Pickleball can teach swimming a few lessons about friendship, wellness, coaching, and lifelong participation!

In Episode #120 of Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide, Coach Mark Rauterkus welcomes Ken DeHart, a tennis and pickleball teaching professional from San Jose, California. Together they explore healthy aging, social connection, skill development, and playing well with others.

Ken explains why pickleball brings people together in public parks. Coach Mark connects those lessons to swimming, water polo, underwater hockey, and more social aquatic programs.

The message: Play more. Make friends. Stay active. Keep learning.

WATCH, LISTEN & LEARN

Watch Ken DeHart's full pickleball seminar and explore international coaching education at WAFSU.org:
https://wafsu.org/

International Swim Coaches Association:
https://swimisca.com/

MEET KEN DEHART

Ken discusses longevity research associated with racket sports; pickleball's welcoming culture; public park play; the kitchen and third shot drop; eye-hand coordination; warm-ups and injury prevention; and how coaching improves the coach.

EPISODE CHAPTERS

00:00 – Ken's opening on longevity
00:15 – Welcome to Heavy Or Not #120
00:33 – Ken DeHart and the swimming connection
00:55 – Tennis research and the 9.7-year finding
01:13 – Competition, coordination, and social play
02:11 – Pickleball's welcoming beginnings
03:23 – Skill levels and inclusion
04:22 – Park play and paddle rotation
05:14 – Making swimming more social
06:04 – Pickleball noise and neighborhood concerns
07:10 – Sharing tennis and pickleball courts
07:44 – Pool space and lane-line conflicts
08:16 – Warm-ups, balance, and injury prevention
09:11 – The kitchen and soft shots
09:45 – Third shot drops and ball control
10:55 – Paddle skills and eye-hand coordination
11:51 – Cooperative drills and rallies
12:19 – Dinking and touch
13:17 – Visual, auditory, and kinesthetic cues
14:26 – Coaching basics and certification
15:07 – Teaching improves playing skills
15:36 – Junior and second-career coaches
16:08 – Online coaching shortcuts
17:04 – Cross-training swimmers in Peoria
18:04 – Play, have fun, make friends
18:26 – Full seminar and coaching resources
19:03 – Mental Skills for Young Athletes

THE BIGGER LESSON FOR SWIMMING

Pickleball courts are gathering places. Players talk, rotate into games, and build relationships. Swimming brings major physical benefits, but lap swimming can be solitary.

Coach Mark encourages more relays, water polo, underwater hockey, SKWIM, and other group activities that make pools more social.

Sports are games of time, space, and relationships.

READ THE COMPANION ARTICLE

Explore pickleball, swimming, longevity, and social fitness:
https://wafsu.org/course/120-pickleball-meets-swimming-unlocking-longevity-and-social-fitness/

Coach Mark's Substack:
https://rauterkus.substack.com/

LISTEN TO HEAVY OR NOT

The OG Swim Guide features conversations about coaching, aquatics, wellness, sports culture, and community recreation.

Find podcast episodes at https://HeavyOrNot.com
Subscribe on YouTube for future episodes.

RESOURCES FOR COACHES

Mental Skills for Young Athletes by John M. Hogg, Ph.D., offers practical sports psychology lessons for developing athletes:
https://swimisca.com/

WAFSU seminars and certifications:
https://wafsu.org/

ISCA coaching education and books:
https://swimisca.org/

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Share this episode with a coach, recreation director, swimmer, or pickleball player. Leave a comment about ways to make sport more social.

HOST, Coach Mark Rauterkus brings decades of experience in swimming, aquatic education, youth programs, publishing, and community recreation to Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide.

#Pickleball #KenDeHart #HeavyOrNot #Swimming #SportsCoaching #HealthyAging #SwimISCA #WAFSU

Singer‑songwriter Martin Plummer gave permission for the sharing of his tunes about the brutal 200  fly and 200 breast events.

Plus, hear a quick spotlight on Philippine football pioneer, Rebecca Adri, Ph.D.

• Martin Plummer's original "The 200 Fly" song – lyrics, history, and why the event feels like torture.
• A deep‑dive into the 200 breaststroke: pacing, technique, and the legends behind the race.
• Head‑to‑head comparison: which event is more demanding, the 200 fly or the 200 breast?
• Interview clip with Rebecca Adri, Ph.D. on coaching women's football in the Philippines.
• How to follow Martin Plummer (Instagram, website) and where to find the full football seminar (wafsu.org).
  
  

Follow Martin!

https://Instagram.com/martiinplummer

Get the song lyrics and an article in the Podcast Course for Heavy Or Not at https://wafsu.org/?post_type=tva_lesson&p=4945

Thanks for the folow and subscribe to Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide.

Swimming coaches love to correct strokes. But, let's be certain that those corrections actually stick!

Finnish swimming coach Eetu Karvonen, Ph.D., challenges conventional approaches to swimming technique, stroke correction, drills, and skill development in Episode #118 of Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide.

Eetu begins with a powerful observation: swimming is a skill sport, and opportunities for technical improvement extend throughout an athlete's career.

Consider his coaching calculations. A swimmer might take 15,000 strokes in a week while receiving only seven minutes of individual feedback. Those thousands of repetitions have an enormous influence on how a swimmer learns.

Coach Mark Rauterkus shares highlights from Eetu's WAFSU seminar, exploring how coaches can make every practice a better learning environment.

The conversation covers swimming drills that transfer into full-stroke technique, simple and effective coaching cues, the importance of swimmer ownership, and the integration of skill development into demanding training sets.

Eetu also makes a compelling case for giving swimmers room to experiment, discover better movements, and become active participants in their own technical development.

The coach shapes the learning environment. The swimmer owns the learning.

This episode offers a taste of Eetu's complete presentation, available with its slides at https://WAFSU.org. His earlier WAFSU seminars are also available for coaches seeking additional insights into swimming technique and athlete development.

Listen, learn, and share with a swimming coach who wants to make stroke corrections stick.

Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide
Hosted by Coach Mark Rauterkus
Episode #118
https://HeavyOrNot.com

Coach Mark Rauterkus breaks down the I‑League, a new plan to bring swimming to every high school in Western Pennsylvania. He explains why it matters, how it works, and how you can get involved.

• The current gap: Half of WPIAL schools have no swim teams or aquatic programs.
• I‑League solution: Year‑round swimming, lifeguard training, water polo, triathlon and open‑water options for all students.
• Dual benefit: Provides competition for schools without teams while keeping elite swimmers in scholastic programs with all‑star meets and NIL opportunities.
• Tech edge: AI tools and new resources to train the next generation of swim coaches and instructors.
• How to join: Download the free PDF of Coach Mark's Public Policy Playbook via Crew Lab, grab the paperback for $26, and help push rule changes for more frequent scrimmages.

https://Read.SwimISCA.com to get the book.

Most communities already have more aquatic capacity than they realize. They have pools, schools, coaches, instructors, recreation departments, and community organizations. The opportunity is to connect these assets and put them to work.

In Episode #116 of Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide, Coach Mark Rauterkus introduces The Community Aquatics Directive, a practical playbook co-authored with Coach Ron Usher, inventor of OtterBall.

The book presents ten pillars for transforming underused swimming pools into thriving community assets. The episode explores drowning prevention, learn-to-swim instruction, vertical swimming and aquatic fitness, youth retention programs, school partnerships, competitive pathways, lifeguard development, smarter scheduling, and sustainable funding.

Discover how better programming can expand participation, develop local employment opportunities, strengthen public health, generate revenue, and make existing aquatic facilities more valuable to the communities they serve.

GET THE BOOK FREE: Visit https://SwimISCA.com and join the International Swim Coaches Association team on CrewLAB to access the free PDF edition of The Community Aquatics Directive.

AN INVITATION: Coach Mark is also seeking foreword contributors for future editions of the book, with opportunities to feature the contributor's name on the cover.

A pool is a major community asset. Strong programming is what makes that asset come alive.

Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide | Episode #116

Coach Mark Rauterkus announces the launch of the new book's arrival: "Public Policy Playbook for Pittsburgh Aquatics & Recreation – Yinzer Edition."

Co-author is Ron Usher.

Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide, episode #115 hits current events and then a view into the first book of 2026, Mental Skills for Young Athletes and how that can fit into your sports programs and teams. See the reveal on how to get a free PDF, and let's discuss key strategies to improve city recreation, arts, and youth mental health.

You'll also hear Mayor Corey O'Connor weigh in on new rec‑center partnerships and community initiatives, just before the book gets handed to him.

Mayor is in full agreement. Time will tell.

Overview of the Playbook: 10 pillars, strategic principles, meta plays, and actionable "plays." How to download the free PDF via CREWLAB (crewlab.io) and purchase the printed copy at SWIMISCA.com. Mayor Corey O'Connor's plans for expanding rec‑center hours, school‑facility partnerships, and arts programming. The three‑tier mental‑resilience action plan for youth athletes, based on Dr. John Hoog's research. Next steps: community involvement, feedback opportunities, and upcoming expansions of city sports camps and cultural events.

"The ball's in your court—action is the kicker that will transform our rec centers into life‑saving community hubs."

Barry is pushing for a group to form to consider local recreational needs in Salmon Arm, BC, Canada and has called for a meeting on October 1 at the local university.

In a similar front, but different setting, Mark Rauterkus, is pushing the reformation of the Athletic Reform Task Force in Pittsburgh, PA, USA.

Follow along as these stories unfold. None of us know what to expect and what happens next.

In episode #114 of Heavy Or Not, The OG Swim Guide, we launch a new Substack too, 1Shuswap.Substack.com and give a boost to Barry Healey's efforts in BC, Canada. We discuss building an athletic reform task force, navigating government roadblocks, and a clever way to fund a new public park. We also take a quick look at the VASA trainer's retirement and its impact on swim training.

Learn:

• How to design and launch a city‑wide athletic reform task force from scratch.
• Strategies for getting provincial and federal sport funding when councils push back.
• The "case of beer" pitch that secured a $13‑per‑household‑per‑month park funding plan.
• Engaging schools and universities in community sports development.
• Updates on the VASA trainer's retirement and alternatives for swim‑ERG training.

ISCA Coaches Hall of Fame honored Ray Looze, Indiana University, in the class of 2026. Episode #113 show the tribute video.