Aquatic or water exercises, such as basic swimming and pool running, are ways to get fit and improve your cardiovascular health. Swimming is a low-impact exercise because it elevates your heart rate and increases calorie expenditure while reducing joint compression. Unlike land fitness, when working out in a pool you are surrounded by a source of resistance and you can control that resistance during your workout. There are several variations of aquatic exercise that make this type of fitness even more engaging and effective.
Pool Running
Doug Stern, a deep water running instructor for the New York Roadrunners, maintains that deep water pool running helps to strengthen all key muscles used in land running. The program, according to Turner, will help to increase your stride length and hip extension, which translates to better race times. Pool running can provide a refreshing full-body workout. The Aquatic Exercise Association recommends wearing a specialized water shoe or your regular sneakers when you begin an aquatic running program.
Innovative Aquatic Intervals
The Aquatic Exercise Association introduced the aquatic exercise program that marries high-intensity interval training with aquatics. The program begins with a five-minute warm-up, which consists of a high-heel jog performed in a box pattern, a series of jumps and leg extensions, all performed in the water. This creative warm-up is followed by jumping jacks, then a level-two jack, which the Aquatic Exercise Association describes as a bend at the knees and hips, as if sitting in a chair, with shoulders at the water's surface; gently touch the pool bottom without jumping. The higher-intensity jumps are to be repeated in cycles, followed by a recovery exercise such as one of the warm-ups.
Aquacise
Aquacise classes provide full-body conditioning that includes cardiovascular fitness and strength training. You can find aquacise classes at most gyms that have a pool on site. The instructor will provide a workout that utilizes the resistance of the water to condition your muscles. Water hand weights are also used for an upper body workout against the water's force. On your gym's schedule, the aquacise classes may be titled water aerobics or a similar variation of the name.
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