I will start open water swimming anytime soon, but this book made me feel like I could if I wanted to, just as Running Like a Girl made running feel accessible to me.

I felt she wrote without self pity despite the traumatic experiences she had been through, which I believe took considerable skill. I too particularly enjoyed the description of her swim in the tarn.

I am in absolute agreement about the meditative quality of swimming and that is one of the main benefits of it for me. I found part two contained useful tips for me about my front crawl technique, in particular the role of the legs as a rudder rather than power and keeping hands shoulder width apart upon entry to the water.

I would like to ask Alexandra if she has plans to write fiction.

Thank you for the enjoyable read and I wish her well for the future.

Thank you so much for being so kind about Leap In! I don’t have any plans to write fiction at the moment, but you never know. This time a few years ago I was a sworn non-athlete! And as recently as three years ago I was convinced that my Running Like a Girl follow up would be my masterwork about boxing and ballet! How wrong I was…

@sarahsusannah

Hi Alexandra, I am really enjoying Leap In. I was particularly struck by the description of your husband losing his wedding ring in the sea, as the same thing happened to me when I made my first ever attempt at swimming in the sea. And like you, I felt furious (and never found the ring, of course). You write like a novelist and the sea was definitely a character in your book. Do you still feel after your amazing swimming achievements that it is an entity - dangerous, unpredictable, ultimately impossible to conquer?

Yes! I do feel that about the sea. I feel a lot less angry towards it as it’s kind of saved me the last year or so, but I definitely feel that there can never be any mastering of the sea. It’s always going to win. But that’s what I love about it - it was something l took on as I went into marriage and motherhood, so the unavoidable lesson that you can’t control everything and you have to work around things rather than rage at them was well taught by the sea. Mercifully!

@Celama

I have another question for Alexandra if that's ok - I know it defeats the object of ghost-writing to tell us straight but is there any chance of some clues to previous works as I really like your style of writing?!

Haha! I’m afraid I can’t talk about much of the ghosting I have done, but in June the one I am proudest of is published: Judy Murray’s memoir, which I’ve been working on with her since last May. She is the most fascinating, inspiring and unexpectedly hilarious lady, so I am thrilled that she picked me to write it with her. I just hope I’ve done her story justice!

Oh well, it was worth a try to find out other titles you'd written 😂 I'll definitely get your new book, it sounds great; Judy is an inspiration and she certainly does have a sense of humour on twitter!

I'll have a look for Swimming Studies as that sounds right up my street. One of my coaches always said that was the downside of competitive swimming - none of us knew how to just go to the pool to "play" like other kids.

Good luck with your lake swimming and thanks for taking the time to reply.

Loved the book, thanks for my copy. I lost my own wedding ring to open water - white water rafting rather than swimming though!
I'm an avid pool swimmer and am really keen to try open water at some stage. I'm very jealous of Alexandra's easy access to sea and beautiful lidos. I'm very far from the sea but will seek out a lake! Also love the idea of escaping on my own for a swimming holiday!

This book got me on a couple of levels. Firstly after having spent 10 years living in Brighton, taking midnight swims on occasion and working in and around Sussex, I could really picture the story. Secondly, when she says you can't be a spectator in life, I fully sign up to that! I like the style of her writing and the reality she speaks about. It was one of those books which you could compare your own life to and thus so much more than a book to get lost in. I highly recommend it.