The Best Swimming & Diving Books 2024

1. Pre-Owned, Total Immersion: The Revolutionary Way To Swim Better, Faster, and Easier, (Paperback)

Pre-Owned - Swim better--and enjoy every lap--with Total Immersion, a guide to improving your swimming from an expert with more than thirty years of experience in the water. Terry Laughlin, the world's #1 authority on swimming success, has made his unique approach even easier for anyone to master. Whether you're an accomplished swimmer or have always found swimming to be a struggle, Total Immersion will show you that it's mindful fluid movement--not athletic ability--that will turn you into an efficient swimmer. This new edition of the bestselling Total Immersion features: -A thoughtfully choreographed series of skill drills--practiced in the mindful spirit of yoga--that can help anyone swim more enjoyably -A holistic approach to becoming one with the water and to developing a swimming style that's always comfortable -Simple but thorough guidance on how to improve fitness and form -A complementary land-and-water program for achieving a strong and supple body at any age Based on more than thirty years of teaching, coaching, and research, Total Immersion has dramatically improved the physical and mental experience of swimming for thousands of people of all ages and abilities.

Pre-Owned, Total Immersion: The Revolutionary Way To Swim Better, Faster, and Easier, (Paperback)

2. Gold in the Water: The True Story of Ordinary Men and Their Extraordinary Dream of Olympic Glory, Pre-Owned (Paperback)

Pre-Owned - In California, a team of talented young men begin pursuing the most elusive dream in sports, the Olympic Games. The pressure steadily increases as two best friends (a mentor and his protege) reach the top of the world rankings and unexpectedly find themselves direct competitors. Their teammates include an emerging star methodically plotting to retrace his father's path to Olympic glory, as well as a super-extraordinary athlete desperate to walk away from it all. Led by one of the most passionate coaches in sports, a brilliant and explosive strategist on a personal quest for redemption, this team of dark horses and Olympic favorites works through escalating rivalries, joyous triumphs, and heartbreaking setbacks. Author P. H. Mullen chronicles their journey to the 2000 Olympic Games and presents one of the most powerful and moving sports books ever written. Boldly sweeping in literary power and pace, this startling book will permanently change how you view the Olympic athlete. It is a fascinating world of suspense and emotion where human desire for excellence rules over all, and where there are no second chances for glory. But above all, Gold in the Water is a triumph of the human spirit.

Gold in the Water: The True Story of Ordinary Men and Their Extraordinary Dream of Olympic Glory, Pre-Owned (Paperback)

3. International Lifeguard Training Program (Revised), Used [Paperback]

Lifeguarding is a challenging and rewarding job. As a lifeguard, you are responsible for the safety and welfare of your quests in an aquatic facility. It is critical that you learn lifesaving skills the right way!Ellis & Associates International Lifeguard Training Program (ILTP) provides the highest level of lifeguard training. Lifeguards who complete the ILTP program have safety and service skills that far exceed current industry standards. This leads to superior performances and the development of lifeguards who have the ability to protect both guests and themselves. E & A licensed lifeguards consistently demonstrate their excellence through their accountability, professionalism, competency, and service. The E & A International Lifeguard Training Program guidelines have revolutionized the aquatic safety industry, and are continuing to set new and higher standards worldwide.International Lifeguard Training Program(tm), Revised Third Edition clearly and effectively presents the critical skills and techniques of the ILTP(tm) program. You will progress smoothly through the International Lifeguard Training Program(tm) aided by the textbook's colorful and informative photographs, illustrations, and flowcharts. Essential lifeguarding skills such as critical thinking, decision making, communication, and teamwork are emphasized throughout the textbook.

International Lifeguard Training Program (Revised), Used [Paperback]

4. Swim Speed Secrets for Swimmers and Triathletes: Master the Freestyle Technique Used by the World's Fastest Swimmers (Swim Speed Series) [Paperback - Used]

CONDITION - USED - Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include "From the library of" labels or previous owner inscriptions. Accessories such as CD, codes, toys, may not be included. Here, four-time Olympian, gold medallist, and triathon world champion Sheila Taormina reveals the swim technique used by the world's fastest swimmers. With this book, triathletes and swimmers can stop swimming for survival and break through to new levels of speed and confidence in the water.

Swim Speed Secrets for Swimmers and Triathletes, Used [Paperback]

5. Michael Phelps: The Untold Story of a Champion [Paperback - Used]

CONDITION - USED - Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include "From the library of" labels or previous owner inscriptions. Accessories such as CD, codes, toys, may not be included. Michael Phelps is an American sports hero, perhaps the greatest Olympic athlete the world has ever known. His unprecedented eight gold medals in the 2008 Summer Olympics have made him a superstar. But his journey to Olympic immortality is every bit as compelling as his achievements in the pool. From learning to cope with ADHD to the story of how Phelps became the greatest swimmer ever, Phelps' tale is told in full detail here for the first time. The author, Bob Schaller, has known Phelps and his coach for more than eight years, and has extensively interviewed him, along with his mother, sisters, coach, and teammates. Filled with revelations, career statistics, and insightful analysis of how Phelps achieved the seemingly impossible, this is a must-read for anyone who wants to learn the complete story behind the legend.

Michael Phelps: The Untold Story of a Champion, Used [Paperback]

6. The New Science of Swimming (2nd Edition), Used [Paperback]

Basic book and reference on the science of swimming by the "father" of modern competitive swimming.

The New Science of Swimming (2nd Edition), Used [Paperback]

7. Swimming, Used [Paperback]

One of 17 in the "Sports and Fitness" series, this text aims to give students an appreciation of swimming, and encourages them to develop their skills while actively participating in the sport. Tactics are presented as applied examples throughout.

Swimming, Used [Paperback]

8. Competitive Swimming: Techniques for Champions (Sport's Illustrated Winner's Circle Books), Used [Paperback]

Competitive swimming is the world's most popular participation sport, with more than a million participants in the U.S. alone. Now, renowned swim coach Mark Schubert shows you all you need to know in order to swim competitively and reach your ultimate potential. With this book you can learn: *The four competitive strokes-freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke- and how to swim them properly. *How to shave seconds off your starts, turns, and finishes. *Five keys to organizing your own successful workout program. *The latest dry-land exercises and how to make them work for you. * What every serious swimmer should know about nutrition. * Plus tips on visualization, race strategies, coaching, training, and more!

Competitive Swimming: Techniques for Champions (Sport's Illustrated Winner's Circle Books), Used [Paperback]

9. The Three-Year Swim Club: The Untold Story of Maui's Sugar Ditch Kids and Their Quest for Olympic Glory [Paperback - Used]

CONDITION - USED - Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include "From the library of" labels or previous owner inscriptions. Accessories such as CD, codes, toys, may not be included. The New York Times bestselling inspirational story of impoverished children who transformed themselves into world-class swimmers. In 1937, a schoolteacher on the island of Maui challenged a group of poverty-stricken sugar plantation kids to swim upstream against the current of their circumstance. The goal? To become Olympians. They faced seemingly insurmountable obstacles. The children were Japanese-American and were malnourished and barefoot. They had no pool; they trained in the filthy irrigation ditches that snaked down from the mountains into the sugarcane fields. Their future was in those same fields, working alongside their parents in virtual slavery, known not by their names but by numbered tags that hung around their necks. Their teacher, Soichi Sakamoto, was an ordinary man whose swimming ability didn't extend much beyond treading water. In spite of everything, including the virulent anti-Japanese sentiment of the late 1930s, in their first year the children outraced Olympic athletes twice their size; in their second year, they were national and international champs, shattering American and world records and making headlines from L.A. to Nazi Germany. In their third year, they'd be declared the greatest swimmers in the world. But they'd also face their greatest obstacle: the dawning of a world war and the cancellation of the Games. Still, on the battlefield, they'd become the 20th century's most celebrated heroes, and in 1948, they'd have one last chance for Olympic glory. They were the Three-Year Swim Club. This is their story.

The Three-Year Swim Club : The Untold Story of Maui's Sugar Ditch Kids and Their Quest for Olympic Glory, Used [Paperback]

10. Downstream : A History and Celebration of Swimming the River Thames, Used [Hardcover]

Stretching 215 miles from its source in Gloucestershire, through England s capital and across to the North Sea, the River Thames has always enticed swimmers. From bathing kings to splashing school children, intrepid wild swimmers to international athletes, this famous river has long been a favourite. But it was the Victorian era that saw the birth of organised river racing with the launch of the long distance amateur championship of Great Britain. Soon floating baths were built in London; people swam at official bathing pools and islands at Oxford, Reading and Henley, dived off pontoons at Kingston and played at temporary lidos in Richmond. By the 1930s the Thames had become a top holiday spot for families with beaches at the Tower of London, Greenwich and Grays. Then in 1957 the river was declared biologically dead, organised racing was largely over, and swimming in the Thames was seen as dangerous. Yet today we have returned to the river in numbers not seen for a long time, some drawn by the thrill of wild swimming, others to compete in annual racing events. Now Caitlin Davies recounts the history of swimmers and the Thames, telling the stories of legends like Annette Kellerman and Matthew Webb, forgotten champions such as Agnes Beckwith and Lily Smith, as well as modern day charity swimmers and sport stars. Downstream explores the changing nature of swimmers relationship with the river, featuring previously unpublished archive images, and asks why it is that swimmers still love the Thames.

Downstream : A History and Celebration of Swimming the River Thames, Used [Hardcover]