On a personal note about Tang, you could never find a more dedicated coach than him. He is extremely patient in his teachings, never forcing you to do more than what you can achieve at the moment. He conducts his class in very friendly, hands on manner and he is very sharp in spotting those slight variations in your techniques that requires improvements. What I like most is that he works with you to achieve your goals through a methodological and realistic approach. We just completed a training race recently and he had those seasoned triathletes race in measly 400m events (!!) just to drive home the point to swim the full course in TI style instead of letting old habits take over when in race mode. A humbling truth that if you can't TI in 400m, you won't TI in 3.8km.

I truly believe why Tang is good at what he is doing is because he is passionate about coaching and swimming, but most of all it is because he has a genuine interest in the success of his trainees.

I always believed that to do something well, I need to learn. Finding the right program or technique that works and makes sense is the first step. The next thing is to find someone who can deliver that program effectively and successfully. For me, this is TI + Tang. A big Thank You to Tang and his team for being great people, great coaches and most of all helping me discover the joy of swimming freestyle!

SL

It's been a most fruitful (albeit cold!!!) 8 sessions with you learning the TI way of swimming freestyle. I had always thought that pulling and kicking harder is the key to swimming longer and faster, and the TI method had given me new insights into how one can do the freestyle more efficiently without constantly kicking and pulling harder! Although still far from being able to execute the stroke correctly, the sessions had laid the foundation for me to understand and I believe, to improve by practicing this method of swimming.

And your easy and patient guidance is most appreciated. Having the number of instructors to constantly correct the posture and inculcate the right techniques of each drill and slowly building the freestyle stroke is effective. I look forward to the next module to continue practicing the TI way of swimming with you and your team!

Best Regards,
May Wan
Fri, December 28, 2007 11:48 pm

I first learned to "Swim" at 17 years old. Swimming for me has always been one of "kick harder and pull harder" method. Today at 50 years old, your TI methods have opened my eyes to "Efficient and Graceful Swimming the correct way without having to kick harder and pull harder. TI methods open the horizons to continuous swimming without getting so exhausted and surprisingly improves speed. I could hardly swim freestyle through the 50 m length pool without getting breathless at the end. Now after having gone through TI Module One I can swim the 50 m effortlessly even though I have not mastered the methods perfectly. I cannot wait till I put in the practice to reap the rewards of your coaching.

Many coaches these days lack the patience and passion for the sport. You on the other hand are an asset not only to the TI method of swimming but most of all to the students who are fortunate to learn from you.

Thank You again and I wish you all the success towards achieving your goal of an indoor training (warm) pool by 2009.

The one who's always freezing in the pool - Winston Chin
Fri, December 28, 2007 11:48 pm

I found Tang to be an experienced and patient instructor who understands the needs of adult improvement minded swimmers.

Tang has a good eye for spotting problems. On day one for example he immediately spotted my breathing problems and took me through a set of drills designed to reduce the problem.

Tang stayed in the water with me through our every session. He first demonstrated each new drill, explained it and then I went through it. Tang usually signaled correct body position by tapping or sometimes moving my head or arms. He also explained what I needed to change. I especially appreciated learning a drill through both visual and kinesthetic channels. Tang patiently "hung in there" with me until I was ready to go on to another new drill.

Daily video taping and replay helped me to see improvement as well as what needed to improve.

The cool water temperature in the pool was really the only downside to our lessons.

My stroke has improved as a result of the lessons. Do I have a great stroke? No, not by a long shot but I have a clear sense of the way towards improvement.

Overall, I was very pleased with the lessons and impressed by Tang's hard work and dedication.

Michelle Price
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
16 January 2008

Tang is very patient with me as I have no swimming background at all. I took me quite a long time to finally grasp most of the drills before even dreaming of swimming freestyle normally. What's more important is that Tang doesn't just teach me TI, but he also explains to me the reasons and concepts behind each drill that we must do to achieve a smooth swimming stroke. Everything eventually made sense to me and I became more and more convince that TI will work. Only after about 4months of learning TI was I finally able to swim freestyle! But I still had a long way to go before I'm able to swim freestyle comfortably during a triathlon races.

Tang personally took up the challenge to make sure that I'll be able to swim well on my first Half-Ironman event in September 2006. With his encouragement and motivation, I improved tremendously! Within just 9 months, I'm able to swim freestyle in a Half-Ironman event! Something which I never even dream about 10 months before that.

After my Half-Ironman event, I gain confidence in my swim, and was fully convinced that all the drills and trainings that I had with Tang is the reason why my swim can improve so tremendously in such a short period of time! I'll be going for my first Ironman event in February 2007, and I have no doubt that the skills and fitness I've gained from Tang will be valuable for the swim section of my Ironman race!

Thank you Tang for your patience and also determination to make me a better swimmer! You are a great coach! I am looking forward to improve my swim even more under your training and guidance.

Yours sincerely, Andy

Mr Tang has ensured high standard and quality in his work; his teaching methods have shown efficiency and efficacy. He has often gone above and beyond what is required and expected of him, putting in the extra mile to ensure that his students understand his lessons. Specific examples of his dedication to his work include staying late to coach his students beyond the lesson time. Not one to stagnate in the present, he often seeks improvement and is able to adapt with changes easily.

With his numerous veritable attributes, commendable attitude and adaptability, Mr Tang is an important asset to the society.

I would strongly recommend him for his worthy coaching.

Yours faithfully

Ngoh Joo Lee

Thank you so much for your support and assistance. I think you're a great coach with a great personality, well suited for your chosen profession. Tang appreciates that every person is an individual with unique needs and circumstances and understands individual goals. Yet, he makes everyone of any level feel special.

Your knowledge and past personal experience doesn't hurt either. As I've mentioned before, I feel I got more than my moneys worth. In addition to your program and your feedback, I really enjoyed the workouts. Unintimidating is the word that keeps popping into my mind and I think that is really important. You attract a group of really nice people to your club and that says a lot, I think. Thanks again, I had an AWESOME experience in Total Immersion!

Eddy Tan

Come June 2005, it will mark my one year of swimming under you and the TI way and I vividly remember I was a "splasher" that lasted ONLY one lap when we first met.

When I came to you and told you I have 2 months prior to a triathlon race and needed freestyle coaching, you took on the challenge while other coaches told me the impossible and to stay with breaststroke. As an aspiring endurance athlete, I have always maintained that "everything-is-possible" attitude. I was encouraged by your determination to make me a better swimmer. Your strong belief in the TI swimming techniques coupled with your commitment and dedication provided me the assurance despite of my long list of worries. Throughout the TI workshop, your effective coaching method instilled swim confidence and water comfort. Not once do I recall any disappointment nor signals of "impossibilities" from you. Nothing supersedes the right mental attitude and this has to come from both the coach and student.

Swimming is an art, swimming effortlessly, swimming with grace were all alien to me when I started TI. Over a span of 5 months since I started swimming with you, I have completed 2 sprint distance and 1 Olympic distance triathlons. Though I wouldn't say the initial swims were fun, I was able to apply the techniques and complete the swim leg, and have enough energy to bike and run. With the follow-up swim sessions, I started swimming laps without feeling tired. Also, I have been told and can feel the grace in my strokes which I am really proud of. It is an art that I learn to appreciate.

TI WORKS! And so my life as a first year triathlete has been good.

Tang, my goal this year is to complete the Desaru Half Ironman and hopefully prepare me for an Ironman next year. With your guidance, I am sure I will overcome the fear of distance swimming. Thank you.

Jong