Water aerobics provides an excellent way to slim down, tone up, and lose weight. It provides a stress free environment for your joints and multi-directional resistance to build muscle with every movement. The benefits are multiple and their are a multitude of options for exercises. It is a social form of exercise that can use a fun variety of equipment.
Benefits
The benefits of water aerobics are similar to those of any other form of aerobic exercise. It provides an improvement in cardiovascular efficiency, builds muscle strength and endurance and provides a great environment for increasing range of motion. The benefits above and beyond regular on-land aerobics are multiple. Water aerobics only requires you to support 50 percent of your body, therefore reducing stress on your joints. The risk of injury is low and the water provides natural resistance. No special equipment is necessary. It is an ideal form of exercise for severely overweight individuals and people suffering form arthritis. Above all, it is a refreshing form of exercise that can be modified to suit each individual.
Calories Burned
Water aerobics burns significant numbers of calories when proper effort is applied to the exercises. You may experience a lower heart rate while doing water aerobics than you would with traditional on-land aerobics, but that does not negate the positive cardiovascular effects. According to the Mayo Clinic, a 160 pound person would burn as many as 292 calories per hour in a water aerobic class. The larger the muscle groups you engage in your routine, the more calories you burn. Full body movements such as walking while your arms pump under water will create a greater calorie expenditure than simple bicep curls.
Equipment
Adding equipment to your aerobic water routine can enhance the calorie burn for optimal weight loss. Water weights are weights with floatation devices designed to force you to use the muscles in your arms harder. The buoyancy requires extra effort to keep them moving throughout a full range of motion. Beach balls are another kind of optional equipment. The bigger the beach ball, the harder the workout. Aqua joggers are floatation devices that keep you floating in deeper water. This type of equipment requires a greater number of muscles to be engaged, and thus increases calorie burn.
Exercises
There are several excellent exercises you can perform in water aerobics that will help you lose weight. Walking or running in the shallow end of the pool mimics on-land exercises you may already be familiar doing. Kicks, jumping jacks and knee lifts are also great starters. Tuck jumps, frog jumps and scissor jumps all have you using large muscle groups. Progressing movements into the deep end and working your core, legs and arms at the same time are more advanced exercises.
Sample Workout
Weight Loss Professional has provided an online workout with an exercise routine. Starting in the shallow water, jog around the pool and do kicks, jumping jacks, strides and knee lifts to warm up the body. After your warm up, so some light stretching of the quadriceps, calves, hip flexors and hamstrings. Continue with the kicks, jumping jacks, strides and knee lifts at a higher intensity. Move on to a series of tuck jumps, frog jumps, and scissor jumps. Finish your aerobic workout with heel lift jumps and kicking your legs and jogging for two to three minutes. Finally, stretch all of the leg muscles you stretched before your workout.
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