How does Shaw Method compare to Total Immersion?

1996 was a big year for swimming. In that year Terry Laughlin published Total Immersion and Steven Shaw The Art of Swimming. Both men were former competitive swimmers who had come to the conclusion that there must be a better, more efficient way to swim and to teach swimming. Both Terry and Steven were influenced by inspirational swimming coach Bill Boomer. Bill Boomer had a great record in working with competitive swimmers since the 1960s, becoming coach to the US Olympic team in 2000. He looked to aquatic animals for his inspiration and concluded that good body alignment was essential to minimising water resistance.  This balance and body alignment is crucial to Total Immersion and Shaw Method: so do the two methods have other points of contact and what are the differences between the two? Here’s our quick guide followed by interviews with a swimmer and a swimming teacher who have experienced both  …

What is Total Immersion (TI)?

Total Immersion, the book, comes with the strapline, “The revolutionary way to swim better, faster and easier”, and the message that everything you already know about swimming is wrong. This argument is based on the fact that elite swimmers promote the idea that to be able to swim well you need to have some sort of innate talent. Laughlin’s message is that anyone can work on their swimming using his method, and improve. He talks about getting results, and I think it would be fair to say that TI appeals to swimmers who want to compete or to complete challenges such as a a Great Swim or a Channel crossing. TI talks about efficiency rather than speed, as speed will be a by-product of swimming more efficiently. Swimming is also referred to as a mindful practice, and swimmers are encouraged to become more self-aware.

Four skills form the key to the Total Immersion style:

• Balance: the body should be level in the water meaning that the head is lower and the legs higher than in traditional swimming
• Active streamlining: this involves keeping the body as long as possible to reduce drag and increase efficiency
• Rhythmic weight shifts: using the movement of the torso to generate propulsion rather than relying on the limbs for power
• Friction: holding on to the water rather than pulling back

Total Immersion is taught by teachers who work from the side and in the water. The focus is on starting again at the beginning and forgetting everything you have already been taught. You will work on building solid foundations for your new stroke by learning a series of swimming drills, each one introducing one new element to your practice. Only when you have mastered all the drills do you get to work on the full stroke.

TI is very popular in the United States and United Kingdom, particularly amongst swimmers going in for endurance events such as triathlons.

What is Shaw Method?

Shaw Method is a way of swimming and teaching swimming based on the principles of the Alexander Technique. Good body alignment is important and the focus is on the Alexander principle of looking after the head, neck and back relationship. The Method also focuses on enjoying your swimming and moving through the water with grace, power and ease. Like Terry Laughlin, Steven Shaw believes that everyone can learn to swim well, and your starting point is no barrier to achieving that aim. Whilst Steven Shaw works with swimmers of all abilities, the Method appeals most to recreational swimmers who would like to exercise in the water without injury or tension.

Fundamentals that are key to Shaw Method include:

• Primary control: working on a good head, neck and back relationship comes first
• Balance: it is important to learn to glide on the front and float on the back without effort
• Keeping the chest open
• Harnessing the power of the core body: propulsion originates in the torso whether by rotation or driving the limbs
• The breath: taking the focus from the inbreath and concentrating on easeful exhaling
• Flow: working on seamless transitions between propulsive movements, non-propulsive movements and stillness

Shaw Method is taught by teachers in the water offering demonstrations, support and hands-on guidance. Dry land practices are also taught. The focus is on working on the fundamentals before stroke-specific practices that are slow and easy. Pupils are not expected to complete many lengths of drills, and progress to the full stroke comes relatively quickly. A key focus is on how you feel in and out of the water: pupils often report improvements in posture in the pool and on dry land.

Shaw Method is popular in the United Kingdom, growing in the United States, and slowly moving around the world. It appeals to swimmers of all ages and abilities, but is particularly beneficial for those suffering from back or joint pain, or those recovering from illness.

The professional’s view: Tom Ross, Shaw Method teacher

“I first came across Total Immersion in 2004 and it was a complete revelation to me. I first trained to be a swimming teacher in 1999 and since then had felt that there was something missing in what I was teaching. When I saw a woman swimming TI at one of the pools where I teach I had never seen anything so smooth, graceful and effortless.

“I then got the book and spent all of 2005 working on all the drills in the pool myself, and from there began to use them in my lessons. From then on I never used a float in the pool again, because like Shaw Method, TI recognises that any buoyancy aid plays havoc with your balance in the water.

“Total Immersion is all about balance, rotation and timing, and to me those elements are pretty fundamental, particularly to front crawl and backstroke. I often see other teachers struggling to teach children aspects of the strokes that they would master easily with the application of TI principles, or of Shaw Method for that matter.

“I first heard about Shaw Method in 2008 from a woman who was having lessons to help her bad back. My initial impression was that it was a British version of TI, but the more I read about it the more I realised that Steven had come to his method via a different route namely the Alexander Technique.

“Essentially Shaw Method is also about balance, rotation and timing, but the way that it is taught is different from TI. TI is more drills based, and those drills are built up methodically until you are ready to do the full stroke. With Shaw Method you will get to try the full stroke a lot earlier albeit in a guided fashion with the instructor in the water.

“In front crawl another thing that is different is the arm recovery: Steven emphasises the long arm recovery which is easier on the shoulder muscles than TI which uses a high elbow recovery. I have to say I prefer that recovery, but there is much in TI to admire too. I find it more adaptable to poolside teaching, and as a teacher who does a lot of coaching with competitive swimmers I love the drills.”

The swimmer’s view: Glenn Treacy

“I first got into swimming about seven years ago. I used to do a lot of running, but because of injury was encouraged to try swimming. The only problem was my technique: I could run 20 miles quite happily but was out of breath after swimming 20 metres.

“I was having Alexander Technique lessons at the time and was encouraged to try Shaw Method, but because I live in Dublin it wasn’t easy to get to lessons. In the end I tried Total Immersion because it seemed similar and I could sign up for a weekend course.

“The course was run by a former competitive swimmer who filmed us all with an underwater camera before the course, and at the end. The course involved quite a lot of classroom work where they laid out the theory of why Total Immersion was different to traditional swimming, and showed us some video of competitive swimmers. It was interesting to see these people swim with an almost magical ease, and I really wanted to emulate them.

“In the pool we did lots of drills up and down with the teacher on the poolside. We were encouraged to throw away our old way of swimming and start again. At the end of the weekend I’m afraid my swimming looked pretty similar to how it had looked at the start. I think it came down to the breathing: I hadn’t mastered relaxed breathing so the other elements of the TI stroke were a bit lost on me.

“However, I didn’t give up: I sought out another TI teacher because I had no idea whether or not I was doing the TI drills correctly. This guy taught in the water and I got so much more out of those lessons. I really began to progress, however the focus on minimising the number of strokes to get to the end of the pool robbed me of my rhythm and I was still very slow.

“I persevered and in 2008 got involved in an English Channel swim relay with my company. I liked the idea that TI says that everyone can be a good swimmer and so encouraged 15 of my colleagues to take TI lessons and we completed the Channel swim in September 2009.

“The problem for me was that I wasn’t enjoying the swimming. Then I starting thinking about what my Alexander teacher had said about the importance of the neck, and how my neck didn’t feel good when I was swimming. So that encouraged me to have another look at Shaw Method, and earlier this month I went to Morocco with Art of Swimming for a week-long course.

“The first revelation was the lack of details. In TI you are encouraged to replicate specific movements in the water in each drill. I found that because I wasn’t super body aware that this was very difficult. Steven Shaw’s teaching in Morocco was all about whatever your body is doing it should be natural and it should be easy. There was an emphasis on movement, rhythm and flow, and all of the SM instructors I worked with told me there were little gaps in my stroke where I was attempting to stitch my TI drills together. I was also thinking about it too much.

“At the end of the week’s course I was moving with far more ease, so much more speed and with so little effort: it was brilliant. Before there had been a struggle with the breathing: with Shaw Method that struggle disappeared.

“Nevertheless, I would still recommend TI to anyone who was already a good swimmer, but wanted to compete in triathlons etc. I think Shaw Method is better for beginners and for those who want to enjoy swimming for its own sake. The language of TI is very performance based, whereas in Shaw Method, like Alexander Technique, it’s more about the journey. If that journey is relaxed and good, a good performance and end result will be there too.

“I’m pleased that I persevered with my swimming and tried Shaw Method. I had unfinished business in the pool, and as it turns out with the Channel too: I’ve signed up to do a two-way crossing next year. This time I’m expecting to enjoy it!”

What do you think? Have you tried TI and Shaw Method? Leave your comment below. We’d love to hear from you …

Photo of Steven Shaw supplied by Art of Swimming