I'm a life-long swimmer and to me, being in the water is like heaven.
When I'm in the pool, there are people of all abilities.
Some hold onto the sides, or use floats and noodles.
Others water-walk in leisurely fashion with floats, talking to friends; some strike out as if they are training for the Olympics. Others just walk though the water, feet on the bottom at the shallow end.
No one puts themselves under pressure (apart from the Olympic hopefuls)
I used to do two hours hard out but since I was hospitalised at the beginning of the year, haven't been able to make that back yet. I can manage an hour and I'll be down there at 8:45 in the morning, plying backwards and forwards.
I really miss winter swimming in rivers and the sea but now I can't drive, that (like so much else) is lost to me.