The kickboard may evoke memories of your earliest swim lessons, but it has many other uses. Physical therapists use kickboards for rehabilitation, and sport coaches use them to cross-train their athletes. Kickboards also provide safe, efficient and effective exercise for pregnant women, senior citizens and aqua-aerobics enthusiasts. They offer a cool alternative to hot-weather outdoor workouts.
Features
Most kickboards are composed of foam or a specific type of waterproof plastic. Some come with an ergonomic strap, which enables you to hold the board without gripping the sides. This feature is helpful for anyone with carpal tunnel or other hand and wrist problems.
Function
These waterproof exercise devices facilitate flotation in deep water and provide a learning platform for novice swimmers. They also enable you to perform leg, gluteal, upper body and abdominal exercises in the pool. Perform an aquatic version of the reverse curl by resting your chest against the board, lifting your legs and bending your knees toward your chest. Perform 10 repetitions.
Benefits
Kickboard exercise has numerous apparent and subtle benefits. Swimming drills help the novice swimmer gain confidence in deeper water. Even expert swimmers benefit from kickboard training. Three-time Olympic gold medalist Rowdy Gaines uses the boards for leg-strengthening exercises. Kickboard aerobic exercise helps you maintain cardiovascular fitness if you have an injured knee, hip or ankle. The boards also add challenge to aqua resistance-training exercises.
Expert Insight
Glen Mills, expert swim coach for Go Swim TV, uses the kickboard sit as a teaching exercise. Mills believes that this exercise also helps swimmers of all levels improve their balance and sensory awareness while fine-tuning the swimming-specific hand and wrist movements. Sit on the board with your knees bent. Contract your abdominal muscle to engage your deep core muscles. This helps you maintain stability. Extend your arms to the side at shoulder height. Bend your elbows, submerging your hands in the water. Point your fingers down toward the bottom of the pool. Stabilize your shoulders and upper arms, and sweep your hands toward and away from your body. Watch the video in the Resources section for a detailed explanation.
Physical Therapy
The outpatient rehabilitation clinic at the Ohio State University Medical Center uses kickboard exercise in its physical therapy program. The standing kickboard press and pull is an example. The exercise works the chest, back, core and oblique muscles. Submerge your body in the pool so that the water is shoulder height. Hold the board in a vertical position at chest height. Begin with your elbows bent. Then, extend your arms and push the board away from your body. Bend your arms and return with control. Contract your abdominal muscles to stabilize your upper torso. Perform 10 repetitions, and then do the same movement but push the board to the right as you extend your arms. Perform 10 repetitions to the right and 10 to the left.
Considerations
Pool depth for these exercises varies according to your body fat level. People with extremely low body fat are less buoyant and might need to go to the deeper end of the pool for exercises requiring flotation.
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