Wellness Wednesday: The Benefits of Aqua Aerobics

Burn Calories in the Pool With Aqua Aerobics

swimming

Image courtesy of franky242 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Everyone is looking for a good workout that will help them burn calories. After all, losing weight is one of the benefits of exercise. Sometimes, though, you’d like to know if there are other options besides the gym or hitting the running trail. Consider the pool – non-swimming exercise like aqua aerobics is a great calorie burner.

What exactly is aqua aerobics? The key is in the word aerobic – if you’re in the water, and doing a workout that will elevate your heart rate and give you a cardiovascular benefit, that qualifies as aqua aerobics. A lot of people think of the classes where a group of people are in the water waving their arms and laughing – but water workouts have so many more options than that. Here are some resources which provide a great overview of water exercise:

Water Aerobics and Water Fitness Exercises

My Ultimate Guide To Aqua Aerobics

Calories Burned By Pool Running Vs. Land Running

There are many choices. Do you like to relax and need a place to relieve stress? There are aqua tai chi and aqua yoga that will let a person calm down in a cool and soothing environment. For those who want a more strenuous workout that will burn more calories, try kick boxing and the super popular Zumba, with those sexy hip swinging moves. If you want a weight workout, you can do almost any exercise you would in the gym with water weights.

The many options is what makes aqua aerobics so appealing – you’re not stuck on the same treadmill over the winter.

The benefits of water. Remember how much fun it was to splash and bounce around in the pool when we were kids? That’s because of the buoyancy of the water – the body only has to support a fraction of its own weight in the water. This provides a lightness that translates to a low impact workout solution. In the water, if you do jumping jacks, the foot strike when you land is so much more gentle than on land. Because of lower gravity and cooler water, there’s less stress on the heart when you work out in the water.

Burn those calories. For those who think a water workout doesn’t provide enough effort, just consider water running as opposed to running on land. On land, a person burns about 8 calories per minute. In the water – a person will burn 11.5 calories per minute. Just pushing yourself against the resistance of the water makes the workout more effective, and provides an excellent way to burn calories.

A soothing workout environment. It’s July, and too hot outside to go for a run. It looks like another treadmill workout is in your future. Instead, go to the indoor pool when the lap lanes are open. Begin moving up and down one of the lanes with in a solid running posture. You’ll have to lean forward a bit like you’re sprinting to push through the water. Wear some old ratty gym shoes, because the bottom of the pool might be rough. Put a water bottle at the end of the lane, because you’ll be sweating more than you realize. Leave the pool feeling refreshed, and knowing you’ve gotten a great workout.

Start moderately. If you’re new to exercise, don’t overdo it – you don’t want to discourage yourself and stop working out. The typical recommendation is thirty minutes of exercise five days a week. But use that as a goal to work toward, not something you have to attain the first week.

Leave the pool with a big smile on your face – aqua aerobics was invigorating, and you burned a lot of calories.

Kaitlin Gardner started AnApplePerDay.com to further her passion for a family friendly, green living lifestyle. She is married to her college sweetheart and lives in Pennsylvania. She and her husband enjoy going for long hikes, to get out and enjoy nature. She is working on her first book about ways to live an eco-friendly, healthy, natural life.

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