Dive Into Fitness Transformation With Water Aerobics
Nowadays, more and more people opt for swimming as a way to relax and work out. This activity has numerous health benefits, triggering every muscle in your body. So, why not consider adding a few exercises to your regular swimming rotation? Since water provides 15 times more resistance, it will support your joints and help strengthen your muscles much faster than when you work out on land.
Engaging your arms, legs, glutes, shoulders, and core in the pool has become part of aqua aerobic routines worldwide. You can perform them like your typical workout routine, three circuits with 10 reps each.
The following sections will help you discover the importance of water aerobics and ways you can incorporate these exercises into your pool time.
Water Aerobics for Beginners
Pool-based exercises (i.e. water aerobic) are a great alternative to gym cardio and strength training, increasing flexibility and burning calories. Namely, water is 800 times denser than air and creates resistance rotationally, vertically, and horizontally. Also, this kind of workout can be beneficial to your mental well-being and cardiovascular health.
Aquatic exercises are ideal for anyone with rheumatoid arthritis or those recovering from injuries since water buoyancy exerts minimal impact on joints and bones. Furthermore, water aerobics can alleviate a wide range of health conditions. They include diabetes, obesity, depression, back pain, balance issues, and even weakness associated with chemotherapy.
As for equipment, you won’t need anything too fancy. Bring along a swim cap, goggles, and specialized water running shoes for an extra grip against the pool floor. Weights are optional, but if you want, you can add a kickboard, water dumbbells, or a styrofoam noodle.
Fat-Burning Water Aerobic Exercises
Swimming laps are not the only exercise you can do in the pool. Below is a water aerobics exercises list, which you can perform in less than an hour, three times a week.
Jumping Jacks
Choose a pool depth you are comfortable with, preferably up to your chest. Put your feet together and arms to your sides. Then, jump by raising your arms overhead and moving your legs outward simultaneously. Repeat 8–12 times. Increase your tempo and incorporate ankle and wrist weights to make the moves more challenging.
Squat Jumps
If you want to improve your muscle imbalance and strengthen your legs, jump squats are for you. Stand in the shallow part of the pool, spread your legs wide apart, and keep your toes turned out. Lower your body, and bend your knees until you are in a squatting position. Keep your feet flat, strengthen your legs and ankles, spring into a jump, and repeat this movement.
To make it a little more complicated, move faster to create more resistance, and lower your body as much as possible (don’t dunk your head underwater) until you feel pulsation in your quads and glutes.
Flutter Kick
Flutter kick is a great water aerobics exercise for losing weight. You may recognize it from the swimming lessons you took as a kid. Simply hold onto the edge of the pool, a float, or a pool noodle while floating face-down. Stretch your arms, extend your legs, and kick them as fast as possible.
Focus on keeping your legs underwater the entire time, as this will increase the resistance. Aim for small kicks at a fast pace.
Aquatic Hip Extension
Aquatic hip extension or rear leg raise may be worth trying if you want to work out hip muscles and lower back. Put your hands on the poolside and keep your back straight. Focus on your hip muscles, extend your leg, and start lifting. You don’t have to raise it as high as your back line. Control the speed and alternate the legs (15–20 reps per leg).
Scissors
This is a fantastic exercise for toning your inner and outer thighs. Grasp the pool's edge with arms wide open and lean back against the wall. Raise your legs to be parallel with the bottom. Then, spread them as wide as possible. Bring your legs together and cross the right over the left one, squeezing your inner thighs as you go. Open your legs and return to the initial position. Cross the left over the right leg to complete one rep.
Run in Water
This cardio exercise is best performed on the shallow side of the pool. Start running from the initial position, getting some air under each step. Use your arms underwater to work out your arm and shoulder muscles. If you want to concentrate solely on your lower body, lift your arms above water.
Noodle Bike
You can use the noodle in two different ways for this exercise — either put it between your legs and sit on it like a bike, or wrap the noodle around your back and rest your arms on top. Start pedaling as if you are cycling and keep at it for 3–5 minutes. This can even be an excellent upper-body exercise if you keep your arm still and steer your noodle bike using your arms.
Pool-Edge Push-Ups
Place your hands shoulder-width apart on the pool edge as you stand at arm's length in the water. As you keep your feet on the pool floor, transfer your weight to your upper body, tighten your core, and lower your upper body toward the pool edge. Then, raise your torso back to the initial position. Repeat the exercise for three sets of ten.
If you want to make it more challenging, place your arms shoulder-width apart on the pool edge, but this time, raise your torso halfway out of the water. Keep your elbows slightly bent, hold for a few seconds, and lower the body to the pool edge.
Conclusion
Adding aqua workouts to your fitness regimen will undoubtedly increase your cardio fitness and strengthen your major muscle groups. Water aerobics is a fantastic way of exercising without stressing the body, and it can be an excellent therapy for people with joint injuries, pain issues, and even pregnant women.
However, it is essential to check with your doctor whether you are able to perform them, especially if you can’t swim for extended periods.
