Integritus Prime

If you have been following my swimming journey, you know it has included milestones, distance goals and plenty of lessons about patience. It has taught me to listen to my body, celebrate progress and accept that improvement does not always happen in the ways I expect. My latest two breakthroughs happened while I was in California promoting my Mornings with Marilyn meditation app. I was not expecting a swimming revelation. Yet somewhere between a mountain lake, a community pool and a necessary break from training, something clicked.

1. I completed my first-ever lake swim—and felt no fear

During my trip to Mt. Shasta, I had the opportunity to swim in Castle Lake. By then, I had taken about a week away from swimming. This was also my first time swimming in a lake, so I could easily have felt nervous about the depth, the open water or what might be beneath me. I took my time getting into the water. But I did not feel afraid. Instead, I felt completely relaxed. It was a stunning, sunny day, and the water was beautiful. Coming from the Fiji winter, being outdoors in that glorious sunshine felt especially wonderful. I entered the lake, began swimming and made my way towards the middle. Then I swam back before continuing to swim around, going back and forth and simply enjoying the experience.

I was aware that I was in a very different environment from my usual swimming pool, but my mind did not create stories about what might go wrong. I did not panic or rush. I simply swam. That absence of fear was perhaps the most remarkable part of the experience. I trusted myself and allowed my body to move through the water. Around me, other people were swimming and kayaking. There was a lovely sense of community—like-minded people enjoying the lake, the sunshine, the exercise and the beauty of nature. Nobody needed to explain why they were there. We were all drawn to the water in our own ways.

Then, as I was finishing my swim, a family of ducks glided past. It felt like the perfect ending: peaceful, natural and unexpectedly magical. My first lake swim was not about speed or distance. It was about freedom. I entered unfamiliar water and discovered that I could feel completely at home.

2. My breathing and body finally found their rhythm

Later in my California trip, I swam at a community pool in Santa Cruz with a dear friend and her family. Normally, we assume that progress comes from doing more—more practice, more effort and more repetition. But perhaps my body needed rest. And then something magical happened.

In both Castle Lake and the Santa Cruz pool, I noticed that my movements felt more coordinated, particularly when turning my head to breathe to the side. My breathing, head movement and body position seemed to work together instead of feeling like separate instructions I was trying to manage.

I do not know whether it was the break, the change of scenery or simply the cumulative effect of everything I had already practiced. Perhaps my body had been learning even while I was resting. Whatever the reason, something clicked. After returning to Fiji, I had nearly two weeks of jet lag, so getting back to form has taken time, with shorter swims and longer breaks. Today, however, I swam one kilometer – my usual – and that same feeling of ease and coordination was still there. The breakthrough had travelled home with me.

Sometimes the most important progress is the moment the body stops struggling or trying with a movement and begins to become it. I now feel ready for the next stage. I am excited to join the Masters swimming team, learn from my coach and more experienced swimmers and take my swimming to another level.

My journey continues to surprise me. Sometimes progress looks like swimming farther. Sometimes it looks like entering a lake without fear. And sometimes, after rest and a change of scene, it feels as though the body quietly says, “I understand now.”

Share with me a time when something clicked for you.