Team Average - No.1 Swimming Coach

So it's time to meet the first member of Team Average and his name is Richard Nicholas who's my Swimming Coach.

This is Richard on the very first occasion I actually met him, now I know what you're thinking nice boots!

They are in fact his own boots which he claims he had when he dressed up as Ginger Spice from the Spice Girls, Union Jack mini dress and all!

I can confirm that this is the case as I have seen the pictures which are still giving me nightmares even now although I do think he had them way before this!

But putting the boots to one side Richard is a qualified swimming teacher where swimming has always been passion of his even though he was a non swimmer until he was 9yrs of age.

 

He learnt to swim at Abbey Sports Centre in Barking which was where I met him last year as one of my team of swimming teachers.

 

After learning how to swim he started swimming for Ilford swimming club, training 5 times a week and representing the club at the weekends. 

He qualified at the age of 18 as a level 2 swimming teacher and spent the next four years teaching  swimming at Goresbrook leisure centre where he decided that this was an ideal career path to follow.

He helped to develop the programme and even introduced parent and baby lessons to the centre which were a great success. 

 

However Life took him off in a different direction where he got married to the lovely Nina and having their first child, Harry, and becoming a manager of a car hire company at  Stansted airport.

Despite this he always kept my toe in the water (excuse the pun) teaching on Sunday mornings. 

 

Over the past 3 years he has been back teaching and is now in a full time teaching post at the recently opened by the Queen, Abbey Leisure Centre.

He is also a qualified Aqua-aerobic instructor where he can be found throwing some shapes on weekly basis!

As I've mentioned the biggest challenge for me is the swimming part and already in the first couple of weeks he has got me swimming 20 lengths (500m) each session.

Richard has many years of experience and is a very enthusiastic, skilful and technical coach but what he also brings which for me is far more important, given the amount of training I'm going to have to do, is making it fun.

It was evident in my first session with him that he was the right man for the job when he provided me with a bright yellow swim hat.

He wasn't phased by the fact that I insisted in wearing it during a busy evening casual swimming session at a local pool and despite how nervous I was we had a great laugh and he made me feel so relaxed.

So ladies and gentlemen this is the first piece of Team Average Mr Richard Nicholas!