The Transformative Effects of Water

Guest Commentary By Dr. Jane Katz

For more than 50 years now I have been teaching swimming and the positive impact that aquatic exercise can have on body and mind. This is not a “theoretical” subject for me. I have been through various physical and emotional traumas in my life and swimming has always helped pull me through.

It began back in 1961. I was training for the Maccabiah Games and while riding as a passenger on a motorcycle one day in New York City we were struck by a car that ran a red light. I suffered fractured ribs and was told that I was very lucky to have avoided a spine injury. One doctor advised me to never swim again! But I knew that I had to get back in the water to be truly healed, and I so I did just that. In fact, I made it to the Maccabiah’s and swam the 100 meter butterfly in 1:15.8, which was a personal triumph in so many ways. But, most of all, it was just great to be back in the water doing what I loved.

In the late 1970’s I had an accident that made the 1961 incident seem like a scratch. I was riding in a car in upstate New York, near Albany, when we were rammed by a drunk driver. I suffered a Colles fracture of my left wrist and a broken leg. In those days, there really weren’t any waterproof casts and so, initially, I was going crazy not being able to swim. Finally, it just got to be too much so I carefully wrapped my casts with plastic shopping bags and taped them as securely as I could and off to the pool I went.

There wasn’t much swimming I could do in the pool given the condition I was in, so I began doing gentle water exercises daily in the 50 meter pool at Roberto Clemente State Park in the Bronx, NY, near Bronx Community College (the former NYU campus), where I was teaching at the time.

Over the 12 weeks that my casts were on I gradually increased my water workouts. This was a very difficult time for me both physically and emotionally, but a silver lining emerged that enabled me to turn lemons into lemonade. Doing those many weeks of water exercises led me to publish my first book, the W.E.T. (Water Exercise Techniques) Workout®. I was inspired to write the book as a result of the progress I felt myself making in the pool… even under the trying circumstances of having two casts wrapped in plastic shopping bags!

By the time the next spring rolled around, I was able to compete in the Short Course U.S. Master’s Nationals in Fort Lauderdale, the former home of the International Swimming Hall of Fame. I was able to win the 1,650-yard event, which was an emotional and physical thrill under the circumstances. But even more priceless to me was the fact that I now had the ability to move about freely and without pain. It’s the kind of thing people can’t fully appreciate unless they’ve had an extended period where they were confined by a serious injury. And I owed my recovery — physical, emotional and spiritual – to being able to get into the water, whether be a small pool, large pool… or even a hot tub!

I continue to find solace in the water. My dad and mentor (both in life as well as the pool), Coach Leon Katz, passed away this past January. I miss him terribly, but I always find a sense of relief from my grief, as well as a connection to him, when I’m in the water.

The Transformative Effects of Water
Over the years I’ve had several medical procedures in addition to the aforementioned accidents, leaving me feeling challenged at times. But the magical properties of water would wash away the blues and make me feel free and ageless– far younger than my 72 years.

There’s something about being weightless in the water that transforms me into a youthful mermaid, with my mom and dad watching me and cheering me on. The power of the pool cannot be underestimated. Whenever I’m swimming, I am so grateful to be in such a wonderful place.

To learn more about Dr. Jane Katz, visit GlobalAquatics.com

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