A swimming pool offers a variety of workouts, whether you are training for a triathlon, looking for options in your exercise routine, recovering from an injury or looking for a cool place to get fit during the summer heat. A University of South Carolina study published in 2009 of 40,000 men found swimmers in better cardio health with a lower death rate than walkers or sedentary people in the 32-year study period.
Strengthening and Stretching
There are many pool exercises to strengthen and stretch your muscles. For example -- you can do biceps curls and lateral raises while jogging backwards in waist-deep water. You also can strengthen your core by doing exercises with a stability ball in chest high water. While walking backwards, push the ball deep into the water, then release and catch it when it descends.
Endurance
Exercise in the pool can build flexibility, endurance, long and flexible muscles, and improve your cardiovascular health. You don't even need to be able to swim to derive such benefits, since many water exercises are done in shallow pools or walking pools where the water only comes up as high as your chest. If you are fit and healthy enough, you can do interval training in the pool, when you exercise to the point of breathlessness, slow down, and then pick up the pace again.
Safety
Water exercises are safe for pregnant and overweight women and for people who suffer from conditions such as arthritis, back pain, and muscle and joint problems. Women Fitness website suggests 10 water exercises, including water marching, jumping jacks and side stretches. Even low-impact exercises on land or in the gym can be difficult for the less fit or for those recovering from injuries, so water exercises offer the benefits of exercise in a much safer environment. The buoyancy of the water reduces your body weight, so your muscles and joints take less of a pounding.
Seniors
If you have been to any retirement community with a pool, you may see pools that are only chest-deep or lanes reserved for walkers and water joggers. Water aerobics classes are popular at retirement communities as well. There also are exercise routines marketed specifically to seniors. You can find, for example, CDs or DVDs with music that can be used in chest high water by swimmers and non-swimmers. Tapes and aerobics classes offer all of the benefits of pool exercises, stretching and strengthening muscles while enhancing your cardiac fitness.
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