With a short-term goal in mind, Zhou You found renewed interest, so he’d been asking Wang Ping to give him extra training these past two days. The relationship between Zhou You and Wang Ping had evolved beyond just coach and student—they were now like-minded companions who enjoyed swimming together.
Wang Ping didn’t have much going on either. After the summer break, he had no more classes, and Zhou You didn’t need to clock in for work, so they had plenty of time to soak in the pool together.
“Don’t rush, take it slow. Don’t think about running; think about strolling. Rhythm, you’ve got to control the rhythm,” Wang Ping instructed from the side.
Zhou You could only respond with “Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, okay,” nodding submissively.
“Next, I’ll teach you the freestyle flip turn. You’ve basically got the other moves down, but you still need more practice. With swimming, you have to maintain that feel for the water, or you’ll easily get rusty. The turn and push off the wall can shave at least two to three seconds off your 100-meter freestyle time. I’ll demonstrate now—watch closely.”
Wang Ping stood in the shallow end of the pool, back against the wall, with one foot placed on the wall. He gently pushed off with his ankle, then lowered his head, curled his whole body into a ball, and dove into the water, tucking his chin and body as close to his knees as possible. He performed a forward somersault in the water, keeping his elbows tense.
“Brother Ping, I’ve practiced the turn before, but every time I do it, water gets up my nose and it’s awful. Now I’m kind of scared of it,” Zhou You said timidly.
“Getting water up your nose usually comes down to your breathing technique. You need to exhale through your nose and inhale through your mouth correctly. As you turn, slowly blow air out through your nose. Another reason is turning too slowly. Because of water pressure and gravity, if your face stays upward too long, water flows into your nostrils, causing that choking feeling. So a fast turn and proper breathing are crucial,” Wang Ping explained. “When you try it, I’ll watch to see where your technique is off.”
Zhou You hesitated for a long time, unwilling to move. That choking sensation was just too unpleasant.
But to show off later and look more professional, he had to push through, no matter how hard it was. After all, he had such good conditions now—it’d be a waste not to use them.
Deciding to go for it, he gritted his teeth and dove into the water, pressing his head down, sticking his butt out, and flipping his feet forward. Halfway through, he couldn’t complete the roll.
*Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough, cough!*
Zhou You surfaced from the water, his face streaked with tears.
Wang Ping burst out laughing beside him, as if remembering his own early swimming days when choking on water was a given.
Zhou You looked dejected. “Brother Ping, that’s not cool. Get over here and help me out—I don’t want to choke again.”
Wang Ping stopped laughing and said seriously, “Your move wasn’t bad, but you hesitated halfway through because you were still worried about water getting in your nose. Here’s what we’ll do: I’ll get you a nose clip first, and you practice the turn with that. Overcome the fear first. Once you can turn smoothly, slowly exhale through your nose during the turn—make sure it’s fast, under a second.”
With the nose clip on, Zhou You felt much safer. At least if he kept his mouth shut, no water could get in. He started flipping and twisting all over the pool.
Wang Ping coached and demonstrated simultaneously.
**Stationary Jump and Roll:** Standing in the shallow end, with toes touching the bottom, push off with your ankles, tucking your chin and body into a ball. Use your hands to paddle backward for extra thrust.
**Wall-Assisted Roll:** Hold the edge of the pool with your fingertips, keeping your arms straight. Take a deep breath, do a quick freestyle kick, then let go and paddle backward. Curl your body into a ball and roll. After the roll, quickly plant both feet on the wall, knees slightly bent, ready to push off. Then push off with both legs, extend your arms forward, and glide away, keeping your body straight and streamlined.
**Swim-In Turn:** Start at a distance from the wall, do a fast freestyle kick to propel yourself toward it, and initiate the turn about 1.2 meters out. This move requires solid freestyle kicking technique—your legs and arms need to pull strongly toward your hips to ensure your feet hit the wall quickly. To stabilize your feet on the wall, use your core muscles to maintain your body position during the turn.
They spent the whole morning at it, leaving Zhou You completely exhausted.
At noon, Zhou You treated Wang Ping to a buffet. With all that energy burned, only a buffet could meet their calorie needs. Swimming can help you lose weight, but you have to control your portions—otherwise, you’ll gain weight, since swimming burns so much energy.
“Brother Ping, this is exhausting. Do you swimmers usually have a massage or fitness support team?” Zhou You asked, hoping to enjoy such services himself.
“Our swim team doesn’t use them much. We mostly just massage each other. Unless there’s a strain or injury, the coach might do some basic massage. Other training teams have them, though. There are also public resources like rehab trainers, therapeutic massage, and both Chinese and Western medicine options. If you’re interested, I can introduce you sometime,” Wang Ping said, guessing what Zhou You was getting at.
“Great, thanks, Brother Wang. I’ll treat you when we go.”
“How about this afternoon? We can go together, and I’ll cover it,” Zhou You said eagerly.
Swimming was too tiring—his whole body ached, and he didn’t want to move.
“I’ll call and see if he’s free. What you need right now is some post-workout recovery massage.”
“Hey, Dr. Liu, it’s Wang Ping. Are you at the hospital today? I’d like to bring a friend over this afternoon for a massage. Do you have time?”
“Sure, come on over. I’m on duty today,” the other party replied curtly.
Many doctors these days worked part-time, spending a day or two a week at training teams. It was all temporary—if serious injuries or rehab required tests, they’d still need to go to the hospital. Without being a major sports province, there wasn’t dedicated funding to support full-time professional rehab trainers.
“Brother Ping, after we eat, let’s crash at my place for a bit, then I’ll drive us over this afternoon,” Zhou You invited.
“Sure, I’d love to see your place—see what a university professor’s home looks like,” Wang Ping said. Athletes who specialized in sports often lacked academic depth, since time was limited.
Zhou You hopped on his electric scooter and took Wang Ping home.
Wang Ping wasn’t from the area; he rented a place in Luzhou since he hadn’t bought a house yet. Unless you reached the top tier in sports, it was hard to make good money.
Looking at Zhou You’s spacious home, Wang Ping said enviously, “University professors really have it made—they can earn good money!”
“Come on, I just run a small side business and made a bit of cash.”
“Brother You, give me a hand. Tell me to go east, I won’t go west. Tell me to chase a dog, I won’t go after a chicken,” Wang Ping joked half-seriously.
“Sure, once things settle down, we brothers can start a little business together.”
They were the same age, but calling each other “brother” was a sign of respect.
It’s almost the holiday season, and I haven’t seen any monthly tickets yet. Any generous reader care to toss one my way?