The smell of chlorine hits as you leave the cool, misty, artificial light of the changing room and step out onto the cold and cracked tiles.

You walk around the edge, eyeing up the gliding figures held in lycra costumes, beneath the rippling water.

Clinging onto the stairs that are coming away from the side, you let out a sharp breath as your body meets the cold water. You fold into the blue that surrounds you and lifts your body as you move over to the edge with gentle strokes.

A tweak of your goggles, a deep breath, then you’re ready. You plunge forward, powering off the side with a push that cries you further up the pool. Momentum ebbs, and you pull your arms towards your side. Your legs seamlessly follow and the effortless movement is completed with a glide.

Breathe, stroke, glide. Your thoughts melt as you become aware of every muscle working in harmony. Breathe. You’re consumed by the effortless, light, movement of your body.

The water is no longer separate, and the boundaries between your warm skin and the water that surrounds you, fades.

And then you’re at the other side. Your mind breaks you from the natural movement through the water. Your hands breach the air and you turn yourself as if your legs had become fins.

The air rushes past your ear and surrounds you as you spring off the cream times, returning to the rhythmic ripple of the pool. Your lungs fill with luxurious air and then you glide back down beneath the surface.

You drift away in the continuous cycle of motion that you and the water are working on in harmony. There’s nothing else but to breathe, stroke, and glide.

Just as the distinction between the undulating water and your body fades, you’re reminded of your human form. You notice a dark object, ducking closer to see what treasure is beneath. You find a discarded plaster, swaying lightly in the wake of your increasing speed.

Then you’re at the wall, you push off, engulfed in the water. Your thoughts return to the three essentials, to breathe, glide and stroke.

Breathe, stroke, glide. Breathe, stroke, glide.