A Skills-Based Approach that Improves Swimming Quickly and Effortlessly
Total Immersion
Unlike traditional swimming which is often a test of endurance, Total Immersion (TI) is a skill-based approach to swimming that harnesses the laws of fluid dynamics, developments in exercise physiology, cognitive psychology (how we learn) and neurobiology (train the brain as specifically as any muscle) to improve your swim.
Instead of expending energy to work against water resistance, TI allows you to flow with it, achieving a sleek ‘fishlike’ effortlessness. Using heightened awareness of mind and body, you will learn to engage the right muscle groups for propulsion, instead of using (and tiring out) your arms and legs to push and pull yourself around. You will also learn to achieve optimal balance and streamlining in the water, reducing effort and fatigue.
The end result is comfort, control and confidence – and the ability to swim further and faster with less effort. Find out more about Total Immersion here.
Terry Laughlin
Creator of Total Immersion
Total Immersion was founded by Terry Laughlin, a swim coach from the USA. Terry was not always an outstanding swimmer, and in fact, never made the school team as a child. After swimming all through school and university, and despite hours of training and practice, Terry realized with great disappointment that his timing was not improving. He felt that he was going nowhere, and put it down to a lack of innate talent.
Terry began coaching at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point on Long Island 6 months after retiring as a swimmer. It was there that he realized that technique was the most significant factor in swimming success. He began to work with a group of pioneering coaches on creating a ‘fishlike’ style of swimming that emphasized ‘slippery’ bodylines rather than muscling the water with the arms and legs. As a result of his technique, the teams he coached went on to win several swim meets and championships, breaking long-held records and earning national rankings. Terry was only 21 when he was named Coach of the Year by the NCAA.
Among Terry’s stunning achievements are completing the 28.5-mile Manhattan Island Marathon Swim in his 50s, winning the National Masters Open Water championships at four distances, and breaking the national records in the 1-mile and 2-mile cable swims. He is the author of the highly regarded book “Total Immersion”, which was published in the ‘90s and remains a best-seller in swimming literature. For someone who believed he had no talent, Terry came very far indeed.
Terry passed away at the age of 66 in October 2017 from complications of prostate cancer. He is survived by his wife, Alice, and daughters Fiona, Carrie and Betsy, as well as by the legacy of the method he created, which has since spread and gained a strong following around the world.